An American Werewolf in Paris. John Landis. 1981. ⚄

[pre movie]

I remember watching this on VHS with a friend as a teenager, and… I remember an impressive werewolf transformation? And… I think we liked it? Or am I thinking of The Company of Wolves? The one based on the Angela Carter stories? Oooh! I should get that one! I wonder if it’s out on 2K… It is! Yoinks!

OK, so I’m not sure I’ve even seen this before, but I’ve still got good vibes towards it. It’s by John Landis, so I suppose it’s a comedy horror movie? I… feel like I remember it being more horror than comedy, but… we’ll find out?

[fifteen minutes pass]

Wow! The guys playing the American tourists are just the worst! It’s like amateur acting hour, but without the charm.

[the end]

I’m a bit conflicted about this. The hyper-violent scenes are way beyond the call of duty (I’m thinking of the scene outside the cinema in particular), and the way Landis is smirking at it all is really offputting. (The attempt at meta-commentary by showing the Muppet Show clip about how Punch and Judy are a traditional puppet violence thing is just eyeroll inducing.)

On the other hand, there’s a lot of scenes in here that really work, and have real nerve. The plot is really stupid (what’s up with the yokels, anyway? What’s their thought processes? I was hoping for a twist there, showing their actions to be somewhat rational, but SPOILER WARNING no, they’re just stupid yokels), but that’s OK.

It’s hard to tell whether this is a really horrible movie by a no-talent hack that is accidentally brilliant, or whether it’s a good movie that just falls short in the execution.

I’m kinda leaning towards the former.

I do love all the shots from London.

Varjoja paratiisissa. Aki Kaurismäki. 1986. ⚄

[seven minutes pass]

Are there people learning English in all of Kaurismäki’s movies?!

Anyway, I’m really digging this movie so far, which wasn’t the case at this point with Kaurismäki’s first two films.

The music is just as horrifyingly gruesome as always, though.

[the end]

I really enjoyed this movie. It’s an unpretentious little movie that absolutely nails the mood. The actors do an amazing job at non-acting, and it’s all just… sweet.

The music, though. Gack.

That Touch of Mink. Delbert Mann. 1962. ☐ ⚀ ⚁ ⚂ ⚃ ⚄ ⚅

[five minutes pass]

Well, this is an odd DVD transfer. It starts out letterboxed (on the 4:3) and then after the titles are over, it switches to non-letterboxed 4:3 (presumbaly pan-and-scan).

So this is pretty horrible, but… it’s what I’ve got!

This is one of Cary Grant’s last movies, but he’s just the same as ever.

Yup. It’s pan-n-scan. When people are talking to each other, half of the time they’re just talking to the air because the other person is outside the frame.

[fifty minutes pass]

I’m enjoying this… it’s very fleet-footed. It aims for amiable mirth, and succeeds. It’s not laugh-out-loud funny, but that’s not what it’s going for, so that’s OK.

The problem with the movie is… it’s fucking creepy. It’s fucking creepy. It’s all about this ingenue (Day) who’s being er “courted” by this point one percenter (Grant), so half the scenes is Day having panic attacks while trying to get out of actually having sex with Grant. That’s a downer, and makes a bunch of scenes where they’re going for “awww” end up with the audience (i.e., me) going “ewww!”

So I think we’re going for yet another ⚃ here… the most boring of all dice: “It’s OK”. When things are horrible, it’s more fun, really, and, of course, when movies are wonderful, that’s the best. ⚃ is the worst.

Sort of.