I was looking at the Roger Ebert book The Great Movies at work, and since I just saw 8 1/2 I figured I'd see what he thought.
I agreed with most of it, but it's funny, the things he notes that detractor-critics said about it when it came out.
Some critics said it was overindulgent, that Fellini had gall to make a movie about a director without ideas, that it meant that Fellini had no ideas... but, as Ebert points out, that's not what 8 1/2 is!! It is a fully realized movie that flows very well! It's a movie about a director without ideas that follows a very straight arc...
Also, Ebert says many critics complained that you can't tell the fantasy sequences from the real ones. Ebert's response is that you usually can, and he's right... but to me the sequences where reality and fantasy are shaken up are the best thing about the movie! God, what were these critics thinking???!! It's fun to use your imagination, guys!
I was, of course, also looking through the book for ideas for movies to rent. Some that look intriguing are Last Year at Marienbad, Ikiru, My Life to Live, and The Maltese Falcon. I'm ambivalent about watching L'Aventtura, since Antonioni films, in my experience, have been 10 minutes of beautiful film spread amongst 2 hours of boring parts...
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Oct 25 update - I'm gonna be up in Hershey Park today with my ex- and her Live Journal budds... if anyone up in Pennsylvania wants my autograph
I agreed with most of it, but it's funny, the things he notes that detractor-critics said about it when it came out.
Some critics said it was overindulgent, that Fellini had gall to make a movie about a director without ideas, that it meant that Fellini had no ideas... but, as Ebert points out, that's not what 8 1/2 is!! It is a fully realized movie that flows very well! It's a movie about a director without ideas that follows a very straight arc...
Also, Ebert says many critics complained that you can't tell the fantasy sequences from the real ones. Ebert's response is that you usually can, and he's right... but to me the sequences where reality and fantasy are shaken up are the best thing about the movie! God, what were these critics thinking???!! It's fun to use your imagination, guys!
I was, of course, also looking through the book for ideas for movies to rent. Some that look intriguing are Last Year at Marienbad, Ikiru, My Life to Live, and The Maltese Falcon. I'm ambivalent about watching L'Aventtura, since Antonioni films, in my experience, have been 10 minutes of beautiful film spread amongst 2 hours of boring parts...
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Oct 25 update - I'm gonna be up in Hershey Park today with my ex- and her Live Journal budds... if anyone up in Pennsylvania wants my autograph
VIEW 11 of 11 COMMENTS
I kept looking at the box to 8 1/2 when I was at this movie store in California, but never bought it. I elected to buy such cinematic masterpieces as I'm Gonna Get You Sucka and Motorama.