The Films of the Coen Brothers

[kenmorefield]

1 hour ago, Michael Hovey said:

 Sorry if I'm not eloquent enough for you, but there's no better word I can use to describe the Big Lebowski than totally and utterly stupid.

Michael, I don't want to put words in Andrew's mouth, but I'm pretty sure what he is saying is not that you are not eloquent enough for him but that that you may find less people inclined to interact or discuss with you if you take an aggressive or hostile tone (towards the material or towards people with different tastes/opinions). That may be okay...if what you want is just an open forum to express yourself and your views. But if you are looking for other people to engage with, there's fewer people on the board these days that just want to argue.

Paul Schrader is a screenwriter and director. For what it's worth, Paul Thomas Anderson, director of You Will Be Blood (a film you say you admire), has cited Martin Scorsese as one of his major influences. Since Schrader and Scorsese were longtime collaborators, I think the point of his praise is that when the people I/we do admire and respect say they value or respect a film that I/we didn't care for, that can sometimes be an incentive for the intellectually or artistically curious to reappraise. 

[Andrew]

20 hours ago, kenmorefield said:

Michael, I don't want to put words in Andrew's mouth, but I'm pretty sure what he is saying is not that you are not eloquent enough for him but that that you may find less people inclined to interact or discuss with you if you take an aggressive or hostile tone (towards the material or towards people with different tastes/opinions). That may be okay...if what you want is just an open forum to express yourself and your views. But if you are looking for other people to engage with, there's fewer people on the board these days that just want to argue.

Yes, this.  Thank you for expressing this more clearly and graciously than I was able to.

[Evan C]

On 3/27/2021 at 12:47 PM, Andrew said:

Sometimes a Coen film needs to percolate in one's mind in a while to appreciate it; I was underwhelmed by Lebowski on first viewing, but now it's one of my favorite films, period.  I first saw No Country in a full screening room with a crowd that laughed during the violent sequences; a quieter rewatch without a gaggle of desensitized goofballs in attendance allowed me to appreciate the film far more deeply.  I've probably watched it 6-10 times in total, and for me, it only improves with time.  The dried-out Texas landscape; subtle film score; the characters played by Breslin, Bardem, Jones, and Harrelson; the potent image of blood money as symbolic of greed in general; the thrilling pursuit of Breslin, followed by Bardem and Jones; an ending that hearkens back to Ford's The Searchers - great stuff all around.

I've watched No Country For Old Men three times. The first time, I hated it. The second time, I admired it but only partially enjoyed for it. The third time, I loved it. I think my change in opinion came down to appreciating and understanding who gets the final say and whose story it is. Also discussing it with a friend who says it's his favorite film of all time really helped me appreciate it more as well.

And The Big Lebowski gets funnier every time I watch it.

[Michael Hovey]

I've come to realize through the years that few if anyone tend to share my views on things, and not just on music or movies either, and I realize I can't please everyone, but if someone agrees with me great I'm more than happy to talk about things I love, but if they don't as my grandma used to say tough titty.

Edited April 6 by Michael Hovey

[Michael Hovey]

And by the way I may adore there will be blood and believe it's the greatest cinematic work of art ever made, but that doesn't mean I know anything about the director himself, but if he clearly said he's influenced by scorcese than all I have to say is he has a bad taste in directors. Films like goodfellas, gangs of New York, and the departed are downright awful. The aviator, Hugo and silence are all phenomenal, but those are rare types of films from him. I think Eastwood is the world's greatest director and definitely not Scorcese.