This week we embark on our next directorial mini-season with the work of Baz Luhrmann. We start with his cinema debut, 1992’s STRICTLY BALLROOM. After opening reviews, we talk about mockumentaries, cinema aesthetic, and artistic frustration — both in the film and in Luhrmann’s direction itself.
Next Week
Our Luhrmann mini-season continues with the next movie in his ‘Red Curtain Trilogy’: 1996’s ROMEO + JULIET. Watch it here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/William-Shakespeares-Romeo-Juliet-Sorvino/dp/B00FZA99RA
This Week’s Media
TASKMASTER (2015–): Alex Horne, Andy Devonshire, Greg Davies
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018): Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, Robert Downey Jr.
Recommendations
BASKEKETBALL (1998): David Zucker, Trey Parker, Matt Stone
THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT (1994): Stephen Elliott, Terence Stamp, Hugo Weaving
CONFETTI (2006): Debbie Isitt, Martin Freeman, Olivia Coleman
AUSTIN POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME (1999): Jay Roach, Mike Myers, Heather Graham
Footnotes
Firstly, this is an interesting article on the mockumentary form in which the film starts: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/apr/05/mockumentary-british-comedy-tom-kingsley
Here’s a reminder of the theatrical convention of the fourth wall, to which Sam refers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_wall
(And, while we’re at it, here’s a short piece on a few more theatrical conventions to which Luhrmann the theatrical director and Luhrmann the film auteur may have been reacting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dramatic_convention )
Here’s the IMDB page for last year’s THOR RAGNAROK, which Rob mentions as a comparator this week: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3501632
And finally, for more camerawork titbits (this time not from Rob!), head here: https://indiefilmhustle.com/types-of-lenses-camera-lenes
3.19 - BIRDMAN (2014) & Renown
3.18 - BABEL (2006) & (Mis)Communication
3.17 - 21 GRAMS (2003), Change, & Grief
3.16 - AMORES PERROS (2000) & Violence
3.15 - REVIEW OF 2017
3.14 - LOVE ACTUALLY (2003) & Romance
3.13 - HOOK (1991) & Childhood
3.12 - VERONICA GUERIN (2003) & Fear
3.11 - 8MM (1999) & Voyeurism
3.10 - FALLING DOWN (1993) and America
3.9 - THE LOST BOYS (1987) & Subcultures
3.8 - DODES’KA-DEN (1970) & Dreams
3.7 - SEVEN SAMURAI (1954) & Class
3.6 - RASHOMON (1950) & Storytelling
3.5 - DRUNKEN ANGEL (1948) & Disease
3.4 - THE HURT LOCKER (2008) & Individualism
ZERO DARK THIRTY (2012) & The Other
3.3 - K-19: THE WIDOWMAKER (2002) & Camaraderie
3.2 - THE WEIGHT OF WATER (2000) & The Past
3.1 - POINT BREAK (1991) & The Female Gaze
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