Exam time is all about the movies

[soderbergh]

Cruel Intentions - Dear god, it's stupid if you think about it at all. However, the soundtrack, the cinematography, and the pacing are perfect. It does what it intends to do (har har) very well. And the Ryan Phillippe/Reese Witherspoon story still makes me gleeful.

The Shop Around the Corner - You've Got Mail was based on it, and does it better. It'

Comments

[brendan62442]

The emotions are very real

What do you think of the movies that sort of rely on pop songs for emotions? I was kind of ready to hate Juno over this, but I remembered I like the Wes Anderson movies that use the same trick.

[soderbergh]

First of all, when I say that the emotions in Juno are very real, I don't mean those emotions evoked by the music. I mean the interactions between the characters. I love the scenes between Juno and Bleeker because they get the subtleties of friendly attraction just right. They get the power dynamic, the fear, and the affection. And the film is affectionate towards these characters. I also like the way Juno and her parents interact with one another and how the parents respond to the news of the pregnancy "well, you know it wasn't his idea

[brendan62442]

Wes Anderson makes kind of obnoxiously straight white male movies, but I don't want him to get thrown under the bus when you're plugging Cameron Crowe. I think those movies only seem good when you spend time on Curel Intentions and Ever After.

I want so badly to be cold about Juno, "honest to blog" and everything, but you're completely right about the tenderness with Juno and Bleeker. I don't usually buy it when movie stars try to play nervous confused people, but they're good actors and they made it work. Now that I think about it, the movie might have pulled more feeling out of me without that soundtrack -- Moldy Peaches always just remind me of "Steak for Chicken".

What if you could have Juno without the pregnancy? Let's say Jennifer Garner is pregnant, she's Juno's aunt. Juno's dad is in the hospital so they send her away for the winter, to stay with her aunt and uncle. She's still going to the same school; she busses in from across town. That's my remake; I think it's pretty flawless.

[soderbergh]

Hey hey hey