Crappy Mainstream Foreign Films

[Space Moose]

I'm sick and tired of people trying to be smart because they have seen some crappy mainstream foreign film and think they have a broad knowlede of ALL cinema and it's history and considor themselves film bufffs when they really just suck at life. The main one that sticks to mind is this garbage:
Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain
Man, this was a overhyped piece of crap. It tried TOO hard to be quirky. "Oooh, look how strange I am! I'm thinking about orgasms and looking people in the cinema!" and "I wish some strange skeleton guy with touch me up on a ghost ride" WTF!?

Anyone else agree?

 

[Figs]

I'm sick and tired of people trying to be smart because they have seen some crappy mainstream foreign film and think they have a broad knowlede of ALL cinema and it's history and considor themselves film bufffs when they really just suck at life. The main one that sticks to mind is this garbage:
Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain
Man, this was a overhyped piece of crap. It tried TOO hard to be quirky. "Oooh, look how strange I am! I'm thinking about orgasms and looking people in the cinema!" and "I wish some strange skeleton guy with touch me up on a ghost ride" WTF!?

Anyone else agree?

Are you talking about the movie Amelie? I only saw the first few minutes and remember that scene were she was imagining how many people were having orgasms at that moment.

I agree with you that I hate pretentious people that act like they have better taste in film. Especially when it's because they watch a lot of foreign films.

 

[Venomfan]

if that is Amelie your talking about i thought they exact same thing. i watched it with people who think they are film buffs just because they watch indie movies, and they pretty much had their minds made up that they were gonna love this movie no matter what before it started. i couldnt stand it, it was just trying to be quirky instead of just being it. a good movie would be unique on its own without the director trying to make it unique

 

[Space Moose]

What's a shame is that the director ain't half bad. He did Alien Ressurection (pretty decent) and The City of Lost Children (awesome movie). But Amelie just plain sucked. The main actress is freakin' weird!
But here is the main offender. You know that Journey song, "Don't Stop Believing"? CHeck this out:

Just a small town girl
Livin' in a lonely world
She took the midnight train
Goin' anywhere
Just a city boy
Born and raised in South Detroit
He took the midnight train
Goin' anywhere
This pretty sums up the main plot of the movie (apart from the whole Detroit thing)

A singer in a smokey room
A smell of wine and cheap perfume
For a smile they can share the night
It goes on and on and on and on
A clear description of France

Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching
In the night
Streetlights, people
Livin' just to find emotion
Hidin', somewhere in the night
Easily describe the cinematography of the film and it's themes

Workin' hard to get my fill
Everybody wants a thrill
Payin' anything to roll the dice
Just one more time
Some will win
Some will lose
Some were born to sing the blues
Oh, the movie never ends
It goes on and on and on and on
Amelie works during the day and gambles her social life to 'win, lose and sing the blues'. Also it references that it is a movie

Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching
In the night
Streetlights, people
Livin' just to find emotion
Hidin', somewhere in the night
Again, the theme of hiding in isolation and finding true love

Don't stop believin'
Hold on to the feelin'
Streetlights, people
Don't stop believin'
Hold on
Streetlights, people
Amelie have a strong belief and holds on to her feelings and finds true love

Two things: 1) The movie is CLEARLY based on this awesome song and has no real storyline other than being weird for the purpose of being weird and 2) Steve Perry is awesome and secretly wrote a movie in his song (which he didn't intend on being crap)

 

[Sentinel X]

I agree with you, people who think they have better taste in movies just because they like foreign films and old films are quite annoying. They seem to like certain movies to show that they're film buffs rather than actually enjoying the film.
Although I agree with your point, Im going to have to disagree with Amelie...I love that movie, I thought she was a very weird, unique, and lovable charecter.
The plot is pretty simple but the movie is totally charecter driven and I think its strong on that point which is why I like it...but thats my personal taste and I dont think my movie taste are "better" than anyone else's.

 

[Space Moose]

I agree with you, people who think they have better taste in movies just because they like foreign films and old films are quite annoying. They seem to like certain movies to show that they're film buffs rather than actually enjoying the film.
Although I agree with your point, Im going to have to disagree with Amelie...I love that movie, I thought she was a very weird, unique, and lovable charecter.
The plot is pretty simple but the movie is totally charecter driven and I think its strong on that point which is why I like it...but thats my personal taste and I dont think my movie taste are "better" than anyone else's.

I heard that they were originally going to cast Steve Perry but he declines so they changed the character to a girl and hired someone that looked like her but with a more lesbian haircut.

 

[Lighthouse]

I think most of the original Japanese horror movies were crap. The Ringu movies, and Juon: The Grudge were just terrible. Now Korean horror movies, those are actually pretty good.

 

[Steve Rogers]

You guys get offended easily.

 

[Venomfan]

I agree with you, people who think they have better taste in movies just because they like foreign films and old films are quite annoying. They seem to like certain movies to show that they're film buffs rather than actually enjoying the film.
Although I agree with your point, Im going to have to disagree with Amelie...I love that movie, I thought she was a very weird, unique, and lovable charecter.
The plot is pretty simple but the movie is totally charecter driven and I think its strong on that point which is why I like it...but thats my personal taste and I dont think my movie taste are "better" than anyone else's.

its all the pointless stuff they added for no reason other than being wierd is what was annoying. like her little statue thing that comes to life at one point by her bed i think?

 

[Rac]

I think all the Finnish mainstream movies suck...

 

[Octoberist]

I for one liked amelie.

I like all types of movies. Mainstream, art, indie, foreign, old..

And there's different types of ignorant people: People who are film snobs who hate Hollywood films. And then you got people who love mainstream films who hate smaller films. It works both ways really.

It's always good to have a middle ground, I say.

 

[KenK]

I think most of the original Japanese horror movies were crap. The Ringu movies, and Juon: The Grudge were just terrible. Now Korean horror movies, those are actually pretty good.

I've always preferred The Ring to Ringu, anyway.

 

[Cyrusbales]

I think a lot of people are just a little ignorant in terms of the world of films, Hollwyood produces less than 0.001% of the films released each year, BUT, how many of the films that people watch are hollywood?

To have a broad range of films, you can't just watch a few mainstream films and some foreign films produced for hollywood audiences etc, you need to watch a cross section of films from many countries and industry, including indie american(which is far superior to hollywood).

The "Top 10 movies of the year" threads always annoy me, because people have only watched like 20 hollywood films released this year etc, then make claims that the best films in the year were 10 of those, less than 0.001%, were better than the other 99.999%?

There is the real problem!

And Spacemoose, how's it hanging?

 

[Movies205]

BAh let me rephrase this...

 

[Movies205]

I don’t understand people sometimes. Who are these supposed film buffs? And if they’re credible, did you bother to ask yourself why they like the film? I have not seen Amiele but let me give another example of foreign cinema which I did not particularly care for, “Run Lola Run”. Also if you’re going to partake in a film discussion, half the battle is getting your terms right. Now the reason, I would hope, we’re here on this board is to learn from each other. We don’t learn from each other with highly volatile phrases such as “piece of crap” and a stern belief that your opinion is always right.
Now on to “Run Lola Run”, now the first off a distinction needs to be made on whether a film is about style or substance, neither is a better choice but it is a choice that needs to be made on some level or perhaps it is both. What needs to be realize is most pseudo-film buffs latch on to stylistic films because they don’t have the proper analytical tools to see any deeper than superficial stylistic choices as such film-makers like Quentin Tarratino and Tim Burton rank relatively high with them and even the general populace for the same reason. “Run Lola Run” is a film all about style. Now I particularly did not care for it because I thought the story was somewhat repugnant and to put it frankly, dumb. However, I understood the praise it got for two reasons. First off it was highly technical film, a lot of the shots and in terms of editing was quite impressive. Also when put in context it is part of a movement known as “Punk Cinema”, the story make sense. All this again does not change my opinion since I still did not think the film was particularly good but I understand its merits as a film and wouldn’t even say its not worthy of the praise it got.

Now just by reading the posts here, I have to say, why all the hate toward film buffs? Now first off may we please separate all the pseudo-film buffs? Actually film buff is a colloquial term I’d like tossed out since I study film as a major. It’s as if people feel if they can’t justify their opinion with a huge amount of film knowledge they’re opinion doesn’t matter so what they do is tear down the people who studied film, when they couldn’t be more wrong. Everyone’s opinion matters however I do believe a person opinion should be put into context, and one should ask where there coming from. As such please refrain from such counterproductive remarks next time and focus solely on the film for the above reasons, you’ll get much farther.

 

[War Party]

You continue to be one of my favorite posters on here, Movies.

 

[Movies205]

People have been bugging me to see this film for the longest time however it's just something that doesn't seem like it'd interest me all together that much. I've never really gotten into French Cinema but that simply since I haven't seen that much however 400 Blows will always be close to my heart.

 

[War Party]

Amelie isn't that bad. It's a cute little film. But the cinematography is fantastic in my opinion.

 

[Movies205]

That kind of the same with Run Lola Run except I hated the characters

 

[Prison Mike]

I think a lot of people are just a little ignorant in terms of the world of films, Hollwyood produces less than 0.001% of the films released each year, BUT, how many of the films that people watch are hollywood?

To have a broad range of films, you can't just watch a few mainstream films and some foreign films produced for hollywood audiences etc, you need to watch a cross section of films from many countries and industry, including indie american(which is far superior to hollywood).

The "Top 10 movies of the year" threads always annoy me, because people have only watched like 20 hollywood films released this year etc, then make claims that the best films in the year were 10 of those, less than 0.001%, were better than the other 99.999%?

There is the real problem!

And Spacemoose, how's it hanging?

yeah and their top 10 movies are just hollywood blockbusters. Spider-Man 3? Live Free or Die Hard? Shrek 3??? Sure they were entertaining, but they are far from the best.

 

[Obi-Ron]

Hollwyood produces less than 0.001% of the films released each year

Where did you come up with that?

 

[Figs]

Where did you come up with that?

Out of his ass lol. I understand what he's saying but that % is so off the mark it's not funny it's insane.

I do understand there are hundreds of movies coming out in other countries that a lot of us never hear about but that percentage is so low for how many films America pumps out each year.

As for the people who are telling the "haters" not to hate people who have a broader taste in film. I don't dislike or get annoyed by any "film buffs", just the ones you can tell are pretentious.

There are people I know that like a lot of foreign films because they like variety, which is perfectly fine and I'm cool with that. Hell, I like a good number of foreign films myself.

It's just that there are a fair number of people out there, that the way they come off when talking about whatever obscure "no one's ever heard of" foreign film, you get the vibe that there trying to act like it's a fact they have better taste than others.

 

[Space Moose]

Nobody baffled about how Steve Perry came up with the concept for this movie about 20 years before it was made?

 

[Cyrusbales]

Where did you come up with that?

I was at a BFI seminar.

 

[Cyrusbales]

Out of his ass lol. I understand what he's saying but that % is so off the mark it's not funny it's insane.

I do understand there are hundreds of movies coming out in other countries that a lot of us never hear about but that percentage is so low for how many films America pumps out each year.

Aside from the fact that you fail to realise quite how many countries and films are made, if that figure is inaccurate, it's too high. Bollywood produced many times more than Hollywood.

Can I also mention that I never mentioned ALL OF AMERCIA, I mentioned Hollywood, America has a budding Indie scene with works of art like "Primer" popping out each year, yet they are under a blanket of money marketing from Hollywood, which is a SPECIFIC industry within America.

Just because you are not AWARE of other industries and films, does not mean they don't exist.