Well, “Metropolitan” does live up to my memory of it and it is better than “Barcelona”. One thing that impressed me was not just the high quality of the dialog, but that they could pull off such improbable conversations. I had forgotten that Tom was a Fourierist and that there was another kid in the group who also knew about Fourier. That is a completely improbable event, but in this movie, that didn’t matter.
Let this first thread be the what-stood-out-for-you thread.
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Ooh, I didn't realize we were starting so soon. I will try to find the film tonight.
Don’t feel rushed. I thought I’d put up a thread and let everybody dive in as they see the film. I’ll put up a few more later in the week.
OK, man, I just went to Liberty Hall and got "Metropolitan" on VHS and "A Woman Under the Influence" on DVD (the clerk was extremely excited when I requested this!). I'm in for a long night of movie-watching. To be honest, when you said that you found "A Woman Under" draining, I almost decided to skip it, because I don't know whether I've ever heard you call a film "draining." I mean, I found "Climates" draining and it was apparently a cakewalk for you. You have a big boy's brass set when it comes to hard-to-watch films, hon. But I feel like a challenge tonight. Remember in that Hal Hartley film where the hard-bitten mom and boyfriend have that all-night drinking challenge? I feel like that. Wish me luck.
Well, the ancient, well-worn VHS didn't work in my cheapo VCR. No picture. So I'll have to get "Metropolitan" from Netflix.
I did, however, sit through "A Woman Under the Influence." Holy Jesus, dude. "Difficult" and "draining" don't do it justice. It makes "Climates" seem like a Tom&Jerry cartoon.
Sorry to hear about the “Metropolitan” tape. That movie would be a very good bit of desert—light, almost cheerful satire—after the heavy Cassavetes. When you take “Metropolitan” back, tell Liberty Hall that they really should get it on DVD as it holds up over time much better than all those “Age of Irony” ensemble romances from the 90s.
I’ve bailed out of a few movies that featured unappealing characters if I figured that there is nothing to gain from spending time with them. It is less a question of how difficult they are than of the rewards for the investment.
Should we run threads for both these films? Wait until people catch up with one or the other?
Yes, I think you should start two threads and whoever has seen one or both can jump in whenever and whoever has the next pick should make it and we'll start that discussion two weeks from today.
Ok. And this will be still be a first reactions to “Metropolitan” thread. There will be more later in the week.
My first reaction was that it was a fun look not just at a certain social set, but at young intellectual types who don't understand how silly they are. They're bursting with a self-importance that's on the verge of popping.
Yes, that’s certainly a big part of what makes the movie fun. I loved the bit where Tom said that he hadn’t actually read any of these novels, instead he read Lionel Trilling’s reviews of them. So the movie is set, what, in the mid-80s? That’s a full decade after Trilling’s death. What in the world is this kid doing if he doesn’t even like literature? I’ve read and appreciated lots of novels, and I’ve read about Trilling, but I don’t remember ever reading any of Trilling’s work. I suppose I had an attitude of Trilling is no doubt good, but that’s old stuff....
I know. That was fantastic. And he said it as though it were perfectly reasonable. And Audrey scoffed, but she didn't dismiss him entirely. I think the self-confidence with which the boys uttered their opinions tended to offset the inanity of their content in the minds of the young women, whereas it would have exacerbated the inanity in the minds of more mature women. Hehe. Nice touch.
I read some Lionel Trilling here and there as an English major, but lately I've been thinking about this short story I read of his once that was about a college instructor and this asshole kid he had in his class. It was really fabulous. He was just the type to write a poignant story about life in academia. I'll have to find that title. I think you'd like it.
Know-it-all brats have lost their charm, huh? Why do you suppose that is? Or better, why would they ever have had it in the first place?
Do let me know about the Trilling. I’ve been thinking that I’d like to read more short stories.
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