20.2.08

LINK: Though I disagree with Rod Dreher on the context of both The Sorrow and the Pity and The Rules of the Game (the latter being my second-favorite movie), I like the general question he poses:

Of the films generally recognized as great, and part of the canon, which ones do you simply not get? That is, which ones leave you cold and/or confused, even though they are generally regarded as classic? Why?


A few preliminary answers:

Aguierre, Wrath of God: many of the scenes were unrehearsed and unscripted? I thought the poorly-blocked, incoherent and ponderous plot was intentional (end sarcasm).

The Seven Samurai (actually, throw in Rashomon, too): The last hour of The Seven Samurai is amazing, and in no way worth the two-and-a-half hours it takes to get there. Rashomon is a good concept made dull in execution.

La Strada: I love 8 1/2 and La Dolce Vita because their incoherence is intentional. Fellini tries, and succeeds, at examining the creative process and the thrill-seeking nature of youth, respectively. La Strada burdened by a plot, is just boring.

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