Why I prefer The Godfathers 1&2 to GoodFellas
Why I like watching the closing credits at the end of a film?
Film in a Post-Racial World
History and Film
What I expect from Captain America: Civil War and why I am team Iron Man?
The Difference between Christopher Nolan and Zack Snyder
Why Batman vs. Superman and Captain America: Civil War means that the Golden Age of superhero films in the 21st century is coming to an end?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode 7, pt 5: Which trilogy to watch first, Episodes 4 to 6 or Episodes 1 to 3?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII, pt 4: What does the 1st official trailer tell us?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII, pt3: The concept of a New Hope
Countdown to Star Wars Episode 7, pt 2: The Famous Score by John Williams in Episodes 4&5
The Idealist vs. The Materialist
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: My Experience with the now defunct Odeon Cineplex in Mandeville or how did that movie reel end up at the back of a bus?
Why I have been thinking about Total Recall (1990)
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: Illegal Dvd Sales and Consumption or The more things change the more they remain the same…somewhat.
Where Marvel could have truly transcended its comic book origins?
Adding my voice to the Man of Steel vs. The Avengers: Age of Ultron debate
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: The staple 2 for 1 special or the illusion of prosperity that comes with cheapness.
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: When PG-13 becomes T-16 or 'Yuh Nuh Ready Fi Dis Yet Bway'.
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: Why should we stand for the national anthem before a movie screening in the Jamaican cinema?
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: A General Introduction
Concentration (Attraction) vs. Diffusion (Repulsion)
I hope The Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) can live up to the hype
Essence vs. Appearance
Movie Moments: The Sheriff, in No Country for Old Men (2007), recounts a dream he had of his father
Movie Moments: ‘Puny God’: Hulk smashes Loki in a case of matter over mind instead of mind over matter
Movie Moments: Neo is 'The One'
Movie Moments: The Riders of Rohan break the lines of Mordor
Movie Moments: Forrest Gump hits the Jackpot
Public vs. Private Property
The Petty Bourgeois Economy: A introductory discussion
Follow up to PG-13 discussion with a particular look at Demolition Man (1993)
Are we in the PG-13/middle of the road age for blockbusters?
The Human Centrism in Sci-fi films about Outer Space
Why Batman and Robin (1997) is a very influential film?
The one death scene in a movie that had a devastating impact on my childhood psyche
The downside of the realistic position
The traditional variants of Capitalism and my own variants of Capitalism: It does not matter how many variants you have in the long run
Characteristics of Industrial Warfare and the industrial military complex
Addressing the notion of Gender Inequality
Understanding the sphere of Consumption (with particular reference to the commodity fetish)
The savages in the capitalist system
The (real) Lion King (1994): An examination of the falsehoods in this very sanitized film.
The Quest for Freedom
The petty/petite bourgeois or middle class groups
The Holy Ones
Capital/Capitalism as a Social force
Chaos
The historical Importance of the Independent producer
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Importance of comic Book Heroes in the modern era
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Movie Moments : Superman saves Lois Lane in dramatic style.
Film reviews by Karl Watts: When the Accumulator becomes the destroyer
Film reviews by Karl Watts The idea that doomsday events are supposed to occur at the end of 2012, according to the Mayan Calendar, is rubbish
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Movie Moments: The first fight between Bane and the Batman in The Dark Knight Rises
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Decline of the American ideal in film as evidenced by the recent riots in the Muslim world
The final scene in the film ‘As Good as it Gets’ (1997) is very significant for all filmgoers because of the final kiss between Melvin (Jack Nicholson) and Carol (Helen Hunt). James L. Brooks might not have reinvented the wheel with this film but his characters are fully alive and their actions and dialogue are oftentimes unique. After Melvin gives his compliment to Carol by calling her the greatest woman alive he attempts to seize the moment by saying, ‘I’m gonna grab you. I didn’t mean for that to be a question. I’m gonna grab you.’ He grabs her and kisses her in the tradition of the films and TV shows of the 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s where the protagonists (male and female) would hold each other and simply put their lips together without any movement and no hint of passion. If there was passion it was only through the embrace because the face of male and female would be stationary. There is an earlier scene in the film which indicates that Melvin is a lover of the films and TV shows from the earlier decades of the twentieth century. When Carol comes to his apartment in Manhattan from Brooklyn in the pouring rain proclaiming that she will never sleep with him, after he hires a private doctor to look after her son so that she can go back to work to wait on him (she is a waitress), we see that before he opens the door to answer the doorbell he is watching Nick at Nite which features a lot of classic TV shows. We know therefore that Melvin must be enamored with this tradition when he imitates the stationary position the protagonists of the films and TV shows of yesteryear assume when they kiss at the end. After the first kiss he sees that Carol is a little disappointed and he says ‘I know I can do better than that.’ He grabs her and lifts her off the ground and this time you can sense the passion in his embrace. Carol responds, ‘Better, definitely better.’ After the first stationary kiss you would expect to hear the orchestra in the background to signal the end as they would do in the films of yesteryear (take a look at the end of the classic ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ (1952) for example) however there is just silence and so there is a definite break with the films of yesteryear in Melvin’s mind when he delivers the final kiss which is infused with real passion. After the kiss infused with passion takes place the protagonists are given some breathing space to walk and when they do they are surprised by the lights of the bakery open at 4am and so go in and enjoy warm rolls. In the classic films once the embrace had taken place normally that would signal the end. (Melvin initially convinced Carol to have a walk out with him at 4 o’ clock in the morning by saying that they wouldn’t seem screwy because there is a good chance that some bakery would be open at that time. They wouldn’t be screwy they would just be two people looking for warm rolls). LOL
Why I like watching the closing credits at the end of a film?
Film in a Post-Racial World
History and Film
What I expect from Captain America: Civil War and why I am team Iron Man?
The Difference between Christopher Nolan and Zack Snyder
Why Batman vs. Superman and Captain America: Civil War means that the Golden Age of superhero films in the 21st century is coming to an end?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode 7, pt 5: Which trilogy to watch first, Episodes 4 to 6 or Episodes 1 to 3?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII, pt 4: What does the 1st official trailer tell us?
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII, pt3: The concept of a New Hope
Countdown to Star Wars Episode 7, pt 2: The Famous Score by John Williams in Episodes 4&5
The Idealist vs. The Materialist
Countdown to Star Wars Episode VII
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: My Experience with the now defunct Odeon Cineplex in Mandeville or how did that movie reel end up at the back of a bus?
Why I have been thinking about Total Recall (1990)
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: Illegal Dvd Sales and Consumption or The more things change the more they remain the same…somewhat.
Where Marvel could have truly transcended its comic book origins?
Adding my voice to the Man of Steel vs. The Avengers: Age of Ultron debate
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: The staple 2 for 1 special or the illusion of prosperity that comes with cheapness.
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: When PG-13 becomes T-16 or 'Yuh Nuh Ready Fi Dis Yet Bway'.
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: Why should we stand for the national anthem before a movie screening in the Jamaican cinema?
The Jamaican Cinematic Experience: A General Introduction
Concentration (Attraction) vs. Diffusion (Repulsion)
I hope The Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) can live up to the hype
Essence vs. Appearance
Movie Moments: The Sheriff, in No Country for Old Men (2007), recounts a dream he had of his father
Movie Moments: ‘Puny God’: Hulk smashes Loki in a case of matter over mind instead of mind over matter
Movie Moments: Neo is 'The One'
Movie Moments: The Riders of Rohan break the lines of Mordor
Movie Moments: Forrest Gump hits the Jackpot
Public vs. Private Property
The Petty Bourgeois Economy: A introductory discussion
Follow up to PG-13 discussion with a particular look at Demolition Man (1993)
Are we in the PG-13/middle of the road age for blockbusters?
The Human Centrism in Sci-fi films about Outer Space
Why Batman and Robin (1997) is a very influential film?
The one death scene in a movie that had a devastating impact on my childhood psyche
The downside of the realistic position
The traditional variants of Capitalism and my own variants of Capitalism: It does not matter how many variants you have in the long run
Characteristics of Industrial Warfare and the industrial military complex
Addressing the notion of Gender Inequality
Understanding the sphere of Consumption (with particular reference to the commodity fetish)
The savages in the capitalist system
The (real) Lion King (1994): An examination of the falsehoods in this very sanitized film.
The Quest for Freedom
The petty/petite bourgeois or middle class groups
The Holy Ones
Capital/Capitalism as a Social force
Chaos
The historical Importance of the Independent producer
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Importance of comic Book Heroes in the modern era
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Movie Moments : Superman saves Lois Lane in dramatic style.
Film reviews by Karl Watts: When the Accumulator becomes the destroyer
Film reviews by Karl Watts The idea that doomsday events are supposed to occur at the end of 2012, according to the Mayan Calendar, is rubbish
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Movie Moments: The first fight between Bane and the Batman in The Dark Knight Rises
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Decline of the American ideal in film as evidenced by the recent riots in the Muslim world
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Underground Movement for The Dark Knight Rises that exposes negative attitudes towards the critics that are to guide moviegoers
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Christian Bale and his Messiah Complex
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Celebrity as a Stagnant Element in Society
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Film in 2011: A Year for the Romantics
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Role of the Critic in Society (with specific reference to the arts and specific socio-political characters in the works of Karl Marx and Plato's The Republic)
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Should we stand for the National anthem before a movie screening in the Jamaican cinema?
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Theatre vs. Film or the Old and the New in Art
Film reviews by Karl Watts: How Christopher Nolan improves on Tim Burton's vision of Batman
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The Dark Knight Rises (2012) trailer
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The Material Values which are crucial in understanding a films' philosophical dimensions
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The character of the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' (2008): his role in deconstructing the materialist values of Gotham's citizenry.
Film reviews by Karl Watts and Revelations of the Truth (if there is such a thing): What makes a film great or destined for greatness (or great influence)?
Movie Moments: The Final Kiss in As Good as it Gets (1997)Film reviews by Karl Watts: Christian Bale and his Messiah Complex
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Celebrity as a Stagnant Element in Society
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Film in 2011: A Year for the Romantics
Film reviews by Karl Watts: The Role of the Critic in Society (with specific reference to the arts and specific socio-political characters in the works of Karl Marx and Plato's The Republic)
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Should we stand for the National anthem before a movie screening in the Jamaican cinema?
Film reviews by Karl Watts: Theatre vs. Film or the Old and the New in Art
Film reviews by Karl Watts: How Christopher Nolan improves on Tim Burton's vision of Batman
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The Dark Knight Rises (2012) trailer
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The Material Values which are crucial in understanding a films' philosophical dimensions
Film reviews by Karl Watts and revelations of the truth (if there is such a thing): The character of the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' (2008): his role in deconstructing the materialist values of Gotham's citizenry.
Film reviews by Karl Watts and Revelations of the Truth (if there is such a thing): What makes a film great or destined for greatness (or great influence)?
The final scene in the film ‘As Good as it Gets’ (1997) is very significant for all filmgoers because of the final kiss between Melvin (Jack Nicholson) and Carol (Helen Hunt). James L. Brooks might not have reinvented the wheel with this film but his characters are fully alive and their actions and dialogue are oftentimes unique. After Melvin gives his compliment to Carol by calling her the greatest woman alive he attempts to seize the moment by saying, ‘I’m gonna grab you. I didn’t mean for that to be a question. I’m gonna grab you.’ He grabs her and kisses her in the tradition of the films and TV shows of the 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s where the protagonists (male and female) would hold each other and simply put their lips together without any movement and no hint of passion. If there was passion it was only through the embrace because the face of male and female would be stationary. There is an earlier scene in the film which indicates that Melvin is a lover of the films and TV shows from the earlier decades of the twentieth century. When Carol comes to his apartment in Manhattan from Brooklyn in the pouring rain proclaiming that she will never sleep with him, after he hires a private doctor to look after her son so that she can go back to work to wait on him (she is a waitress), we see that before he opens the door to answer the doorbell he is watching Nick at Nite which features a lot of classic TV shows. We know therefore that Melvin must be enamored with this tradition when he imitates the stationary position the protagonists of the films and TV shows of yesteryear assume when they kiss at the end. After the first kiss he sees that Carol is a little disappointed and he says ‘I know I can do better than that.’ He grabs her and lifts her off the ground and this time you can sense the passion in his embrace. Carol responds, ‘Better, definitely better.’ After the first stationary kiss you would expect to hear the orchestra in the background to signal the end as they would do in the films of yesteryear (take a look at the end of the classic ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ (1952) for example) however there is just silence and so there is a definite break with the films of yesteryear in Melvin’s mind when he delivers the final kiss which is infused with real passion. After the kiss infused with passion takes place the protagonists are given some breathing space to walk and when they do they are surprised by the lights of the bakery open at 4am and so go in and enjoy warm rolls. In the classic films once the embrace had taken place normally that would signal the end. (Melvin initially convinced Carol to have a walk out with him at 4 o’ clock in the morning by saying that they wouldn’t seem screwy because there is a good chance that some bakery would be open at that time. They wouldn’t be screwy they would just be two people looking for warm rolls). LOL
This is a very clever moment in film. If you ever get a chance to watch the film for the first time or watch it again having watched it already see if you can pick out this clever moment. ‘As good as it Gets’ (1997) won two academy awards for Best Actor (Jack Nicholson) and Best Actress (Helen Hunt). No surprise.
Upcoming Projects
Film Lovers! Here is a list of upcoming projects for my blog. Firstly i am planning a monumental review of The Godfather Trilogy which will explore the politics of Machiavelli. Secondly i will also do another Ultimate review on 'Apocalypse Now/Redux' (1979) explaining the correlation with Conrad's Heart of Darkness. I will also explore 'Chinatown'(1974) and its philosophical connotations regarding the truth and the landscape that is Chinatown. I will also do 'Taxi Driver'(1976) and its philosophical connotations regarding city life and the contrasts with 'Midnight CowBoy' (1969). I chose this period because it is clear that the current releases at this point in time are not mind blowing and so i have decided to take this time to build my archive. I also chose these films to focus on the era of 1970's cinema which i consider to be a golden age of filmmaking (this is with the exception of The Godfather part 3 released in 1990 and Midnight Cowboy (1969)). Stay tuned
Tags For Blogs
I have created tags for my blogs so that the reader will be able to keep abreast and not see the blog as Hodge podge. These tags are located at the end of the blog post. They are: 1. ‘Great film Series’ and this section deals with films I consider to be masterpieces and this is not to say that they are impervious to criticism. 2. The section ‘Current releases’ which deals with films that have been released within the last year or so. Lastly there is a section entitled ‘Commentary’ that will involve my opinions on a general subject related to film. It does not fall within the category of ‘critique’ in the strictest sense. For instance, if there is some gap to cover such as a comparison between two films or if I write about the relevance of film in the modern world it would fall under this section. Thanks for all those who have viewed my posts and I promise to build a substantial archive that will rival all the other critics.
Upcoming Projects
Film Lovers! Here is a list of upcoming projects for my blog. Firstly i am planning a monumental review of The Godfather Trilogy which will explore the politics of Machiavelli. Secondly i will also do another Ultimate review on 'Apocalypse Now/Redux' (1979) explaining the correlation with Conrad's Heart of Darkness. I will also explore 'Chinatown'(1974) and its philosophical connotations regarding the truth and the landscape that is Chinatown. I will also do 'Taxi Driver'(1976) and its philosophical connotations regarding city life and the contrasts with 'Midnight CowBoy' (1969). I chose this period because it is clear that the current releases at this point in time are not mind blowing and so i have decided to take this time to build my archive. I also chose these films to focus on the era of 1970's cinema which i consider to be a golden age of filmmaking (this is with the exception of The Godfather part 3 released in 1990 and Midnight Cowboy (1969)). Stay tuned
Tags For Blogs
I have created tags for my blogs so that the reader will be able to keep abreast and not see the blog as Hodge podge. These tags are located at the end of the blog post. They are: 1. ‘Great film Series’ and this section deals with films I consider to be masterpieces and this is not to say that they are impervious to criticism. 2. The section ‘Current releases’ which deals with films that have been released within the last year or so. Lastly there is a section entitled ‘Commentary’ that will involve my opinions on a general subject related to film. It does not fall within the category of ‘critique’ in the strictest sense. For instance, if there is some gap to cover such as a comparison between two films or if I write about the relevance of film in the modern world it would fall under this section. Thanks for all those who have viewed my posts and I promise to build a substantial archive that will rival all the other critics.
