Last Movie You Watched

[Karl Henning]

On the Waterfront. Dang, this is good!

[71 dB]

The zither isn't Hawaiian and has a long history with Vienna.

Really? I have never heard of this instrument before!

[Florestan]

Really? I have never heard of this instrument before!

Probably the most famous use of zither is in Johann Strauss II's G'schichten aus dem Wienerwald

[ritter]

Probably the most famous use of zither is in Johann Strauss II's G'schichten aus dem Wienerwald

Well, actually, the most famous use of the zither is in....the score for The Third Man. 

The music by Anton Karas was probably the worst score I have ever heard in a movie! It felt so wrong for this movie: This movie wasn't about drinking pineapple drinks on the beaches of Hawaii!

Strange how we react differently to things. I would never have connected that music with Hawaii. Then again, Ive never been too Hawaii and did live in Vienna as a child. Having said that, I'm not really keen on the zither... 

Good day to you, Poju and Andrei!

[Florestan]

Well, actually, the most famous use of the zither is in....the score for The Third Man. 

Never heard about the movie, nor the composer for that matter... 

[ritter]

Never heard about the movie, nor the composer for that matter... 

You got to go out more, Andrei! 

[Florestan]

You got to go out more, Andrei! 

Says the guy who has never heard of España cañí or The Waves of the Danube... 

Good day to you, Rafael.

[relm1]

Caberet (1972).  This was a very wild and multi layered film.  I quite enjoyed it once I figured out what it was actually about, and found it was quite timely.

SPOILERS: Set in Berlin during the 1930's, the film is set in the Kit Kat Club that hosts seedy musicals to a diverse and progressive audience of mostly intellectuals, artists, various free lovers of any style.  There is a lot of loving without care, but little actual romance.  Ultimately, we start to see the lovers have an exterior that is more complicated and delicate resulting in them hiding their true identities such as being gay or a jew or a free lover, etc.  Ultimately the characters go their paths but what we've not seen is the growing thread of fascism that was encroaching on their lives with little regard as they went about their pleasures.  In the end, Sally Bowles (Liza Minelli) chooses to reject the events outside the club and sing of the ignorant bliss in the cabaret as we see a mirror showing the audience has now become almost entirely Nazi.  The film can be taken as a soap opera of the love life of the main characters but I love how it is multi-faceted and the true story is about the rise of fascism as those experience it seem unfazed at the slow loss of personal liberties as they encroach and on another level, it appears a bit like a Greek tragedy with the chorus of Joel Gray as the emcee observing and commenting on the drama as he gets increasingly sinister while never leaving his character as the over the top emcee was if the voice of the darkening times.  It was a daring film very well directed, cast, and acted. 

[SonicMan46]

Really? I have never heard of this instrument before!

Poju - story behind the zither score in The Third Man - Dave

[Karl Henning]

Really? I have never heard of this instrument before!

Yes. The score is actually one of many things I like about the movie. I love the wry counterpoint between the sans-souci zither music and the human catastrophe resulting from Harry Lyme's penicillin trafficking. There's a quote from (I think) the Emperor Franz Joseph to the effect of "when Vienna is gay, the situation is serious indeed." I cannot find the source quote just yet, as Google misinterprets my keywords as if I were interested in homosexual culture under the Habsburgs.

[Florestan]

There's a quote from (I think) the Emperor Franz Joseph to the effect of "when Vienna is gay, the situation is serious indeed."

When has Vienna not been gay, at least until the WWI catastrophe? 

I cannot find the source quote just yet, as Google misinterprets my keywords as if I were interested in homosexual culture under the Habsburgs.

I'm sure I've seen a similar quote somewhere, I'll do some digging myself.

[VonStupp]

The Illusionist was a rewatch for me. I had not seen it in 18 years.

It is shot with a beautiful sepia tone, and the highlight is Paul Giamatti's brilliant performance.

I remember this came out around the same time as The Prestige with Hugh Jackman, also dealing with magicians. That one was more popular, but I retain a soft spot for The Illusionist.
VS

[Karl Henning]

Thanks. I'm about to bail. I lasted until the first two infections and the destruction of the lander. I wouldn't watch Prometheus again. I think I've watched about as much of Covenant as I'll find interesting.

Overall, happy to have gotten the rest of the film's plot by reading. And content to get a glimpse of the later visuals here:

[ShineyMcShineShine]

Tiresome. Cage overacts. Serial killers and the supernatural don't mix.

[Karl Henning]

Tiresome. Cage overacts. Serial killers and the supernatural don't mix.

He's done like a hundred movies through the pandemic, right? Wonder if anything is worth the watch.

[ShineyMcShineShine]

He's done like a hundred movies through the pandemic, right? Wonder if anything is worth the watch.

The last thing I saw him in was Color Out of Space, which was okay.

[DavidW]

Tiresome. Cage overacts. Serial killers and the supernatural don't mix.

I strongly disagree. I thought it was a really good horror movie. Despite the name, movie didn't really focus that hard on Cage eating scenery. I enjoyed the slow burn; too many horror movies these days go for jump scares.

[DavidW]

He's done like a hundred movies through the pandemic, right? Wonder if anything is worth the watch.

There are two:

[Brian]

I was surprised how much I enjoyed Pig. It is also a very concise movie, like a short story or a fable.

These old movies, even often the best ones, just aren't filmed and edited that well! ...I noticed a few Dutch angles.

That is probably the most famous and iconic Dutch angle in movie history. It is very much on purpose!

If I'm correct Orson also ad-libbed the best line in the movie (or was it the whole scene?)

Yes! He wrote it into the script. I have heard the rumor that he wrote his whole part for the movie but also not sure about that.

[SimonNZ]

Yes. The score is actually one of many things I like about the movie. I love the wry counterpoint between the sans-souci zither music and the human catastrophe resulting from Harry Lyme's penicillin trafficking. There's a quote from (I think) the Emperor Franz Joseph to the effect of "when Vienna is gay, the situation is serious indeed." I cannot find the source quote just yet, as Google misinterprets my keywords as if I were interested in homosexual culture under the Habsburgs.

I like the very insouciance of the Lyme theme on the zither in the wider darkness of the story, matching the man himself.