I finally watched Michael Mann's "Miami Vice" for the first time since it's on Netflix...I kind of dug it, the dialogue is pretty terrible and some of the pacing of scenes is real weird but everything looks really cool and shot well. For a mainstream movie about an 80s TV show it was a lot more ambitious than it should have ever been even though it probably didn't work as a whole.

The Equalizer was good, really had fun watching it. The sequel was ok, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. The story just didn't resonate with me like it did in the first one.

Watched The Bird Box the other night on Netflix and thought it sucked. I find that genre to be very hit or miss and generally either love it or hate it. This premise was just too stupid to like.

We always know where you stand, mrbaseball! I'll probably give that one a pass myself.

Polytechnique, Denis Villeneuve, 2009



This is Villenueve's Canadian feature that swept the 2010 Genies, about the mass shooting at a Montreal college in 1989 where 14 women were murdered by an anti-feminist nutjob.

This is a beautiful, heartbreaking majestic film. The luminous Karine Vanasse plays a student who wants to be a flight engineer, and her life is forever changed by tragedy.

The narrative jumps around from before the shooting, as the gunman prepares his massacre, to the after effects of the shooting. Villenueve bookends the movie with two very different letters, one angry and confusing and the other sad but hopeful.

It's shot in a gorgeous black-and white that also, thankfully, helps mask all of the blood while not shying away from the shocking violence.

Polytechnique is a great, masterful film, and one that needs to be better known.

Fanbois seem to like it tho. Fingers crossed.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6823368...s?ref_=tt_ql_3

Boo @ Polytechnique not being on Netflix streaming or dvd rental.

amazon prime

Perfect!

So, I'm all set for teaching again this semester. One writing course, an Intro to Film, Intro to Lit, and a Special Topics in Film, in which I'm doing Romantic Comedies for the topic. It had a total of four students signed up, but they let it run because one student signed up is graduating! I recruited the department secretary to sign up for it because I need more of an audience.

Right now planning on Bringing Up Baby, Miracle at Morgan's Creek, Pillow Talk, Annie Hall, When Harry Met Sally, Let the Sunshine In, and possibly Tangerine. I might also opt for The 39 Steps as a possibility since I think it qualifies.

where do you teach?

what a sweet gig to be able to teach film at a university.

I'm at a community college, the only one in RI. I haven't taught anything in three and a half years and only one course a semester for three and a half years before that. I may be a bit rusty, but I'm kinda looking forward to getting back in the classroom.

link to the online course so we can follow along!

Sorry, but they are all face-to-face.

Here's a link to my old syllabus:

http://facultywp.ccri.edu/jcole/courses/engl-1210/

community college is still great.
the main thing is that the students choose to be there aren't being forced.

your curriculum sounds interesting and I'm sure it's gonna be lots of fun.

would be cool if you recorded your classes and posted them online.

edit: lol my pony is slow.

High Fidelity!

I was considering High Fidelity, especially because music is so important in Rom-coms.

It’s also the best male-perspective rom-com of all time.

not comparing it to high fidelity, but in good company was a fantastic rom com imo and from the male perspective as well.

thought it handled young relationships much better and more realisticly than most.

Went to go see Glass tonight and I was enjoying it for the most part, I liked the feel of the movie, the deliberate pacing, the cinematography and the characters until M.Night Shyamalan went full Shyamalan with the ending. It's like he can't help himself. Overall I liked it but man it's hard to get around by how dumb the ending is.

A Star is Born (2018) - It's ok. Lady Gaga is great, worth watching if you're a big singing/music person. Otherwise just a standard romantic drama.

Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi - Liked it a lot, easily better than any SW since the '80s (and since I haven't seen those in 20+ years, maybe better than them too). Phenomenal use of color, art design, creature design. Haven't seen creatures as interesting in a movie in a very long time - and the movie never needs to linger on any of them or give them backstory or any such nonsense.

The story was genuinely compelling and suspenseful - while some obvious things do happen, they don't happen in the way you expect and there is plenty of surprise and "subversion of tropes".

I now wish Rian Johnson were directing the 9th, and I hope Disney continues with the plan for his trilogy.

I stayed pretty free and clear of all the backlash against the movie, and mostly spoiler free except for one thing. I'm curious what the backlash was all about. My assumption is that it's nerds being morons as usual.

The nerds really hated the Rose character. I personally didn't like the Rose/ Finn part of the story but I didn't think it was that bad.

Kevin Smith does better with Chasing Amy or even Clerks 3.

Not having him in a rom com film class is dismissing his contribution, whether you feel its good or bad.

You need to come from the Futur to talk about clerks 3 in school.

Clerks 3??

Kevin Smith's films are quite dated and not really worth discussing in John's class