And so here we are, having made it through yet another marathon. Due to circumstances, I didn't go to bed till around 6 PM. Now it's about 3 AM the following day and I'm wide awake, so why not start the annual lookback thread that I've been starting since forever on this board? Anyway, this lineup was fantastic. Really, I can only point to one "bad" movie, and that was bad only because I was disappointed that it wasn't entertainingly bad, just repetitive and kind of dull. There were certainly no MOTIVATIONAL GROWTH incidents this year driving me angrily from the theater at 4 AM. Also, while I understand Dave the Projectionist's hatred of digital projection and showing discs, I honestly didn't mind it this year. The Somerville Theater's digital projectors are good ones, and that Oppo Blu-Ray player has one of the best scalers made, so even a DVD looked acceptable onscreen. If this has to be our future and it means we get access to films that we just couldn't ever have prints of, I'm okay with it.

So, to the movies themselves:

1.) FIRST MEN IN THE MOON - We start off with some light-hearted adventure, based on the book by H. G. Wells. It was fun, and we established our running jokes for this year's Marathon. "Door! GIBBS! DOOR!" "Thank you." Still kind of disturbed when it's implied at the end that we accidentally genocided the Selenites, and it comes off as a wisecrack.

2.) WESTWORLD - This was the first time I've seen this one in a theater with a good crowd, and it had been so long that I'd forgotten that it was Richard Benjamin who ended up as the lone survivor of the day the Hall of Presidents figures ran amuck. Being a Michael Crichton story, it all comes down to people refusing to believe that their overly complex system might be developing some bugs and the inexplicable decision to make the doors to central control both airtight and without any sort of emergency lock override. Apparently, OSHA doesn't exist in this futuristic world. Also, why give your amusement park robots such advanced combat and tracking AI? Note to engineers: don't just upgrade the eye and ear sensors because you can. You never know when the "kill all humans" bug will kick in with your new Cylon army.

3.) COHERENCE - Our first really pleasant surprise. From the man who gave us PRIMER comes another complex sci-fi story. Like PRIMER, it takes a while for the mystery to present itself, but once it does, oh, boy! We had a great cast and apparently no script beyond giving them general outlines of where the story was going each day of shooting. What we ended up with was tense and we get a third-act twist that really feels both natural and shocking. I hope this one finds its audience the same way that PRIMER did.

- The Dalek Dialect Contest: At last, we lay the Mating Call contest to rest. Tom said that he wished that they could have two mics onstage, so that the finalists could do a Dalek freestyle, 8 Mile-style. As it was, I won this one, so I have no complaints. Remember, folks: Daleks do more than just yell "Exterminate!" You gotta BE the Dalek!

4.) THE POWER - I'd never seen this one before, and I liked it. We got young, not quite so tan George Hamilton and a crazily cute Suzanne Pleshette. The story worked as a decent little mystery, and we even got to see Pleshette use her comedy talents during that party scene. The parts that made me kind of laugh were the "Look at our new ZOOOOM LENS" party scenes and the final psychic confrontation, featuring Spinny the Skeleton.

5.) EUROPA REPORT - I'd seen this one on Netflix already, so I knew that I liked it going in. A great little low-budget, high-tension story that you could tell was really trying to play for realism. Despite what the guy behind me thought, this wasn't a bad movie at all. I liked how they played with the found footage concept by kind of pulling a SUNSET BOULEVARD with our footage's narrator. It was kind of a downer ending, but still gave the doomed astronauts a victory condition. This is exactly the sort of movie that Sci-Fi Channel should have been funding all these years, as opposed to just showing intentionally bad ones.

6.) SILENT RUNNING - One downer followed by a second downer, and our second artifact of the 70's for this year. I've always liked SILENT RUNNING, with Bruce Dern as the guy who's had a nervous breakdown and clearly knows it, along with his three inexplicably cute robots. Huey, Dewey, and Louie have no human characteristics at all, and yet just by tilting their bodies, tapping their feet, and occasionally making some whistles, they really come off as characters. I love the image of the crew of Valley Forge tearing around the cargo bay in those little carts, although I just can't see it without thinking of the Banana Splits' "tra-la-la" song (Because I'm OLD!). The movie features some still impressive model effects work, great looking sets, and you get a great sense of how isolation and guilt drives this poor guy to suicide at the end. I still can't quite believe that Mr. Forest Man couldn't figure out that lack of sunlight was the problem, nor did it ever make any sense to me why they were keeping the last forests alive way the hell out at Saturn, as opposed to, I dunno, in high Earth or Lunar orbit. And the thing that kind of kills this movie for everyone is every time Joan Baez starts warbling away, reminding us that, yes, indeedy, this movie is from the early 70's. Even so, I loved seeing this on a big screen with a crowd.

- Aluminum Hat Contest: I blinked and missed it. Oh, well. I was busy tending my time lapse camera.

7.) THE TRUMAN SHOW - I think this movie was one of the very best of the 90's, and have seen it a bunch of times. The print did look great, although my friend who joined me this year didn't think it was as fantastic as Dave had made it out to be. Even so, the movie remains one of the very few I can point to that features the drama of Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, Man vs. God, and Man vs. Himself all in the same story. Also, I love how Phillip Glass himself plays the Truman Show's music composer. You just know he's had that cut from the MISHIMA soundtrack ready to go for Truman's escape for years.

- Dancing with the Quarks Contest: Kudos to the two ladies who had the guts to get up there and dance for us. I hope we get some more brave souls next year.

8.) ELECTRIC DREAMS - As much as SILENT RUNNING is oh, so 70's, this one is so 80's that it kind of hurts. The only way this could be any more 80's would have required wireframe graphics and chrome. Oh, wait. It had that, didn't it? Virgin Films didn't make many movies (their most famous was that version of 1984 made in the Summer of 1984), but this was fun. I love the weird fetishy close ups of the computer, and the scene where Edgar first jams with Madeline is really great. You feel sorry for Edgar, as he struggles to become sapient, grows impatient to understand feelings, turns angry at Miles, then finally admits in the end that it's not so much that he's in love with Madeline as it is that he's jealous of Miles' humanity. In the very end, it felt more like the one Edgar really loved was Miles, and it makes for another kind of bittersweet ending with the computer apparently committing suicide for the sake of love. But then we end on a peppy music video, so it's all right.

9.) THE VISITOR - I was really looking forward to another THE APPLE, but what I got instead was an incoherent mess that was repetitive and dull. Featuring an evil little psychic girl and John Huston plodding around endlessly, it had the volume set to painfully loud, only one bombastic piece of music that got used endlessly, bird attacks (WTF?), and scenes of very little happening while the blaring music tried desperately to imply otherwise. Disappointing. Also, what the hell was that bit with Huston slowly ambling down the escalator about? Was I the only one who heard that whole crazy info dump by space Jesus at the start and wondered if the story wasn't ripped off from Scientology? It was about here that I began nodding off.

10.) THE WORLD, THE FLESH, AND THE DEVIL - However, I was wide awake for this one. When you stop and think about it, this story really was terrifically daring for something released in 1959. What if the world ends, there's only one man and one woman left...and the man is a NEGRO? Heavens! Shock and surprise! Actually, the shock in this story is how the woman has no problem with it at all and it's the African American man who just can't get past the race thing. As post-apocalyptic movies go, the drama in this one works really well. The tiny cast are all great, and the only question I had was where the hell were all the dead bodies? Are we to believe that everybody just left New York and now the highways of America are jammed with millions of dead? Well, I suppose having a completely empty city with no signs of anybody (even corpses) just serves to accentuate how desperately lonely Bellafonte is. This movie was a pleasant surprise for me, and I'm glad it was shown.

10a.) THE TWILIGHT ZONE - Once again, we have another surprise showing of a well-known Twilight Zone episode. It's Agnes Moorehead vs. The Mercury astronauts! Oh, sorry. Did I spoil the ending?

11.) GRABBERS - There's always one movie that I end up sleeping through mostly, and it was unfortunately this one. Which is sad, because I woke up for the last half, and it looked hilarious. The monster was great, the cast funny, and we even had references to ALIENS and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. I'll need to watch this one again, when I'm conscious.

12.) CHILDREN OF MEN - I have to say, I think scheduling this one so late in the marathon may have been a mistake. It is such a bleak story, and the last harrowing third of the film, as our characters desperately make their way through the refugee camp during the uprising, has a nightmarish quality that really hits you when you haven't had any proper sleep in 26 hours. It's a great movie, but I and my friend had to duck out for breakfast and came back to watch the last half.

13.) FLASH GORDON - There are some movies that I always watch with a huge smile on my face, and this is one of them. God, what fun this thing remains. It feels like the best insane Italian sci-fi film ever mounted, with a cast who all know how insane it is and they just go with it. Max Von Sydow is just glorious as Ming, who I think has at least 6 costume changes and is resplendent in his bejeweled battle shorts. Sam Jones isn't anywhere near a great actor, but he's so damn likable as he looks aghast at how nuts the world of Mongo seems. Topol is great as Hans Zarkov, the world's most dangerous nerd, and Melody Anderson gets to have a pillow fight with Ornella Muti while both are dressed in diaphanous gowns, so, really, a huge win for everyone (Including the leering handmaidens in that scene.) Timothy Dalton was properly dashing as Barin, and Brian Blessed was gloriously nuts as Voltan. Yes, the Hawkmen wirework isn't very good, but who cares when Brian Blessed is bonking people on the head with a cudgel? Who cares that it makes no sense that stopping the moon 5 seconds from impact wouldn't actually save the Earth, or that killing Ming likely wouldn't achieve that anyway? How did Zarkov manage to write "Long Live Flash!" on the dungeon walls while he was hanging from his wrists? Why does General Kala melt when she's shot? What the frack was up with those Lizard Men? Who cares! It's Flash Gordon! He'll save every one of us! It was the perfect high to go out on, and now we have a year to look forward to SF40!

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Neil_N: - The Dalek Dialect Contest: At last, we lay the Mating Call contest to rest. Tom said that he wished that they could have two mics onstage, so that the finalists could do a Dalek freestyle, 8 Mile-style. As it was, I won this one, so I have no complaints. Remember, folks: Daleks do more than just yell "Exterminate!" You gotta BE the Dalek!

True. I have to believe that inside of each Dalek is a talented method actor who has wrestled with the motivations and conflicts of his extraterrestrial character.

These official BBC audio files should help guide future would-be Daleks:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/sounds/index2006.shtml

I too was pleased with the contests this year. The tinfoil hats were quite original and stylish and I regret that we were not able to fade music in and out on multiple channels when the mic was running. We had an instrumental version of "Wear a Hat with a Silver Lining" that concluded with vocals and would have faded in and out nicely while Major Tom did MC duties.

The dancers were talented and good sports as well who also might have also benefited from dual audio source inputs. Some sort of stage-side soundboard or even a set of splitters could have added quality mixing and taken the burden off of Dave the Projectionist who has enough to do wrangling reels and shouldn't be expected to flip multiple input switches before the show, between every movie, and at the end.

That being said, the new system, which makes use of the theater's fine speaker setup from off-stage, really is a great improvement and shows promise for future Marathons.

Thanks to all who who worked hard to make this a great Marathon year. :)

Neil_N wrote on Feb 18^th, 2014 at 5:16am:

Also, while I understand Dave the Projectionist's hatred of digital projection and showing discs, I honestly didn't mind it this year. The Somerville Theater's digital projectors are good ones, and that Oppo Blu-Ray player has one of the best scalers made, so even a DVD looked acceptable onscreen. If this has to be our future and it means we get access to films that we just couldn't ever have prints of, I'm okay with it.

I'm mostly on board with Dave on my hatred of digital. It really does suck overall. Even after more than a decade and a half of implementation it STILL can't show true black and shadow detail is wretched. COHERENCE looked as incoherent as the plot -- full of blotchy pixellation and rotten grays masquerading as "black".

But, I understand it is the wave of the future. Too bad 35mm film prints of FLASH GORDON, CHILDREN OF MEN and SILENT RUNNING weren't procured although they are still extant. SILENT RUNNING on DCP looked particularly grainy and soft.

Surprisingly, some of the DVDS looked better than the DCPs. Pretty shocking when a 60 year old TV show like TZ looks better than a brand new movie like COHERENCE.

P.S. And, I enjoyed THE VISITOR. I'll take it's overlong 108 minutes over 10 minutes of MOTIVATIONAL GROWTH or FOLKLORE anytime - especially at 3am!  :)

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LA: P.S. And, I enjoyed THE VISITOR. I'll take it's overlong 108 minutes over 10 minutes of MOTIVATIONAL GROWTH or FOLKLORE anytime - especially at 3am

Does anyone have any good riffs to share on "Visitor"?

I confess to seeing John Houston look across an open field, raise his hands above his head and I just had to yell "TOUCHDOWN!" Somebody made a "Grasshopper"/Kung-Fu reference when the class of bald children in robes showed up to listen to Franco Nero give the back-story.

The "Doors" were often great, especially in "The Power" when the half-door turned into a wall to terrorize Arthur Kennedy, or when Clive Owen "doored" the motorcycle thug in "Children of Men". Still, every time a door showed up on screen wasn't really an invitation to the riff.

R_F_Fineman wrote on Feb 18^th, 2014 at 8:24pm:

Does anyone have any good riffs to share on "Visitor"?

As Lance was getting it on in his Tribble-fur bed Sonya complained "I waited half my life to see Lance Henriksen in a sex scene and this is what I get?"

I was too busy being absolutely flabbergasted by what was going on, but I remember distinctly identifying the inappropriately bombastic soundtrack as the Action 6 News Theme.

(As far as the "Door!" joke goes, it only worked if someone had, y'know, left the door open. Too many people were enthusiastic door enforcers though I really liked when, after the lady went up the chimney in GRABBERS, someone in the left balcony hollered "Flue!")

Okay, before too many memories fade here's my thoughts on SF39

First Men In The Moon- The closest we had this year to an old time classic. Lot's of fun and it gave us a new catchphrase. Will it survive? Find out at SF40.

Westworld- Worth the wait (I've been requesting this since the Welles days.) Okay, it went a bit overboard with the footsteps but still a good action film from a time when there were not many sci-fi films being made. Loses a bit since a lot of fans have no idea who Yul Brynner was let alone remember his character from Magnificent Seven.

Coherence- Always nice to be pleasantly surprised by by an indie. Played like a GREAT feature length Twilight Zone episode.

The Power- Has not aged well at all, looks like it was edited to remove all exposition, we had no idea why the main character did things or how he got anywhere. Plus had some edits like the bulging eyes of the centrifuge victim.

Europa Report- Another nice surprise, a space mission with no alien super intelligence, government coverup, murderous monster or crew-mates infected with some mutating virus. Just astronauts on a mission that's important because of what may be learned. Who run into trouble because of accidents, but who strive on to complete their mission.

Silent Running- Another film that has not aged well. Pretentious songs by Joan Baez. A plot that really is never quite explained. And anyone notice that Dern is actually playing an 80s bad guy Eco-terrorist? Save the trees, but people, nah kill em, they don't like organic food. The Drones steal the show whenever they're on screen.

The Truman Show- Still stands up well. Carey is a bit too crazy but not over the top. Love the ending "lets see what else is on." Not brought up in the film but ya gotta wonder how many shows were on other channels that were the same thing.

Electric Dreams- nap time for me.

The Visitor- Planned to nap through this too but the worlds loudest and tinniest soundtrack would not allow it. Was there an actual script for this or did they just add parts as another fading star agreed to take a paycheck? Repeated not so special effects that did not impress the first time. A real mess but kinda fun in the long run.

World, The Flesh And The Devil- Not as bad as I feared. The people did seem real, if a bit pretentious. And ending with "The Beginning" was cliche even when it was first released.

Twilight Zone- The Invaders- Fun seeing this with the 'thon crowd.

Children Of Men- Too depressing for this late in the marathon. Still a well done film and some impressive action scenes.

Flash Gordon- Time seem to be improving this film (plus being awake more than 24 hours.) Jones was new to acting and the script really was not that great. A better actor may have made more of it (like Von Sydow as Ming did) also maybe a stronger director might have made it work better. At one time the guy who did Man Who Fell To Earth was slated to direct it but had a falling out with DeLaurentis. Dino probably added to the problem by insisting on newcomers for Flash and Dale. But the rest of the cast is first rate with Von Sydow, Topol and Brian Blessed looking like they're all having fun. A perfect film to send the crowd home happy plus wake them up enough to make it home.   

Apparently Grabbers just fell down the memory hole, huh?

Neil_N wrote on Feb 20^th, 2014 at 10:46am:

Apparently Grabbers just fell down the memory hole, huh?

Good Lord you're right, how could I forget.

Grabbers- A great little comedy set in Ireland. Featuring octopus-like creatures that can only be defeated by drinking alcohol. Which in Ireland results in the easiest alien defeat since we beat the War of the World martians by letting them breathe.   
(Forgive me for that joke.)

Well soldiers! I think this years marathon was pretty damn good! MUCH better than last couple. The festival films still sucked but not as much as Motivational growth or Folklore!!

First Men in the Moon - Harryhausen still rocks! Godspeed good man!

Westworld - sure we didn't show this before? anyway, Yul was one damn badass! He can be in my army anytime. nice to see this on the big screen

Coherence - another crappy festival movie. Stupid boring repetitive. low budget crap - keep it in the microcinema! Too bad Dr.Who got bumped for this. I woulda skipped out for dinner but it was too damn early. damn

The Power - don't think ive seen this one before. not bad. nice color print

Europa Report - missed some for quick bite, but this was pretty good. will catch the rest on Netflix

Silent Running - wow, man. pretty odd 70s flick and the droids steal the show.

Truman Show - I hate reality Tv and this makes me know why. good movie though

Electric Dreams - gotta love them 80s clothes and computers. Virginia was pretty darn cute and the music was cheezy good

The Visitor - wtf!? indeed. didn't make a lick of sense. crazy shi# happens at random. Weird collection of actors. Bottom line - LOVED it!  ;)

World Flesh and Devil - not bad, but just another 50s end of the world flick without much nuke destruction. dozed a bit

Grabbers - more festival crap. Yeah not awful. The girl was cute, sorta. But all the drinking and slimy monsters is old hat. Putting a foreign accent on it doesn't make it any good. dozed some more

Children of Men - really good movie. I liked it being before the end. especially after that crappy festival flick and the slow World Flesh film. Needed something solid to get us to the end and...

Flash A Ah! - love it for all the wrong reasons. bad trash, but fun especially with the marathon crowd

in the end, a really good marathon. had a great time. see everybody at 40!

Just for the official record, Grabbers was not part of the festival......

oh lord i beseecheth thee. do not let an open door on the movie screen continue to be a trigger for mass audience shouting of "close the door"

if people shout 'GIBBS!" whenever there is a technical glitch like focus or framing, i think that would be okay.

Had some time to come down from the Marathon and return to actual life. I am quite glad that I timed my annual Boston visit to coincide w. the event.
I am of the great, but like most everything  -  not perfect, school in my reaction to the Thon .Of the several reviewers I come closest to Bunnyman. You can pretty well assume that my general reaction is to second his review.
My strongest feeling is an extremely positive reaction to the flow and balance.

Revving up the intensity by starting with First Men--- & then Westworld worked.

Then Coherence. My first reaction while watching was that it should have been called "Incoherence." But then it sucked me in. Conversation per se, particularly when combined with "What if", rarely cuts it. But here the focus required to follow what was being said was rewarded with the gradual introduced reality that all the speculation had some meaning. And  personalities emerged. And all the attention you'd  used was rewarded with the basic puzzle of what was going on being introduced to both the participants and the viewer - simultaneously. Can't remember when I've seen a film where the watchers were neither ahead nor behind the participants. The ending was not totally pleasing as it seemed to be a twist so that something would still surprise. It did surprise, but was a little too foreign to the rest of the film. A-.
And great timing to make it film #3 while the brain could still operate.

Dalekspeak? Well. Okay.  The finalists were braver creatures than I.

The Power Nah. Dated without the redeeming virtues of creativity, acting or thought. See Bunnyman.

Europa Again, see Bunnyman. Well done. Thoughtful. Lots of polish for an indie. Was a little disappointed that my midway thought, "They're all gonna die - one by one." was right on the money. When I can predict the sequence of events, not just deaths but the sort of discovery that's going to occur, I do have to take away points for originality. Still, again, well done.

Silent Running Liked it better than Bunnyman. Lotsa points for originality. Of course it dragged, but still a great artifact.
Do re-read Bunny's comment. Great insight.

Truman. Not even an artifact. More to the point today then when it was made. Combines entertainment with thought. It doesn't exactly grab you, but can you imagine a better treatment? Running Man it ain't. And it speaks to my appreciation of the pace & order that the films were shown.

Dancing with the Quarks. More brave souls. And talented. Nice break.

Electric Dreams. I do not fault films for being technologically dated or bearing no relation to reality. I do fault them for simultaneously putting me into sugar shock and, as one watcher suggested, wanting to make me puke. And I like silly comedies & love stories. Planning on rewatching Fever Pitch tonight.

The Visitor. Yuch. On this one I'll go with Neil. Unlike him, after the first ten minutes I had the good sense to pull out my pillow and get a solid 70 minute's sleep. What was Huston thinking?

World the Flesh--. Said earlier that I give points for originality. And thought. This one gets both. The race thing and the lack of bodies commented on above both seem dated but the first sure wasn't when this was made. Trust me. I'm old. It's more subtle and even thoughtful than almost anything of it's time. Compare it to the way issues were dealt with (indirectly) in the original Twilight Zone. And the acting is great, particularly for it's time.
No bodies seems weird today, but this was the first movie of it's type.

Twilight Zone Nice change of pace. Seems a little dated, but great for it's time.

Expected to enjoy Grabbers better than I did. Obviously it was pretty good. Maybe I'm getting a little cynical about having all my buttons pushed. Only laughed a couple of times. But I'm being cynical. Clearly a nice small film.

In Memorium. Lovely. A great addition and should be shown at all genre events. Please loan it to Columbus next month. Are you listening David, Joe & Bruce?

Thought that Children - - was one of the best acted films of it's year. Or decade. Such a downer that it's hard to watch. Particularly since saw it a month earlier at the Cleveland Marathon. For me the fascism and societal breakdown makes it scarier than any creature feature or horror. Tried to sleep but couldn't. Sorry that it was my final film as Flash is, for me, shlock, not fun. The acting & recreation of the old serial isn't campy, just bad. And I also saw it in Cleveland recently.
I do credit Garen for scheduling what was supposed to be a piece of cheesy fun. And it obviously was for the above reviewers. And for the people I saw it with earlier in the year. I skipped it & went back to where I was staying for some needed rest.

Surprised at how negative the above comments seem. I did really enjoy the show - and the hospitality expressed by the people at the theater. Thanks to all the responsibles.

Hard to believe it's been a week!

Overall, I'm with the consensus that this was a top tier marathon. Very good lineup. Nice big crowd. Good enthusiasm. Great seeing many of my oldest and dearest commarades, and really missed the few who weren't able to attend.

The movies:

In Memorium - Nice tribute, but, still too long and with a few too many passages where you couldn't tell who was being memorialized. Also, adding a job description for Directors, DPs etc would be helpful. And, did I miss Ray Harryhausen???! Nice to see a clip from SOLAR CRISIS in the Richard Sarafian segment - I was a Prop Man on it, lo those many years ago!  :)

Duck Dodgers - I always get a woozy feeling of deja vu as it kicks off yet another 'thon.

FIRST MEN IN THE MOON - Still charming after all these years. Lionel Jeffries's Cavor is still one of my favorite parts in any SF film. This really was during the peak of Harryhausen's career in terms of budget and overall production values.

WESTWORLD - Too bad it took so long to get this to the Marathon despite being one of the most famous titles of 70s SF cinema - particularly Pre-Star Wars. I said famous, not "great". A bit pokey in the pacing, and the full airlock control room was a pretty hoary contrivance. I'm pretty sure James Cameron...uh....'watched' the ending a few times before shooting the last sequence in THE TERMINATOR...just sayin'.......  ::)

COHERENCE - I know I'm in a minority here, but, this didn't do much at all for me. This mismash of Primer/Another Earth and stuff like The World's End/Night of the Comet was more muddled than edifying. It came as NO surprise when actor Nicholas Brendan (a nice sport) revealed that there wasn't a full script. It's an offense to the intelligent work of Primer's Shane Carruth to compare to his films. And, the shaky hand-held cam was nowhere near as polished as what Paul Greengrass does with it. It's more like bad TV which tries to juice up dialogue scenes with spastic cam.

THE POWER - A true oddity. Some very good ideas and some strong scenes, but, more than a bit undercooked. The North By Northwest-like sequence in the desert was strong, but the center lagged. Still, some striking bits and a superior Miklos Rozsa score. Great color in the IB Tech print to boot - digital is a LONG WAY from reaching that saturation level - let alone for a 50 year old print!

EUROPA REPORT - Glad the audience went along for this ride. It was my first recommendation of 2013 films to be shown at the 'thon this year. What happened to the screenwriter, though?

Fleischer Superman - Really enjoy this series. I don't think I had seen this particular one.

SILENT RUNNING - If you can say that Michael Crichton as a Director is a world-famous Author, then it follows that you can call Douglass Trumball a director who is a lengendary special effects maven. Like a Fahrenheit 451 for trees, this works more as a parable than a believable reality (books and earthbound plants are MUCH MUCH easier to stow away in hiding than memorizing or shipping into space). Dern is one crazed botanist! The drones really do take on human qualities.

THE TRUMAN SHOW - Remains one of the best films of the past decade or so. More relevant than one could really have imagined when it first was released. Seeing it again really shows screenwriter Andrew Niccol's Frankenstein like theme of a 'created' person. It also works as an analogy to parenting where one has to eventually let one's "child" leave the home to seek his own future. Beautifully played and directed by one of the most undervalued helmers alive, Peter Weir. The print was good, but, it doesn't seem to have been as preserved as it should have been.

ELECTRIC DREAMS - A cheezy 80s VHS staple. But, sweet, fun and likeable. The computer technology wasn't quite as painfully dated as I remembered. Of course, like many early 80s films (Brainstorm, Scanners) the creators always seemed fixated on the computers to take on physical and mechanical aspects. I guess you can't really blame them as they were certainly trained to think analog as opposed to pure digital. Interesting to see A.I. traced from Westworld/Silent Running to Electric Dreams to the current Her.

THE VISITOR - WTF?! It was an enjoyable romp through a Scientology-like cult crossed with an Italian giallo. The zooms and over-the-top music were quite the style. Loved the shooting of the mother sequence and the cross-cutting between the skating scene and John Huston riding the escalator. Too long, certainly, and not as fun as The Apple, but ok.

WORLD FLESH & THE DEVIL - Saw this fairly recently on TCM. Held up even better on the big screen. The story wasn't exactly original even in the late 50s, but the race angle and the solid acting elevate it.

Twilight Zone - Nice to see on the big screen, wind-up toys and all. Hopefully, we'll use a different program to spotlight next year.

GRABBERS - Dumb, stupid, but decently fun. As far as low budget under-the-radar 'Local Premieres' go, this was painless.

CHILDREN OF MEN - I'm not in the Masterpiece camp on this one, but, it certainly more than held its own on re-screening. Cuaron is certainly a technical master (as he again showed on Gravity). Hopefully, his next SF effort will have an even stronger story.

FLASH GORDON - Definitely overlong. Definitely silly. Without the Marathon crowd (and the pulsating music), this would be a hard sit. A nice lite-weight way to end a Marathon. And, boy was Ornella Muti one sexy starlet.

Again, thanks everybody who said 'hello'.

On to...gulp...SF/40!

And, did I miss Ray Harryhausen???!

Harryhausen was there along with the skeleton battle scene from Jason and the Argonauts.

I. too, looked forward to and missed seeing the screenwriter from Europa Report. I later saw his name on a list of features outside the micro theater downstairs. I wish I had known about the switch.

Quote:

COHERENCE - I know I'm in a minority here, but, this didn't do much at all for me. This mismash of Primer/Another Earth and stuff like The World's End/Night of the Comet was more muddled than edifying. It came as NO surprise when actor Nicholas Brendan (a nice sport) revealed that there wasn't a full script. It's an offense to the intelligent work of Primer's Shane Carruth to compare to his films. And, the shaky hand-held cam was nowhere near as polished as what Paul Greengrass does with it. It's more like bad TV which tries to juice up dialogue scenes with spastic cam.

...Just one question.  Who has multiple unopened boxes of a wide range of colored glowsticks casually lying around in their apartment?  (I'm just sayin"....)

Still, it was a fun film - not too long, and with a great celeb follow-up.  Thanks to all involved.
:)

I wouldn't even bother getting into the weeds of all the contrivances, made-up on the spot dialogue and other "plot" details. Not worth the effort.

* 1/2 stars


Jon wrote on Feb 24^th, 2014 at 3:36pm:

Quote: COHERENCE - I know I'm in a minority here, but, this didn't do much at all for me. This mismash of Primer/Another Earth and stuff like The World's End/Night of the Comet was more muddled than edifying. It came as NO surprise when actor Nicholas Brendan (a nice sport) revealed that there wasn't a full script. It's an offense to the intelligent work of Primer's Shane Carruth to compare to his films. And, the shaky hand-held cam was nowhere near as polished as what Paul Greengrass does with it. It's more like bad TV which tries to juice up dialogue scenes with spastic cam. ...Just one question.  Who has multiple unopened boxes of a wide range of colored glowsticks casually lying around in their apartment?  (I'm just sayin"....) :)

Sure Coherence was convoluted, improbable, and ultimately dependent on dialog. Not a great base. But I was carried into the movie, the action (such as it was) and the puzzle of what was going on by the pace and the believability of the personalities. My review is above.
And I just noted that it will be one of the 185 films (plus 168 shorts) to be shown at the upcoming Cleveland International Film Festival, one of the only 8 festivals where a short film must be shown to qualify for the Oscars. I'll be working at the festival. http://www.clevelandfilm.org/
However I see no mention that Nick Brandon will be in Cleveland, so Boston wins :D.

Hard to fathom that TWO full weeks have passed. Seems like a long ago dream in many ways.

Any lingering thoughts on this year's event?

For me, it still seems to be one of the best balanced 'thons in recent memory. And, the Festival has lead to much needed overall attention to the event and increased attendence.

Been holding back somewhat while getting reviews for pretty much everything up on my blog and eFilmCritic.  I still haven't gotten to the shorts and I skipped the festival's Tragedy of MacBeth (napped and have trouble treating it like a real movie) and the thon's The Visitor (second time it knocked me out, and that movie has gotten too much publicity for not being very good anyway).

Here's the full blog post on the marathon.

General comments:

* One of the strongest marathons in recent memory.  A lot of the movies weren't necessarily good, but most of them were at least interesting.

* Despite that, this one nearly broke me in terms of doing it again.  The guy behind me would not shut up no matter what was playing (and wasn't particularly creative), and I was ready to punch the next person to yell "Door!" in the throat by about 5pm.  It's getting to the point where my favorite part of the marathon is the second half, when a lot of the people who think they're part of the entertainment are asleep or worn out.

* Idea for the marathon/theater next year:  Get a few USB squids so people can drop their phones off at the stand and get a recharge at some point during the thon.  Charge a buck or two if need be to defray the cost if need be, but the charge gets low by the end, and the live-tweeting tapered off between movies.

Quick hits on the moives:

* First Men in the Moon - Has some stuff that drives me crazy, but I really love Lionel Jeffries in this.

* Westworld - Or, Jurassic Park Beta.  Just saw it a few months ago at the Halloween 'thon, and it still really seems half-formed.

* Coherence - Liked it, though I passed on a couple opportunities to see it at the fest when I knew it would be playing later with a guest.  Kind of has the same problem as the sort-of-similar Plus One, in that the end sort of swerves more into violence than the rest of the movie really merits.

* The Power - Goofy, but I generally liked it.

* Europa Report - Enjoyed it last summer, enjoyed it again.

* Silent Running - Really liked this a lot; it has its weaknesses, but Douglas Trumbull does a great job with a script that has 1970s edge.

* The Truman Show - Remembered that it was really good, but not quite that it was some of the best work of everyone involved.  Jim Carrey has never been better, and it's probably the best rendition of Andrew Niccol's go-to idea of a man straining against the limits that his birth has placed on him.

* Electric Dreams - Not very good in many ways, but a fun soundtrack and some neat Bud Cort voice work holds it together.  Plus, young Virginia Madsen!  (Note: Madsen has also aged very well.)

* The Visitor - Okay, can people stop trying to push this turd as a great cult film so hard?  It's weird enough, but its worst sin is that it's just boring.

* The World, the Flesh and the Devil - probably my favorite discovery of the marathon, especially the way it goes from Harry Belafonte alone in the world to a look at how deeply ingrained unfortunate race-related attitudes can be, even when it absolutely shouldn't matter.  Top-notch.

* Grabbers - Search through some of the "other festival" or "recommendations for the thon/fest" threads, and you'll see I started beating the drum for this in July or August of 2012.  You're welcome! :)

* Children of Men - Damn, Cauron is good, isn't he?  This sucker's bleak but not the boring darkness of so many movies that confuse "bad things happen" with "sophisticated".

* Flash Gordon - Never particularly loved this movie, and I think it's because the Earth people just aren't nearly as interesting as everybody else (and that they're the two worst actors doesn't help at all).  The kind of movie that's both campy enough and known for its kitsch that it's kind of a pleasant surprise when a part that's actually really good comes along.

Sounds like an isolated case. Overall, the crowd has gotten more and more respectful as the years have passed by (especially since the Festival aspect has grown - connection?) I kinda miss some of the interaction (NOT the constant chatter and the MST3K audition tape folks, of course). And, yes, the "Door!" thing got overrused. Moderation and proper timing, folks.

Not sure if you realize the contradiction of asking for MORE tweeting and web surfing enabled by power outlets. To many of us, the bright screens are more, MUCH MORE, irritating than an occasional "Door!", "Mark!" or "Wheat Chex!" remark...........



Jay Seaver wrote on Mar 2^nd, 2014 at 4:42pm:

Been holding back somewhat while getting reviews for pretty much everything up on my blog and eFilmCritic... * Despite that, this one nearly broke me in terms of doing it again.  The guy behind me would not shut up no matter what was playing (and wasn't particularly creative), and I was ready to punch the next person to yell "Door!" in the throat by about 5pm.  It's getting to the point where my favorite part of the marathon is the second half, when a lot of the people who think they're part of the entertainment are asleep or worn out. * Idea for the marathon/theater next year:  Get a few USB squids so people can drop their phones off at the stand and get a recharge at some point during the thon.  Charge a buck or two if need be to defray the cost if need be, but the charge gets low by the end, and the live-tweeting tapered off between movies...

I don't want screens on during movies, but reactions in-between are good.  Plus, it just sucks to have your phone die.  Folks expect to be reachable, and it would be useful to have it be a non-brick at the end of it.

Also, I don't think the festival has anything to do with the reduction in folks yelling at the screen.  There's about a dozen of us non-guests at most of the shows, not really a meaningful fraction of the audience.  I think the talking is down in recent years in part because a good chunk of the program will skew later (due to availability and, hey, the average release date of all movies gets later as time passes), and stuff just gets less obviously mockable.  Jurassic Park is the tipping point, but for the last 25 years or so, even the lesser movies have decent acting, capable special effects, etc.  It sets a different tone, and shifting in and out of snarky mode isn't for everyone (hence the people who kept yelling "Door!" even during good movies).

Well, YOU may not text during the movies, but, several other folks were. I had to stiffle a woman who had "tuned out" during THE POWER and decided it was cool to spend that screening checking her email, texting and cruising the internets.

I do think the Festival principle has helped a bit with the yahoos. It's added maybe a patina of class to the event. And, it wasn't just during 'oldies' that folks used to more enthusiastically shout things out (it's not just about mocking anyway, but about general participation).

P.S. Oh, my cell phone battery level has always been fine - of course, I only use it for necessary communication and not spend too much Marathon time on it.  ;)



Jay Seaver wrote on Mar 11^th, 2014 at 9:15pm:

I don't want screens on during movies, but reactions in-between are good.  Plus, it just sucks to have your phone die.  Folks expect to be reachable, and it would be useful to have it be a non-brick at the end of it. Also, I don't think the festival has anything to do with the reduction in folks yelling at the screen.  There's about a dozen of us non-guests at most of the shows, not really a meaningful fraction of the audience.  I think the talking is down in recent years in part because a good chunk of the program will skew later (due to availability and, hey, the average release date of all movies gets later as time passes), and stuff just gets less obviously mockable.  Jurassic Park is the tipping point, but for the last 25 years or so, even the lesser movies have decent acting, capable special effects, etc.  It sets a different tone, and shifting in and out of snarky mode isn't for everyone (hence the people who kept yelling "Door!" even during good movies).

While I didn't have anyone using a cellphone near me I do agree it can be really annoying and very distracting during a film.
Easiest way to stop it or at least make people aware NOT to do it is make an announcement between films. Even do it in a positive way pointing out how much room there is at the Somerville Theater if you don't want to see the next film there are seats downstairs and the gallery of bad art or the second floor lobby too.

L.A. Connection wrote on Mar 12^th, 2014 at 12:11am:

I do think the Festival principle has helped a bit with the yahoos. It's added maybe a patina of class to the event. And, it wasn't just during 'oldies' that folks used to more enthusiastically shout things out (it's not just about mocking anyway, but about general participation).

Really, I can't see how the festival portion could exert much of that sort of influence on the marathon.  It's mostly held in a room that seats about 30 people, most of the movies Garen gets for it don't exactly raise the average, and when something from the festival has bled into the marathon before, well, that's when "participation" spiked in previous years.  Maybe in the future, if it gets big enough to fill the larger rooms without the entire cast of a terrible but locally-produced film coming, that will change.

And while you say people weren't always just mocking the oldies, that was when there wasn't such a strong divide in the polish between older and more recent sci-fi films, and just the perception of the genre.  Newer films are regular movies to people, while the older ones are something different.


As to the phone thing, it's mostly about my experience - I don't have my phone out of its pocket during the movie, but regular use between films such as tweeting reactions, checking email/voicemail, taking pictures, etc. can drain a smartphone pretty good if it's away from juice for 30+ hours (presuming people aren't unplugging it in their Davis Square apartment before walking to the theater and going immediately home afterwards).  Even turning data off just before the movie starts made it a tough stretch, and I do think many would appreciate a chance to top it off.

And it wouldn't hurt if the fest/thon figured out how to engage the internet better.  Garen's excitement at the festival over having a comped newspaper ad was just adorable, but wouldn't having some excitement going out online (and a decent website) help a lot more with the event's target audience?

Jay Seaver wrote on Mar 13^th, 2014 at 11:53am:

L.A. Connection wrote on Mar 12th, 2014 at 12:11am: I do think the Festival principle has helped a bit with the yahoos. It's added maybe a patina of class to the event. And, it wasn't just during 'oldies' that folks used to more enthusiastically shout things out (it's not just about mocking anyway, but about general participation). Really, I can't see how the festival portion could exert much of that sort of influence on the marathon.  It's mostly held in a room that seats about 30 people, most of the movies Garen gets for it don't exactly raise the average, and when something from the festival has bled into the marathon before, well, that's when "participation" spiked in previous years.  Maybe in the future, if it gets big enough to fill the larger rooms without the entire cast of a terrible but locally-produced film coming, that will change. And while you say people weren't always just mocking the oldies, that was when there wasn't such a strong divide in the polish between older and more recent sci-fi films, and just the perception of the genre.  Newer films are regular movies to people, while the older ones are something different. As to the phone thing, it's mostly about my experience - I don't have my phone out of its pocket during the movie, but regular use between films such as tweeting reactions, checking email/voicemail, taking pictures, etc. can drain a smartphone pretty good if it's away from juice for 30+ hours (presuming people aren't unplugging it in their Davis Square apartment before walking to the theater and going immediately home afterwards).  Even turning data off just before the movie starts made it a tough stretch, and I do think many would appreciate a chance to top it off. And it wouldn't hurt if the fest/thon figured out how to engage the internet better.  Garen's excitement at the festival over having a comped newspaper ad was just adorable, but wouldn't having some excitement going out online (and a decent website) help a lot more with the event's target audience?

Jay, check out my comment about needing a clear site for info in "The State of the 'thon address" section

Tonight TCM will be showing this year's past-Midnight cult curio, THE VISITOR!

Re-live the bizarro Italian 'plot'! See the scary children! Witness the oddball cultists! Watch John Huston walk and walk and walk!

http://cdn4.thisisinfamous.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/The-Visitor-2.jpg