Tackling Movie Mountain #1
At the start of the pandemic, I went into full-on media hoarding mode, buying up vinyl records, video games, and blu-rays, lots of blu-rays. So many blu-rays. I found solace in buying a bunch of pretty, shiny discs with cool covert art that were often times upgraded to new 4K releases, something about acquiring another piece of cinema for my collection helped drown out some of the lockdown psychosis. Well, panic-purchasing got the best of me and the next thing I knew, a large portion of my home studio is now devoted to a massive to-watch pile.
Today, Movie Mountain stands incredibly high, with piles of single discs and giant box sets (mostly still unopened), just waiting to get their first spin. I have a daunting task ahead.
Tackling Movie Mountain is where I’ll try and document my futile effort to make my way through this towering pile of discs. I’ve attempted to put a moratorium on my disc buying while I do this, however I guarantee you there will be new purchases that make their way into the pile. It can’t be stopped! Okay, let’s see:
John Ford’s The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - Paramount - 4K
So this was a case of a brand-new arrival that got watched almost immediately. Paramount has been putting out some pristine-looking 4K discs and Liberty Valance is no exception. It looks and sounds incredible and this viewing was a big reminder of what a flat-out spectacular film this is. It had been several years since I’d seen it all the way through and it’s honestly one of my favorite Stewart performances. Wayne is great doing his Duke thing — bonus points for how hilariously he takes getting punched in the face by Jimmy Stewart. The film is filled with great action, much sadness, beautiful old western sets, and dastardly villains like the titular Liberty Valance, played by Lee Marvin in true bastard mode. Massive recommend if you haven’t seen this one.
Robert Altman’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) - Criterion Collection - Blu-ray
Keeping the western thing going here, admittedly a very different tone and time. For as much as I love Altman, my record of films of his I’ve seen has some odd blindspots. Until recently, I had not experienced the raw power of Warren Beatty and Julie Christie in this fabulously Altman-esque western. It’s one of those period films where the production design is so impressive, the costumes so authentic, and the performances so grounded, you feel like you’ve traveled back in time and are just watching people’s lives play out in early 20th century PNW. That sensation is aided by this great Criterion blu-ray disc that features the film’s 4k restoration and uncompressed mono audio. I meant this in the best way possible on my Letterboxd blurb, but while watching this, I felt like I could smell the movie through the TV.
Johnnie To’s Throw Down (2004) - Criterion Collection - Blu-ray
This was another blind buy, a habit that’s only gotten worse over the pandy, but thankfully it wasn’t one I lived to regret immediately after watching. To’s neon-soaked homage to Kurosawa’s Sanshiro Sugata has incredibly engaging performances from Louis Koo, Aaron Kwok, Cherrie Ying, playing three souls—a washed up bar owner, a young fighter, and an aspiring singer respectively—whose paths cross on their individual searches for self and friendship. I will say though, Judo is not the most cinematic of martial arts. Lotta tossing, I guess.
George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead (1978) - Second Sight Films - 4K
This Second Sight set is absolute aces. It contains the three separate cuts of the film (I’m a huge sucker for alt-cuts): the Theatrical cut, the Extended ‘Cannes’ cut, and the Argento cut. For the final version to watch before officially cataloging this set into the collection, I checked out Argento’s cut. This reworking, complete with the Zombi title card, is about the same run time as the theatrical, but Argento chose to remove a bunch of human background story to concentrate more on the action and the gore. Hey folks, you won’t hear me complain! And unlike the theatrical, this soundtrack contains nothing but Goblin tunes, unlike the mix of Goblin and other pieces that Romero added to the theatrical cut. One of my all-time fave films, looking and sounding better than at any other point on home video. Hot damn.
Brian De Palma’s The Untouchables (1987) - Paramount - 4K
Paramount hits the list twice in this entry thanks to their spectacular release of De Palma’s G-Men v. Al Capone masterpiece. This is a film I absolutely love, but for some reason rarely revisit. The 4K release (that looks pretty good, but sounds incredible thanks to a stellar Atmos track) is the first edition of the film I’ve ever owned. Maybe it’s because I’m pushing 40 and those slow, Sunday afternoons with a beer and an Ass Magnet* movie are incredibly appealing to me now, I don’t know. What I found funny this time around was I had the thought: all those years I’ve heard bro dudes quote Connery’s “knife to a gun fight” line like it was some bad ass thing, I mean, did they watch like, ten more seconds into the movie? Right around where the character is brutally gunned down moments after saying the line?
Okay, so five discs down and ::checks notes:: dozens to go! Watch this space, I’ll try to do weekly round-ups of what I get screened. Thanks for checking this out.
* The term ‘Ass Magnet’ is a trademarked term by my dear friend, Stephen Sajdak. It refers to a film that will keep you glued to your chair if you happen upon it on cable. You will literally cancel plans because you accidentally watched four minutes of an Ass Magnet movie and can’t bring yourself to leave before it’s over.