Just watched this brilliant movie for the first time and I think it may be Coppola's masterpiece. It's mesmerizing! I love how it leaves so many aspects of the story unexplained and open to interpretation, providing endless possibilities of how it all went down. There isn't one superfluous scene. Coppola was firing on all cylinders when he made this. The dream sequence is one of the most powerful I've ever seen. This is one to savour and I know I'll want to revisit it again and again.
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The Conversation (1974) - Francis Ford Coppola
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It is indeed brilliant. Coppola's 70's streak is amazing: The Godfather I & II, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, one masterpiece after another. You seen De Palma's Blow Out and Antonioni's Blow Up by the way? They're both thematic siblings to The Conversation.
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I'm not the biggest fan of Coppola generally: I can appreciate the artistry and breadth of THE GODFATHER, for example, but it's not a film I would choose to watch for pleasure. However, if I had to draw up a list of 25 or so favourite films, THE CONVERSATION would be in there somewhere. It's an amazing film, not just my favourite Coppola picture but my favourite of the paranoid thrillers of the 1970s. The sound design is phenomenal, and the photography is beautiful. The narrative is enigmatic without being confusingly so.'You know, I'd almost forgotten what your eyes looked like. Still the same. Pissholes in the snow'
http://www.paul-a-j-lewis.com (my photography website)
'All explaining in movies can be thrown out, I think': Elmore Leonard
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Originally posted by enandalusiskhund View PostIt is indeed brilliant. Coppola's 70's streak is amazing: The Godfather I & II, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, one masterpiece after another. You seen De Palma's Blow Out and Antonioni's Blow Up by the way? They're both thematic siblings to The Conversation.Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?
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Originally posted by enandalusiskhund View PostIt is indeed brilliant. Coppola's 70's streak is amazing: The Godfather I & II, The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, one masterpiece after another. You seen De Palma's Blow Out and Antonioni's Blow Up by the way? They're both thematic siblings to The Conversation."His lives inside of his own heart. That's an awful big place to live in."
-Billy Bob Thornton, 'Sling Blade' (1996)
"Some roads you shouldn't go down."
-Billy Bob Thornton, 'Fargo' (2014)
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Originally posted by Matt H. View PostPoor Hal Ashby. He died way too young (59, same age as Cassavetes). I've always wanted to see 8 MILLION WAYS TO DIE."His lives inside of his own heart. That's an awful big place to live in."
-Billy Bob Thornton, 'Sling Blade' (1996)
"Some roads you shouldn't go down."
-Billy Bob Thornton, 'Fargo' (2014)
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It is amazing that THE CONVERSATION was the 'little' film Coppola did in between the two GODFATHER titans - and, many, like myself, feel it may be the best of the three.
The last time I saw it, in a theater in 35MM was so overwhelming, I'm 'afraid' to see it again, so as not to taint the memory.
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I know what you mean about not wanting to taint the memory; I haven't watched FULL METAL JACKET since I saw it on the big screen a few years ago. It felt like it was the "definitive" viewing. Same thing with TAXI DRIVER; with that screening, I was able to fully appreciate Bernard Hermann's score. I don't think watching it at home would do it justice anymore.Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?
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I've also got a few of those films: Lost Highway is one. Have seen it countless times on home video, but nothing has come near watching it on 35mm in the cinema.
Wasn't Coppola forced into doing Godfather II with the promise he'd get to do The Conversation if he did? Or was that Apocalypse Now?
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According to the book EASY RIDERS, RAGING BULLS, he didn't want to do the first one. He agreed to do the second one if he had more creative control.
From the book: Peter Bart, the VP of production at Paramount, offered Coppola a million dollars to write and direct GODFATHER II. He agreed, with the stipulation "that none of the executives and producers who were involved with THE GODFATHER could be involved with the sequel. (Robert) Evans was not allowed to put a foot on the set. He also secured a commitment from Paramount to finance THE CONVERSATION." He only got paid $60,000 to make the first one.Last edited by Matt H.; 07-26-2016, 10:02 AM.Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?
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Originally posted by JoeS View PostThe last time I saw it, in a theater in 35MM was so overwhelming, I'm 'afraid' to see it again, so as not to taint the memory.
Hitchcock's THE LADY VANISHES would have been another one, but I had to write an article about the film a year or two after watching it at the cinema, and so found myself in a position whereby I had to watch it at home again.'You know, I'd almost forgotten what your eyes looked like. Still the same. Pissholes in the snow'
http://www.paul-a-j-lewis.com (my photography website)
'All explaining in movies can be thrown out, I think': Elmore Leonard
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Tarkovsky's SOLARIS and Kubrick's 2001 are both movies I've never even tried to watch on TV. I've seen bits of 2001, but, I just can't sit and watch it on even my pretty decent home system. Last year, I saw 2001 in 70MM with Sfx genius Douglas Trumbull there to introduce it - I can never watch it again on a mere TV set!
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