Sinister: The more brilliant Chris...

[Chris Butler]

Chris 'numero uno' wisely observed after complimenting Sr. Connelly:
>I think both Hartley and Allen are far, far superior to anything mainstream.
>However, Hartley is a fledgling while Allen has proven himself to be, in my
>opinion, one of the greatest film-makers America has. I would put his
>Husbands and Wives as well as Todd Haynes' Safe ahead of Scorcese's
>GoodFellas in the best American films of the decade. As far as the humor
>goes, Hartley is more overbearing than Woody Allen because he makes his
>actors pause too much at the 'punchlines' [snip]

The nail... the hammer... the conclusion is practically pre-ordained.
Monsieur McQuain has it exactly right - Hartley has a problem with his
confidence and it shows in his timing.  If he realized that he
wasn't *too* obscure or beyond comprehension, he'd direct his scripts
better.  In fact, I'm certain that he would direct someone else's
script brilliantly because he wouldn't be afraid of someone 'missing
an important intellectual point' or 'humorous bit'.  There's a bleeding 
edge that a lot of artists face with cryptism and walking that line is difficult.  It's easy to understand his vulnerable feelings as an artist,
but his degree of experience should warrant better response - and perhaps
it can be said that he has made better strides in his recent efforts.

One of the other irksome elements in his films is a sometimes gratutitous
amount of quirkiness, beyond what is merited with the script.  I acknowledge
that it is important to brand oneself as an 'indie' director, but some of
the scenes come off slightly as art school efforts, intentionally drenching
the camera with a sort of visual non-sequitors.  I'm certain that most of
these sidebars aren't necessary to character or plot development - only
occasionally do they offer visuals that justify their tangents.  It's a 
minor distraction, but after seeing 'Chien Andalou' (sp?) and others of
that genre, one would think that a modernist sense of consistency would
prevail...

>However, that being said, I haven't seen even half of Hartley's [snip]
>make me want to see more. 

I'm in the same boat.  Excellent, so far - clever.  It's rare to find
a director you take a liking too (wenders, jarmusch, coen bros, etc.),
so I'm eager to soak in his view of the world.

>I can get one person to watch Husbands & Wives, then it's all worthwhile...

I love Woody Allen and I've seen most of his films.  Since I haven't
seen Husbands & Wives, you've gotten your one targeted bullseye... ;)

Señor Droolcup <- not as Incandescent as DFWallace's Hal

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