Comments by "Morgan King" (@MorganKing95) on "Top 10 Worst Movies of 2013" video.
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cuzthechicksdigit Most movies after the 90's (but especially in the 21st century) are about action and visual effects or gross-out humor instead of story (and movies that have a story look more like Oscar baits), and they care more about popularity or looks instead of acting skills when they cast actors
Hollywood was much better when they had actors like Marlon Brando, Spencer Tracy, Laurence Olivier, Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart, James Stewart, James Dean, and Montgomery Clift, and actors like Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, and Robert de Niro were either more active or chose better movies. And who can forget about movies like "Gone With The Wind", "Casablanca", "All About Eve", "On the Waterfront", "Lawrence of Arabia", "The Godfather", "Taxi Driver", "Apocalypse Now" and "Raging Bull"? I may not be that old, but I think movies in the 20th century are superior to movies in the 21st century
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regulator619 You really compare "The Dark Knight" with those movies I've mentioned? You got a lot to learn about movies. And even though there are some good movies today, they are very rare to find compared to those in the 20th century, and even active directors like Spielberg, Coppola, and Scorsese had better movies in that century. You also had great directors like Elia Kazan, Alfred Hitchcock, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, Laurence Olivier, John Ford, William Wyler, Orson Welles, and Frank Capra. I watch classic movies because I'm tired of watching superhero-movies or science fiction films that are only meant to show off their technical achievements, and wait until Oscar-nominated movies are released since they are some of the few movies that have a real story or great quality.
TV-shows have become better though.
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regulator619 I’m not a film student, I’m a drama student. My teachers don’t even care about movies, and we have just been discussing theatre plays at my school. But you sound like a Dark Knight-fan (or Nolan-fan) who just shove aside and discredit other movies.
Let’s have a look at some of the actors I’ve mentioned:
Spencer Tracy: he had a naturalism and versatility that made him look like he was not acting all, and managed to have a natural authority in several of his movies (for example “Boys Town”). A big contrast to many actors who had an acting style that seemed more forced or unnatural. Also, unlike many other actors, he managed to be consistent in choosing good movies and staying up. Something that not even Marlon Brando managed to achieve.
Marlon Brando: brought a realism to acting and opened the doors to new ways of interpreting a scene, and it was clear that he was reacting and not “acting” (he showed his emotions because he got a reaction, not because it said so in the script). In addition, he managed to make improvisation and spontaneity more common, and he could go from playing a paralyzed WWII-veteran to abusive husband to revolutionary to gang leader to rebellious yet tender dockworker. He also surprised everyone by doing a Shakespeare-movie and musical. He created some of the most iconic characters of all time like Stanley Kowalski, Johnny Strabler, Terry Malloy, Vito Corleone, and Col. Kurtz.
Laurence Olivier: just like Spencer Tracy, he had a naturalism that made him look like he was not acting, and he was one of the biggest Shakespeare-interpreters of all time, as well as being a great director. He could also go through any genre.
James Dean: just like Brando, he made improvisation and spontaneity more common, and had strong emotions and intensity in his acting. Unfortunately, he died too young before he could really make an impact.
Clark Gable: his charming looks and powerful voice made him one of the biggest leading actors in Hollywood.
Humphrey Bogart: he could go from playing an unsympathetic villain to an anti-hero who ultimately shows his noble and sympathetic side. He could also go from westerns to film noirs to romantic dramas, and had a presence and charm that made him perfect as a leading actor
And then let’s have a look at some of the movies I’ve mentioned:
Casablanca: an owner of a nightclub with a romantic past that doesn’t know how to find the love again with his former lover after she left him. There is a dramatic tone throughout the entire film, several memorable quotes (Most notably “Here’s looking at you kid”, “We’ll always have Paris”, and “Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship), and the farewell scene is really intense; she doesn’t wanna leave him, but he says she must, and then they share a proper farewell with him reminding her of their memories and his famous line to her (“Here’s looking at you, kid”).
On the Waterfront: in addition of corruption near the waterfront, there is a story about a man who has to choose between ratting on the gangsters or stay loyal to them; if he rats on them, he will get himself killed, but if he remains loyal, he must continue to live a bum’s life. The iconic taxi scene actually sums up much of Terry Malloy’s character; he could have been a contender, a huge boxing sensation, but he became completely forgotten after a fixed match. And now he has to live a bum’s life as a dockworker in a dock where there’s lots of corruption. Not to mention that Marlon Brando again opened new ways to interpret a scene, by slowly pushing down Rod Steiger’s gun and sounding disappointed instead of being very mad at him. I also love the music that’s played in this scene.
Lawrence of Arabia: beautiful scenery, a solid performance by Peter O’Toole where he has calmness at the same time of being naturally authoritative. I also didn’t notice that it lasted for 3 and half hour because it was always so interesting.
The Godfather: an amazing story that covers Michael Corleone’s rise from being a family outsider to become the powerful Don, dramatic and beautiful (and also several times suspenseful) music, beautiful scenery, an art direction that highlights the drama and suspense. Almost every scene affects the next, and there’s so much that happens; introduction of Don Vito and the other characters, the wedding, the assassination attempt, Michael’s time in Sicily, 5 families-meeting, baptism of fire etc. And top of all, an amazing acting performance from Marlon Brando and Al Pacino where the former manages to highlight the complexity in Don Vito; on one hand, a ruthless and no-nonsense mafia boss, on another hand, a loving family father. He also managed to have a natural authority and his appearance and mannerism made him look 20 years older than he actually was. Al Pacino also had a natural authority and managed to highlight the complexity in Michael’s character; he was initially an honest man that wanted to be a politician, but because of the assassination attempt, he wanted to take revenge on the rivaling families. At the same time, we saw his love and loyalty towards his father, which many other characters lacked, and that led to their demise. The whole movie is also like an allegory on capitalism.
Taxi Driver: the main character has a subtle soreness and suffering that often become either too obvious or too obscure. We don’t know much about him, but we can still sympathize with him. And then we have criticism of the society’s treatment of Vietnam veterans, and the shootout against the pimp. The movie as a whole has a very dramatic tone and the score is amazing.
Apocalypse Now: wonderful cinematography, another amazing art direction that highlights the horrors and drama of the Vietnam War, a storyline that can be interpreted as a metaphor for how much the horrors changes the human and makes him insane and corrupted. Martin Sheen played a passive character, but I still see dynamism in him and how much he gets affected by listening and experiencing the horror. Marlon Brando had a limited screen time, but his monologue sums up much of the war: how much we are forced to do horrible things, how much lack there is of morality, and that we need to have a strength to go through such a horrible war.
Raging Bull: one of the best and dramatic themes and scores I have heard, an amazing performance by Robert de Niro where he manages to highlight the brutality in his character, but also soreness and desperation. The black-and-white art direction also makes the film even more dramatic.
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