Day for Night

Starring:Nike Arrighi, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Walter Bal, Nathalie Baye, Jacqueline Bisset, Jean Champion, Valentina Cortese, Dani (II), Yann Dedet, Gaston Joly, Jean-Pierre LÃ©aud, David Markham, Bernard Menez, ZÃ©naÃ¯de Rossi, Xavier Saint-Macary, Maurice Seveno, Alexandra Stewart, Jean-FranÃ§ois StÃ©venin, Pierre Zucca
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com essential video

François Truffaut's lavish and fun 1973 comedy-drama about a film production is a clever hall of mirrors, with Truffaut himself playing a director, and his most important actor in real life, Jean-Pierre Léaud (The 400 Blows), portraying Jacqueline Bisset's immature costar. Day for Night is full of tales undoubtedly told out of school and repeated here in camouflage, and one can't help but be impressed with the stylistic and technical means by which Truffaut captures the adventurousness of a full-budget shoot. The cast is very good all around, with actors in some cases playing fictional thespians and in other cases playing members of the crew. A sequence set to thrilling music by Georges Delerue celebrates the whole art of filmmaking as seen from an editor's perspective--it makes one want to drop everything and shoot a film of one's own. --Tom Keogh

Description

The leading lady is recovering from a nervous breakdown, another performer is soused on the set, unions threaten to walk, shooting must finish before the insurance lapses and a cat can't hit its mark. Is this any way to make a film? FRANCOIS TRUFFAUT's sly, humorous OscarO-winning Best Foreign Language Film (1973) that speaks the language of everyone who loves movies. JACQUELINE BISSET, JEAN-PIERRE AUMONT, VALENTINA CORTESE, NATHALIE BAYE and Truffaut star.

Customer Reviews:

Day for Night.......2007-07-03

One of the best films ever made about the innate absurdities of moviemaking, "Night" is a loving satire about the film-world family filled with marvelously nutty performances, tons of movie references, and an overwhelming joie de vivre. Truffaut develops his slightly defective characters beautifully, and the entire cast is splendid--including then-unknown Nathalie Baye, playing an indispensable production assistant. "Are women magic?" Leaud's bratty actor keeps inquiring. But a better question would be: Has any director ever loved movies more than Truffaut, who lovingly spoofs even himself? The dizzying, exhilarating "Night" is his personal answer.

Pointless. A film about filmmaking of no interest........2007-03-31

Almost 2 hours long. A film about filmmaking. A narcissistic view of the movie business. The film is about a film being shot, and ends when this is accomplished. We see what goes on in the daily lives of those involved in the work, from the director (the same Truffaut) to the producer, to the cast, to the stuntman. There's a curious lady, a wife to one of the employees, who sits knitting and watching her husband so he doesn't cheat on her during work. Everybody keeps busy working and flirting chaotically, and the only one who does not mix work and pleasure seems to be the director (and maybe the producer). It's supposed to be funny, and even nostalgic. There are visual references to the great classic directors in film history, to how the film industry has changed... One thing to learn from this story is that fiction plays a role in our lives: it serves as a contrast to the frivolity and emptiness of our real lives.

"Do you think the story of a woman who falls for her father-in-law can still be interesting today?", asks a reporter to the leading star. That question is quite revealing of what our world has become. Sex and alcohol keep these pitiful troupe working like gasoline keeps a car running. Another important moment is when the knitting lady (mentioned before) gets tired of watching so much promiscuity going around and starts yelling at the whole crew. What role does she play? Is she the typical conservative fun-spoiler? Or is she Truffaut's alter-ego? Hard to say. And that's one reason why this whole film is pointless. It just describes what goes on, which is not interesting at all, there's no plot, there are no interesting characters, only adults acting as children acting as adults.

In another scene the director's assistant, another sexy gal, after one of the female workers runs away with the stuntman and leaves her lover, says "I could leave a man for a film, but never a film for a man", which doesn't make her any more likeable to me.

At least if it had been only 60 or 80 minutes of film I would have given it 3 stars. A film as empty and pointless as its characters.

smile! you're on candid camera!.......2007-03-21

truffauts somewhat overrated movie about making a movie. why do people who make movies believe that making movies is an interesting enough topic to make movies about -- over & over & over? not saying its bad, just saying its nothing as special as those who appreciate "cinema" would have us believe. sorry.

fantastic film........one of Truffaut's best............2007-02-13

For those of you who haven't seen any films by the late, great French director, Francois Truffaut, Day For Night (French title: La Nuit Americaine) is a great introduction. This actually won an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, and it is evident why. Day For Night is really a valentine to Francois Truffaut's love affair with cinema. This is a great and intriguing story (a sort of film within a film approach). Ferrand (played by Truffaut) is the hardworking film director, trying to line all of his ducks in a row, to film and complete his movie, "Je Vous Presente Pamela." As is often the case, nothing is going quite as was planned. For starters, his beautiful lead, Julie (Jacqueline Bisset), is recovering from a breakdown. Her co-star (Jean Pierre Leaud) is completely unreliable, and Severine (Valentina Cortese), an aging actress, is hitting the bottle pretty hard during the filming of their picture. What's more, all sorts of other intrigues are taking place between members of the crew (romantic and otherwise).

I love this shot because it almost seems like a pseudo-documentary, as well as a loving tribute to the blood, sweat and tears that go into making a film. How great that Truffaut got in front of the camera for this piece. He really should have done it more often. This film is equally funny and touching and I highly reccomend it.

A movie lover's delight - but pick it up while you still can.......2006-06-19

Along with Fahrenheit 451, Day For Night is easily Francois Truffaut's most playful film. It works where so many subsequent moviemaking movies don't because Truffaut doesn't put the director at the center of the picture, or indeed the movies themselves: it may be set in a movie studio on a troubled picture, but it's all about people and about love in its various forms. Moreover, for all the pains and tantrums and breakdowns, there's a real love for and acceptance its characters that makes it a particularly joyful experience. Throw in some great performances from a fine ensemble cast - not least the oft-overlooked Jean-Pierre Aumont - and a wonderful Georges Delerue score, and it's hard not to fall under its spell.

If you like the film, now is the time to pick up either Warner's excellent Region 1 disc or MK2's French PAL disc (with English subtitles on the feature and a slew of unsubtitled different extras) as both companies are being sued by the Truffaut estate over the film, which may make it unavailable for the forseable future.

Average customer rating:

Movie review
Night & Day
I get no kick from this movie
Hoaky and inaccurate
Better than expected

Night and Day
Starring: Cary Grant , Alexis Smith , Monty Woolley , Ginny Simms , and Jane Wyman
Director: Michael Curtiz , Robert Clampett , and Jack Scholl
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0001WTWXS
Release Date: 2004-06-01

Amazon.com

With Michael Curtiz (Casablanca) as director, Cary Grant in the lead, and wall-to-wall songs by Cole Porter, how could Night and Day lose? Why, by taking broad liberties with the composer's life story and failing to live up to expectations. If you can overlook such shortcomings, however, it's lively entertainment that doesn't completely deserve the scorn it has elicited. Grant is good as a bon vivant who had a way with words but lacked the discipline to pursue a career in law. As a singer, on the other hand, he's merely adequate. Curtiz wisely has the fine supporting actresses (Jane Wyman, Ginny Simms, etc.) handle the big numbers such as "You're the Top." Also, Porter's story was meant for black and white. The Technicolor process adds an unfortunate garishness to the tale of a man whose very name has become a synonym for elegance. With Mary Martin and Monty Woolley as themselves. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Description

Swellegant and elegant. Deluxe and delovely. Cole Porter was the most sophisticated name in 20th-century songwriting. And to play him on screen, Hollywood chose debonair icon Cary Grant. Grant stars for the first time in color in this fanciful biopic. Alexis Smith plays Linda, whose serendipitous meetings with Cole lead to a meeting at the altar. More than 20 Porter songs grace this tale of triumph and tragedy, with Grant lending his amiable voice to You're the Top, Night and Day and more. Monty Woolley, a Yale contemporary of Porter, portrays himself. And Jane Wyman, Mary Martin, Eve Arden and others provide vocals and verve. Lights down. Curtain up. Standards embraced by generations are yours to enjoy Night and Day.

Customer Reviews:

Movie review.......2007-05-26

This is a classy musical combined with a love story that was well done. Cary Grant is great and the music staged in appealing ways. Do not hesitate to recommend this movie.

Night & Day.......2007-01-24

The video was very enjoyable and of high quality graphics consistent with the time period. The condition of the video was excellent.

I get no kick from this movie.......2006-12-23

Very little of the actual Cole Porter exists in "Night and Day," a scrubbed-down version of the legendary Broadway songwriter's life. While Cary Grant is wonderfully charismatic, the movie itself is both fluffy and stretched out, with the holes patched by colourful musical numbers.

We're introduced to Cole (Grant) as he finishes one year at Yale, but disappoints his grandfather by saying that he's quitting to be a songwriter. He and his professor Monty Woolley (played by self) manage to scrounge up the money for a brilliant musical -- only to have World War I break out on opening night, thus destroying the show.

But after being injured, Cole regains his musical skills, with the help of his soon-to-be-wife Linda (Alexis Smith). Soon he's world-famous for his sparkling songs and brilliant dancing... but fame has a price, and Linda is growing tired of being second-fiddle to Cole's career. Things get even worse when he has a crippling fall from a horse.

Given that this movie was made in 1946, Porter gets the deluxe whitewashing -- inner demons, depression, chronic pain, homosexuality and a platonic marriage are all watered down into a typical Hollywood romance. Only the final close-up of Grant -- looking stiff and slightly ominous -- may hint at the lack of a storybook ending.

Unfortunately, the movie before it is rather corny, with melodramatic confrontations and the hokey handling of real-life tragedies (Porter's near-crippling). It's just fluff. And being turned into fluff, there's too little material included to spread around, so the filmmakers patched it with kitschy versions of Porter's songs, all in eyepoppingly garish colours. Okay, I loved that mad tap-dancing number, but that's about it.

Grant plays a purely fantasy Porter, but he does so with suave charm and style, as well as good chemistry with the elegant Alexis Smith. And Monty Woolley -- the real friend, albeit much older -- is fun as a professor with a great love of the theatre. He gets all of the funnier lines too ("The face and chin belong to me -- the beard belongs to the world").

"Night and Day" is an amusing fluff piece with good acting from Grant and Smith, but not much else to recommend it. It's too in love with Porter's songs and Technicolor to register a real story.

Hoaky and inaccurate.......2006-01-22

The main tension of this film, Porter's devotion to his career vs. his wife's longings for his attentions, is sad and pathetic, all the more so because the movie's conclusion seems to be some kind of romantic reunion between the two. Is it celebrating it, or does Grant's tortured look over Linda's shoulder betray darker, more forboding elements in their relationship. Be that as it may, they never really delve into Porter's life in any gripping, realistic way. You can hear the music better performed many, many places. It's fun to watch Wooley and Martins' performances, as well as the cameos by the likes of Eve Arden. Not a keeper, but worth seeing once if your a fan of any of the performers in the film or whom the film is about.

Better than expected.......2005-07-11

The price was great, and the extras on the DVD are such fun. THANKS!

Average customer rating:

Can't disagree with other reviewers, however....
An Underappreciated Gem---Try It!
Not as bad as people say it is
Brando in one of his quirkiest roles
Too Cool For School

The Night Of The Following Day
Starring: Richard Boone , Marlon Brando , Gerard Buhr , Pamela Franklin , and Jess Hahn
Director: Hubert Cornfield
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
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ASIN: B00009AOBO
Release Date: 2004-05-11

Customer Reviews:

Can't disagree with other reviewers, however...........2007-06-26

.......the ending really left me disappointed. I know, it was very new in its day, but the movie was so good up to that point. Brando's perfomance was fine, but anyone could have played the other roles and the film wouldn't have suffered. By the way, the tagline on the front of the DVD box leads you to believe a much more high-powered thriller waits for you inside. It doesn't.

An Underappreciated Gem---Try It!.......2007-06-09

I saw "The Night of the Following Day" yesterday. I'd heard, and expected, it to be typical of Marlon Brando's "stinky sixties" period, when he was just showing up for the check. The hype on this film was totally wrong! It's a period gem!

Richard Boone and, especially, Rita Moreno more than hold their own with Brando. It's refreshing to see the Method man taking something of a backseat to Boone, at least until the very end. And what an end it is---genuinely suspenseful and a true twist which I didn't see coming.

Brando plays, and plays well a sympathetic character among a cast of three-dimensional portrayals. The film is imaginatively photographed; 1969 Paris serves as an attractive backdrop for a movie that gives better than it got from critics at the box office.

At five bucks for the DVD or less than that for the video, give "The Night of the Following Day" a chance. It's a good late night or rainy afternoon movie. You won't be disappointed.

Not as bad as people say it is.......2007-01-01

I just saw this movie last night and didn't think it as bad as most people say that it is. It's not great and much less one that would be hailed as a masterpiece of comtemporary American cinema but I thought overall it was pretty good. The movie does move at a slow pace for the most part but it did keep me interested in its characters and how they were going to turn out. Marlon Brando plays the leader of a ruthless gang of kidnappers who proceed to kidnap a young lady as soon as she arrives in Paris. She is then taken hostage and driven to an isolated beachhouse owned by the stewardess that she met on the plane. As the days wore on the tension and danger builds and their plan turns horribly wrong and everyone feels the pressure as danger begins to consume them. Marlon Brando is always good as he seldom if ever disappoints and he plays his role with a smooth raw edge that is cool and collected and always serious. Richard Boone is perhaps the most cynical and dangerous villain of the group and he delivers a performance that is both intriguing and great. Rita Moreno is fantastic as the blonde cocaine addicted flight attendant who is Brando's partner in crime and lover. It was reported that the both of them were having a passionate and torrid affair during the filming of the movie. The last 14 minutes of the film leave you somewhat confused (atlest it did me) and the ending leaves you hanging and expecting something else to happen or atleast give the viewer an indication that something else has to happen but it doesn't. Not a bad movie, I thought it was going to be a bomb but it wasn't you should consider watching this movie and looking at it for what it is one of Marlon Brando's most obscure and less known films but all that considered a fairly decent movie.

Brando in one of his quirkiest roles.......2005-10-26

The death of a major actor usually results in a flurry of sales of his films, but that is not why I wanted this particular film.

Mr. Brando often 'walked through' films, giving perfunctory performances at best. He admitted as much during his lifetime. This is definitely not the case with his portrayal of "Bud" in this ensemble cast. I first saw this film on the big screen as a first release, and was fascinated by the interactions of the characters.

The plot revolves around the kidnapping of a young girl and holding her for ransom. The drama is the tensions among the conspirators. The ending, now a cliche, was relatively new at the time, and MUST be regarded that way.

The cast is what makes the film worth watching: Brando. Richard Boone, upping the bar on his sadistic sinister best (as seen in the previous year's "Hombre" with Paul Newman). Rita Moreno, showing the versatility by tackling a part a long way from "West Side Story." A very young Pamela Franklin, who five years later starred in the classic thriller "Legend of Hell House." The characters are brought to life by these talented players; no one is quite what he or she seems to be at first.

Yes, it's 60s. Yes, it's quirky. The big buzz is the rift between Brando and the director - Richard Boone was asked to take over for the last bits shot. Oh well. The film remains one of the standout roles of Brando's, and should be given a place in any collection.

Too Cool For School.......2005-07-20

The DVD of this excellent, overlooked kidnap drama is both mesmerizing and a hoot. The performances are uniformly terrific, with Brando (of course) the standout, and the cinematography is stunning photographically, though director Cornfeld doesn't stage his scenes all that dramatically at times. Still, the movie draws you in thanks to the performances, and by the climax, it's riveting.

What makes the DVD particularly delightful is the commentary by Cornfeld, who sounds like he has throat cancer, and who is still pissed off at Brando close to 40 years later. "He tried to seduce my wife" Cornfeld says before explaining how Brando refused to let him direct the last scene they shot (it's the one where Brando tells Jess Hahn he's not going through with the plot, and co-star Richard Boone directed it!). For Brando fans, you get an overlooked movie that is far from his worst, featuring trippy 60s cinematography that would be hailed as sheer genius if Steven Soderbergh did it on an "Ocean's 11" sequel. And Cornfeld's insight into the sadism Brando inflicted on so many of his directors is fascinating and repellant all at once. Recommended!

Average customer rating:

Definitive Version
Hard to watch
Great Performances, Great Play, Great DVD
Long Days Journey Review
An uninteresting but educational masterpiece

Long Day's Journey Into Night
Starring: Laurence Olivier , Constance Cummings , Denis Quilley , Ronald Pickup , and Maureen Lipman
Director: Peter Wood
Manufacturer: Bfs Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00009WVME
Release Date: 2003-10-21

Customer Reviews:

Definitive Version.......2006-04-11

Sir Laurence Olivier is magnificent in this version of the O'Neill family drama. Produced for television and shot on video tape.

Hard to watch.......2005-02-09

I'm a high school AP English teacher, and I bought both the Peter Wood and Sidney Lumet versions of Long Day's Journey into Night, and while Lumet's version isn't totally satisfying, I find it far superior to Wood's version. I'm amazed, in fact, that anyone would recommend this version. Olivier is very good as James Tyrone, but the other actors give weak performances, and the camerawork lacks any creativity. Katharine Hepburn and Jason Robards are excellent in the Lumet version, and there are numerous interesting staging and cinematic choices.

Great Performances, Great Play, Great DVD.......2003-12-01

I am delighted to be able to add this to my DVD collection. This production of the play is easily the finest ever put on film or tape, infinitely superior to that rather tired film with Katherine Hepburn and Ralph Richardson. This was taped in the studio after a famed production of the play was a major success at England's National Theatre.

Olivier's James Tyrone is indelible, the only actor I have ever seen to make the character a real living person rather than a hard-hearted tyrant. Olivier's performance is heart breaking, one of the most beautiful and moving performances I've ever seen. His James Tyrone manages to be achingly human and sad at all times, without ever once sugar-coating the character's less admirable qualities. That the same can be said of Constance Cummings as Mary Tyrone, and Denis Quilley and Ronald Pickup as Jamie and Edmund is a tribute to an overall magnificent cast.

A more than worthy addition to anyone's DVD library, and vital viewing for anyone interested in watching a great performance of a great play.

All in all, this is a great feast of acting for those willing to sit still and watch it with the attention it deserves. It doesn't get better than this.

Long Days Journey Review.......2003-10-31

Long Days Journey Into Night was the classic struggle about man battling with his fate. I thought the movie was alright, but not really my kind of flick. For drama lovers it would probably be a little better. It lacked any real action or entertainment from my point of view, but kept my interest somewhat. The acting was very good, however the plot was very depressing and sad, it's not a very uplifting movie whatsoever.

An uninteresting but educational masterpiece.......2003-10-31

After viewing this movie, I thought that it was exactly like any other movie I've viewed in school, boring. While many critics may argue that this was a great piece of art by O'neill, I found it to be three hours of mediocre drama. This is not to say that this film didn't have its interesting parts though. I thought the actors did a wonderful job depicting the lives of the family members and i felt as though this really added to the quality of the movie. Overall I give this movie 3 stars because It was rather boring but it did have its high spots.

Average customer rating:

Day and Night
Starring: Alain Delon , Lauren Bacall , Arielle Dombasle , Xavier Beauvois , and Marianne Denicourt
Director: Bernard-Henri Lévy
Manufacturer: Synkronized USA
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Release Date: 2006-01-31

Average customer rating:

Great theatre-play!
Hideous
Great Work of Art
Lemmon aid
Perhaps the Penultimate

Long Day's Journey Into Night
Starring: Bethel Leslie , Kevin Spacey , Peter Gallagher , Jodie Lynne McClintock , and Jack Lemmon
Director: Jonathan Miller
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
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Long Day's Journey Into Night

ASIN: B0007XG1EY
Release Date: 2005-05-10

Description

Academy Award©-winning star power lights up this passionate production of Eugene O'Neill's timeless American classic! In the height of a sweltering summer, the Tyrone family is about to explode with simmering tensions and suppressed truths that can no longer be held back. Wealthy but unsatisfied former actor James (Jack Lemmon) lives with his morphine-addict wife, Mary (Bethel Leslie, In Cold Blood), and their two tormented sons, Jamie (Kevin Spacey, The Usual Suspects) and Edmund (Peter Gallagher, TV's The O.C.). As nightfall approaches, truth and madness fight for control over a family tearing itself apart. A landmark production from theater legend Jonathan Miller, this searing drama is a bold, electrifying powerhouse you'll never forget!

Customer Reviews:

Great theatre-play!.......2007-06-28

The actors are very very good. The plot is interesting. I am glad that I have watched it.

Hideous.......2006-09-06

This version is nothing - absolutely nothing - on the Katharine Hepburn version. See that one instead.

Great Work of Art.......2005-10-26

I have been a fan of the stage for several decades and have seached high and low for a copy of this production. I saw it on ebay several times for hundreds of dollars but finally it has been made available to all. If you are a lover of great stage performances than this dvd is for you. It has been missing from my collection far to long. You see the late great Jack Lemmon at his best (on stage) and a young raw Kevin Spacey (he even has hair) working togther on stage. Then add Peter Gallagher and Bethel Leslie and you have some of the great stage performers of our time. I missed this one live - don't know how - but still kicking myself. Great to see it on DVD for generations to enjoy.

Lemmon aid.......2005-09-25

Jack Lemmon is brilliant in this 1987 television production of Eugene O'Neill's 1940 play as the patriarch of a severely dysfunctional family, James Tyrone--a former actor and now an emvbittered man in his 60s. His wife, Mary, played quite well by Bethel Leslie, is a morphine addict. His older son, Edmund, is consumptive but says he has "a bad cold". And his younger son, Jamie, is hard bitten, cynical--a chip off the old block. Jamie's bitterness echoes his father's in another way--he's a failed actor.

Edmund is played by Peter Gallagher. It's a little off-putting to connect a man with consumption to an actor with such a strapping frame. In spite of that, Gallagher does do a good job. The only somewhat false note, unfortunately, is supplied by Kevin Spacey as Jamie who turns in a somewhat one-dimensional performance. His cynicism comes through, but he doesn't shake that. Even when his lines indicate he's softened a little, trying to convey that he does in fact have some sympathy for his brother or his father, it still sounds aggressive. This was near the start of his professional acting career, so perhaps it's understandable.

The production itself, however, is first-rate. The director, Jonathan Miller, startled audiences by staging the play in such a way that there is often overlapping dialogue. This happens most often when two members of the family are arguing with each other, which is decidedly realistic. In an extremely intriguing one-hour audio interview that comes as a bonus on this DVD, Miller talks about this technique of overlapping dialogue. He is a brilliant man--both a medical doctor and a stage/opera director--and listening to him is a real pleasure.

There is also a one-hour audio interview with Kevin Spacey. Nowhere near as captivating as the interview with Miller, it is still of interest, particularly when Spacey recounts several anecdotes about his relationship with Jack Lemmon, who he considers a mentor.

The overlapping dialogue technique startled not only the audience, but also critics, many of whom lambasted Miller for this. After all, the playwright is O'Neill, an American institution. But personally, I think Miller did a terrific job. It's somewhat difficult to listen to endless dialogue from a dysfunctional family; this technique of having the characters talk over each other is exactly what dysfunctional family members would do in real life and it juices up the proceedings, makes the audience sit up and pay attention. I think it's perfect.

In fact, when you see and hear Long Day's Journey for the first time and you realize it was written in 1940, you realize just how far ahead of his time O'Neill really was. The substantial spate of plays and films that have been staged, produced, and released since that time with a dysfunctional family as the theme have testified to exactly how prescient and attuned the playwright was to the real core of American life--life as it's lived day to day in the home.

This is a brilliant play with a marvelous production. Lemmon is phenomenal; Leslie is great. Gallagher is very good and Spacey gives it a good try. Were it not for the somewhat weaker elements, this would be a five-star rating.

Still highly recommended.

Perhaps the Penultimate .......2005-06-18

This is a wonderful interpretation of O'Neill's transcendental autobiographical work. The cast is fine, but a less "performed" example of Long Day's Journey into Night does exist. The 1962 film by Sidney Lumet actually succeeds more as a drama and as a glimpse into a tortured reality. It is hard to explain. It's like seeing Shakespeare acted out instead of embraced and performed. This newer cast acts the story. The Lumet cast lives the story. They breathe it. They are not actors cast in a show. They are the O'Neill family. Even the filming itself becomes an active part of the Lumet experience. Is buying this version a mistake? Absolutely not. I would just simply recommend taking a look at the Lumet version before deciding.

Average customer rating:

BAD, BAD BAD MOVIE
An average slasher movie plus two good short films
Night Divides The Day, The... (2001) d: Burton, Jeff

The Night Divides The Day
Starring: Jeff Burton , Sara Kirby , and Sangster Collins
Director: Jeff Burton
Manufacturer: E.I. Independent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005NVX0
Release Date: 2001-08-03

Customer Reviews:

BAD, BAD BAD MOVIE.......2005-03-25

The first attribute of a good movie is---it should look like a movie. Who wants to watch a play on film. We go to movies to escape reality, not to watch live skits. Surprisingly, the acting was acceptable, but the story line and camera angles were pathetic.The two shorter extra movies were actually better than
"The Night Divides the Day"..TNDTD was unoriginal, stretched out with those uninspiring stories around the campfire, and very predictable. This was a Middle School Project at best. while I will retain my copy,it will probably be a lonely , boring, desperate day beofre I view this one again.

An average slasher movie plus two good short films.......2003-02-23

The Night Divides the Day is a perfectly adequate slasher film with nothing to make it stand out from the crowd. Hollows Pointe University has a serial killer running around campus, claiming four victims within a week. The group of kids in this film decides to get away for awhile and head off on a camping trip in the middle of the woods. I never got a good handle on exactly who the couples were because they seemed to change slightly over the course of the night, but there was a little sexual tension in the air at times. Sitting in front of the fire, the campers tell incredibly boring scary stories to each other, argue among themselves about the quality of those stories, and insult each other's choice of favorite authors (one is accused of ripping off H.P. Lovecraft, but I must say for the record that the trivial story referred to has absolutely nothing to do with Lovecraft). Eventually, they decide to start heading off into the woods in small groups. Three head off to smoke a little weed, another couple heads out for some unknown reason, the guy whose story was ridiculed stomps off by himself and is followed a little later by the offending party. You can see where all this is going. Everyone who wanders off does not return. Afraid that something dangerous is out in the surrounding woods, the remaining camp buddies decide-of course-to go look for the missing. Some of them are so scared they can't wait to get back to camp, but then they turn right around and go off into the dark again. You can't keep these kids from wandering out to meet their doom

There's a little blood, but there is really no gore to be found here. Of course, I could be wrong because I could hardly see any of the action in the movie's final half hour. There is basically no lighting at all during all of the wood scenes. There were many occasions upon which I watched a screen that was essentially pitch black for a significant amount of time, and my inability to follow the action became pretty annoying after awhile. I will say that the ending is not wholly predictable, but neither is it very climatic. In the end, this movie suffers from its lack of originality, although it does what it does fairly well.

I found the two short films included on the DVD much better than the featured movie. 911 is a tight, suspenseful tale of murder. A killer sneaks into a house and attacks a young woman, but she manages to call 911. By the time the cops arrive, the story has taken a nice little twist. The other film, The Initiation, is also a tale of murder. First, we see two girls attacked after running out of gas in the woods, then we join a group of stranded motorists as they hitch a ride, get stranded again, and find themselves in the middle of some type of dangerous, almost certainly unapproved sorority initiation. All in all, this DVD is worth taking a look at, although the main feature is a fairly predictable slasher film.

Night Divides The Day, The... (2001) d: Burton, Jeff.......2001-10-16

"...Fear the dark and pray for dawn." A not so original story about a group of collage kids camping in the woods, while a dangerous psychopathic killer is on the loose. Like we haven't heard that one before huh? "...A night of partying and storytelling brightens their mood, but it can't stop an escalating sense of dread that something is out there in the dark."The dreadfully slow paced plot has the college kids one by one getting lost in the woods, only to have their buddies look for them and also getting lost in the woods. Occasionally someone is killed, however the characters concern for the lost school chum is everything from "Let's get the hell out of here"... To "Oh maybe they will be back", all at once, and left me confused to which way the plot was heading? This film seemed to be caught somewhere between a slasher film with very little gore, and a Blair Witch Project (1999)... Some interesting camera ideas show promise, although faster editing, should tighten future projects. I did however like the two bonus shorts included on the disc: 911 is the twisting story of women who calls the emergency number while being attacked, "...will a young woman's emergency phone call in the dead of night save her from a brutal killer?", when the police arrive the victim is accused of being the killer. Very interesting turn of events Another short entitled The Initiation: is about a college sorority who take initiation just a little too far. "...Three friends discover the terrifying secret behind a college sorority." Both shorts have great B-type cheesy ideas that the feature was lacking.

International Cinema Collection (A Very Long Engagement / Day for Night / The Damned / Gloomy Sunday / Death in Venice)

Average customer rating:

International Cinema Collection (A Very Long Engagement / Day for Night / The Damned / Gloomy Sunday / Death in Venice)
Starring: International Cinema Collection
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

( I ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Drama | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Art House & International | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video

Boxed Sets | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
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1900 (Special Collector's Edition)

ASIN: B000GB5M24
Release Date: 2006-09-12

Description

A Very Long Engagement: The filmmaker and star of Amelie! Jean-Pierre Jeunet directs Audrey Tautou (The Da Vinci Code) in a spellbinding and widely honored tale of lovers separated by WWI. Day for Night: Anything that can go wrong on the set does in Francois Truffaut's giddy, glorious valentine to movies. "The best movie ever made about the movies" (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times). The Damned: Luchino Visconti brings flamboyant style to a tale of a corrupt German industrialist family giving way to greater corruption: the rise of the Nazis. With Dirk Bogard, Charlotte Rampling and more. Gloomy Sunday: The art-house favorite about entangled romance, the Holocaust and a song that swept the world is "a stirring and provocative affirmation of the power and resilience of love" (Philip Wuntch, The Dallas Morning News). Death in Venice: Thomas Mann's meditation on beauty, age and obsession is "splendidly brought to the screen" (Leaonard Maltin's Movie Guide) by Luchino Visconti, Dirk Bogard stars.

The Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil [Non-US Format, PAL, Region 2, Import]

Average customer rating:

Half good and half awful

The Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil [Non-US Format, PAL, Region 2, Import]
Director: Jean-Luc Godard
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Product Description

Jean-Luc Godard's Sympathy for the Devil, also known as One Plus One, uses both documentary and staged sequences, alternating between an inside look at a rock band's recording process and reflections on contemporary politics and aesthetics. One half of the film focuses on the Rolling Stones, as they rehearse and ultimately record the song that would become "Sympathy for the Devil." By presenting repeated takes of the entire composition, the film allows the viewer to witness the progressive evolution of the song from its original, slower conception to the more percussive version that became the final recording. The other half of the film which is occasionally accompanied by the song presents a series of sequences dealing with issues like black power, pornography, racism, and Marxism, amongst others. These sequences, which often focus on a group of revolutionary youth in Paris, provide a chance for Godard to inject political commentary and meta-fictional musings on the nature of cinema. These more cerebral scenes serve as counterpoint to the direct presentation of the creative process seen in the Stones' studio sessions, and provide oblique commentary on the political meanings of popular music.

Customer Reviews:

Half good and half awful.......2007-06-04

This is an odd movie. Half of the movie is devoted to the recording of the Rolling Stones song Sympathy for the Devil and half is devoted to Jean Luc Goddard's silly surealistic social commentary masquarading as absurdist farce. Historically the Stones's section is incredible. What you see are the Stones writing Sympathy in the studio, rearranging the song, with the results being radically different from the songs' initial form. You also get to see the by that time pathetic and drugged out Brian Jones limply playing acoustic guitar so out of it he doesn't even realize he's not miked and therefore not being recorded. This part of the film is facinating and of real interest to any Stones or rock fan, even those just interested in the creative process. Unfortunately the Stones in the studio sections are interupted with brief and whimsically absurdist skits that range from mildly interesting at best to irritating and inconsequential. Goddard tries cheaply to weave some sort of surrealistic social commentary around the Stones song and fails miserably. Both the onscreen antics and the trite thought behind them are both amateurish and poorly executed and have nothing whatsoever to do with the Rolling Stones. Which of course means that I found half of the film to be of little interest. I'd skip this one.