Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 3:50 pm
by sancarlos
I can’t decide if my favorite scene is the one where Hi’s boss and his wife and kids come to visit, or the one where the convicts rob the bank. Both are just classic.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 3:55 pm
by Shirley
Just remembered another one of my favorite quotes that I break out in life when the context is right. "We felt the institution no longer had anything to offer us."
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:08 pm
by sancarlos
You trivia hounds probably all already know this, but in case anybody doesn’t, Randall “Tex” Cobb, who played the “lone biker of the apocalypse” once fought Larry Holmes for the heavyweight title and was a top 10 contender who also fought guys like Leon Spinks and Earnie Shavers.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:21 pm
by Nonlinear FC
He was a total bad ass. Started out in what would be today's MMA on the Kickboxing/Full Contact tour. Like you said, not an elite pro boxer, but he took down some legit dudes.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:37 pm
by Shirley
Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:21 pm
He was a total bad ass. Started out in what would be today's MMA on the Kickboxing/Full Contact tour. Like you said, not an elite pro boxer, but he took down some legit dudes.
I think his main skill was not getting knocked out. If I remember, Larry Holmes beat him to an absolute pulp, but he wouldn't go down or quite. Larry should have tried a hand grenade.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Nonlinear FC wrote: ↑Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:21 pm
He was a total bad ass. Started out in what would be today's MMA on the Kickboxing/Full Contact tour. Like you said, not an elite pro boxer, but he took down some legit dudes.
I think his main skill was not getting knocked out. If I remember, Larry Holmes beat him to an absolute pulp, but he wouldn't go down or quite. Larry should have tried a hand grenade.
You're thinking of Homer Simpson I'm pretty sure.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2024 6:00 pm
by DaveInSeattle
Shirley wrote: ↑Tue Feb 20, 2024 3:55 pm
Just remembered another one of my favorite quotes that I break out in life when the context is right. "We felt the institution no longer had anything to offer us."
Mine is "unless round is funny"
or "I don't know - they were jammies! They had Yodas 'n' shit on 'em!"
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, RAISING ARIZONA, 2/19, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Wed Feb 21, 2024 7:26 am
by wlu_lax6
sancarlos wrote: ↑Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:08 pm
You trivia hounds probably all already know this, but in case anybody doesn’t, Randall “Tex” Cobb, who played the “lone biker of the apocalypse” once fought Larry Holmes for the heavyweight title and was a top 10 contender who also fought guys like Leon Spinks and Earnie Shavers.
Tex Cobb is family friends with a coworker of mine. Has some very funny pictures on his phone.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2024 4:01 pm
by L-Jam3
Fuck yeah. Miller’s Crossing is up next. It’s on Paramount+, if Sir Patrick Stewart chucking Arnold got you buy in.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2024 4:42 pm
by Shirley
I only watched that one once, a few decades ago. I don't remember much, but I remember that I liked it. Didn't leave a lasting impact though. Not sure I'll get to it before Monday. We'll see. Traveling for work starting on Saturday.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2024 5:10 pm
by brian
Miller’s Crossing is amazing and I have to say benefits from repeat viewings. Jon Polito is awesome.
What’s the rumpus?
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2024 5:41 pm
by P.D.X.
Not sure I’ve seen this one so pretty stoked. (Another library dvd find)
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Feb 22, 2024 7:46 pm
by sancarlos
Shirley wrote: ↑Thu Feb 22, 2024 4:42 pm
I only watched that one once, a few decades ago. I don't remember much, but I remember that I liked it.
This is where I am. Ordered a dvd from the library to watch it. Looking forward it!
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 10:32 am
by Nonlinear FC
Miller's is probably in my top 20 of all time. The soundtrack is underrated, but that might be the Irish in me.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 10:36 am
by brian
I’m going to start trying to bring back “what’s the rumpus?”
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2024 5:10 pm
by sancarlos
Just finished my re-watch. Great film. Gabriel Byrne was perfectly cast as Tom Regan. Marcia Gay Harden was luscious. Cool camera work.
Verna wrote:Maybe that's why I like you, Tom. I've never met anyone who made being a son of a bitch such a point of pride.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2024 8:06 pm
by L-Jam3
I’m going to start this a little bit earlier than 9:30 as I got a long day tomorrow. This will be a reward for a day of suck that I’ve had today.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2024 9:22 pm
by sancarlos
Here’s a very interesting review of Miller’s Crossing that was done upon its 30 year anniversary. Worth a read.
The reviewer rates it as his favorite of all the Coen Brothers’ efforts.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:11 pm
by brian
sancarlos wrote: ↑Mon Feb 26, 2024 9:22 pm
Here’s a very interesting review of Miller’s Crossing that was done upon its 30 year anniversary. Worth a read.
The reviewer rates it as his favorite of all the Coen Brothers’ efforts.
It’s worth reading but kind of bizarre that the reviewer omits No Country For Old Men amongst the list of movies that could be argued as the Coens best when it won Best Picture and Best Director.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:41 pm
by sancarlos
Some interesting tidbits:
wiki wrote: During casting they had envisioned Trey Wilson (who played Nathan Arizona in their previous film Raising Arizona) as gangster boss Leo O'Bannon but two days before principal photography began, Wilson died from a brain hemorrhage and Albert Finney was cast. Roger Westcombe calls Finney's portrayal of Leo "perfectly nuanced in a brilliant performance". Finney also appears in drag in a cameo as an elderly female ladies' room attendant.
The Coens cast family and friends in minor roles. Sam Raimi, director and friend of the Coens, appears as the snickering gunman at the siege of the Sons of Erin social club, while Frances McDormand, Joel Coen's wife, appears as the mayor's secretary. The role of The Swede was written for Peter Stormare but he could not be cast since he was playing Hamlet (a role often referred to as "the Dane"). J. E. Freeman was cast and the name of the character was changed to The Dane, while Stormare went on to be featured in Fargo and The Big Lebowski.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2024 7:36 am
by The Sybian
I'm way late to the party, but I watched Blood Simple last night. For a movie that relies entirely on the camera and music to set the drama, it really holds up. There is almost no dialog and very little plot, but it's compelling. And Frances McDormand was adorable! I agree with Shirley on M. Emmet Walsh. His acting was the singing equivalent of being off-key. He came across as a goofball doofus when he should have been menacing and highly skilled. The way he set up as a sniper and took out Ray..., that was professional work. And how he scammed and shot Marty, although the goofball act could have been intentional by the character to trick Marty.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, MILLER’S CROSSING, 2/26, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2024 10:47 pm
by brian
A bit of Coens trivia. Miller’s Crossing would be the first Coens movie edited by “Roderick Jaynes” and he has subsequently edited every Coen Brothers movie since.
However Roderick Jaynes is a pseudonym for Ethan, Joel and Tricia Cooke who collaborate to edit their movies.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Mar 01, 2024 9:00 am
by L-Jam3
Sorry I didn't get to this past Monday I'll have to watch Miller's Crossing this weekend. Life got in the way.
Anyway, Barton Fink is up next. I don't remember being particularly enamored by it, but a rewatch would probably be worth it.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Mar 01, 2024 1:30 pm
by sancarlos
I’m in. I don’t much remember it, but I watched it when it was new and was disappointed. But, the critics loved it and I’m 30 years older now, so maybe I’ll like it this time!
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Mar 01, 2024 1:43 pm
by Shirley
Yeah, I watched it once many years ago. Don't really remember it, but I remember that it was weird and didn't really do it for me at the time. I hadn't yet developed my love for the Coen brothers yet (other than Raising Arizona) though, so maybe another try will be better.
BTW, I'm gonna try to catch up with Miller's Crossing tonight.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Fri Mar 01, 2024 5:29 pm
by brian
Barton Fink is very underrated in my opinion. John Goodman steals the movie though that’s maybe unsurprising.
“I will show you the life of the mind!!!”
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Sat Mar 02, 2024 4:31 am
by Shirley
Watched Miller's Crossing last night. I hadn't remembered how much of a noir film it is. I was expecting more typical modern gangster movie (like Scorsese), but it's more like an old Hollywood gangster movie. They stepped up from Blood Simple with a much more complex movie, but a lot of the same tone. Great performances from Byrne and Turturro (of course).
All in all, it was a better movie than Blood Simple, but not that much more enjoyable. Not nearly as good as Raising Arizona, imho. But it's interesting to watch the movies this way and see the Coen brothers' growth.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Sat Mar 02, 2024 12:14 pm
by sancarlos
Yeah, I might be splitting hairs but I’d call Miller’s Crossing more akin to an old-time film noir than an old-time gangster movie. Either way - I enjoyed it.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2024 1:11 am
by sancarlos
So, did anybody else watch Barton Fink? It was… different. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I was a professional writer or part of the Hollywood scene. Full of arty symbolism and allusions that mostly went over my head, I guess. Some fine acting all around. I particularly enjoyed John Mahoney (the dad on Frasier) in his hammy role as a Faulkner-esque playwright, and Michael Lerner (in an Academy award winning role) as the Louis B. Mayer-type studio chief. But all in all, for me, nowhere near as enjoyable as the three preceding efforts by the Coen Brothers.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2024 11:47 am
by P.D.X.
Just finished Miller's Crossing. It was thick and wordy and I wished I could remember how to turn on subtitles on a DVD - think I would've been able to pick up on a lot more. Enjoyable flick nevertheless. Did anyone else notice the lead had an Irish inflection in the beginning and then it went away? Thought that was weird. Great acting and writing otherwise. And McDormand as a ginger? Yes, please.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, BARTON FINK, 3/4, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2024 12:42 pm
by sancarlos
P.D.X. wrote: ↑Thu Mar 07, 2024 11:47 am
Just finished Miller's Crossing. It was thick and wordy and I wished I could remember how to turn on subtitles on a DVD - think I would've been able to pick up on a lot more. Enjoyable flick nevertheless. Did anyone else notice the lead had an Irish inflection in the beginning and then it went away? Thought that was weird. Great acting and writing otherwise. And McDormand as a ginger? Yes, please.
Ha! The lead, Gabriel Byrne, was born and raised in Ireland.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, 3/11, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 10:30 am
by L-Jam3
So the movie whose article I read got me to start this up, The Hudsucker Proxy (1994). I believe there's some connection to Raising Arizona. I know I haven't seen this one.
And apologies, as I've been a little behind in watching them. I've been shuttling between my house and my parents pretty consistently to get my dad settled after some issues with his motion. I've been doing some work around their house one day a week, so by the time the evening rolls around, it's not easy for me to devote the two hours to watch something deep. That and I prefer to watch movies in one shot makes this something I need to schedule and ultimately reschedule. I should be back on schedule by next week, as we move onto one of their masterpieces.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, 3/11, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 11:56 am
by sancarlos
This is the first of our march through the Coen Brothers that I’ve never seen, so I’m looking forward to it!
eta: by the way, it’s available for free viewing on the Roku channel, if you use one of those devices.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, 3/11, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 2:37 pm
by Shirley
Another one that I saw many years ago, but left little impression on me. I just remember Paul Newman, Tim Robbins, and I think hula hoops? And lots of old timey newsman/movie star type talking.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, 3/11, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2024 5:34 pm
by brian
Hudsucker is maybe my least favorite Coens movie. I think I like even The Ladykillers a bit more. It’s not a “bad” movie of course just feels a little cold for lack of a better term.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, 3/11, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 6:28 am
by brian
Hudsucker Proxy was actually released 30 years ago last week (March 11, 1994)
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, FARGO, 3/18, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 3:59 pm
by L-Jam3
What else needs to be said? Fargo. It's an all-time classic. Looking forward to seeing this again for like the tenth time, and I still laugh out loud.
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, FARGO, 3/18, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 4:40 pm
by sancarlos
Hudsucker was ok as a screwball comedy, but it didn’t really grab me. Certainly not like Raising Arizona did.
I own a dvd copy of Fargo, so looking forward to yet another viewing of it!
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, FARGO, 3/18, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 4:42 pm
by brian
Aw jeez, this was kinda my deal here, Wade…
Re: Swamp Movie Club: The Coen Brothers, FARGO, 3/18, 9:30 pm ET
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2024 5:09 pm
by Shirley
brian wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2024 4:42 pm
Aw jeez, this was kinda my deal here, Wade…