this is the city of angels, and you haven't got any wings.
So, this is almost a week delayed, because I've been really just wracking my brain, trying to figure out, not so much what to say, but how to say it. Just how does a person quantify and write down what they love about a movie, when what they love about it is everything. I always say that a truly great film has to embody everything the medium has to offer. This movie does that. It's the embodiment of stunning visuals, colors so rich and vibrant, you'd swear it was technicolor. Flawless evocation of the time period in which it's set, from the palette and set design and costuming, to the language and intonation and body language of the characters, perfectly rendered by one of the most talented ensemble casts in the history of film. A score and selection of period music that complement the scenes unfolding, without ever taking them over. All in service of a story that sucks you in from the very second it starts, both in terms of the mystery in question, and the flawed and beautiful characters at its core.
This movie came out in 1997, and I've been waiting for something to live up to it ever since.
Nothing has.
Day 30 - My Favourite Film of All Time
Done in picspam form, celebrating it, rather than trying to explain. (Though Mr. Ebert does a fine job here & here.)
L.A. Confidential
Sid: Come to Los Angeles! The sun shines bright, the beaches are wide and inviting, and the orange groves stretch as far as the eye can see. There are jobs aplenty, and land is cheap. Every working man can have his own house, and inside every house, a happy, all-American family. You can have all this, and who knows... you could even be discovered, become a movie star... or at least see one. Life is good in Los Angeles... it's paradise on Earth." Ha ha ha ha. That's what they tell you, anyway.
Lynn: You're the first man in five years who didn't tell me I look like Veronica Lake inside of a minute:
Bud: You look better than Veronica Lake.
Captain Smith: I admire you as a policeman - particularly your adherence to violence as a necessary adjunct to the job.
Lynn: Some men get the world. Others get ex-hookers and a trip to Arizona.
Exley: Shut up. Being cut to look like Lana Turner doesn't mean you are Lana Turner.
Vincennes: She is Lana Turner.
Exley: What?
Lynn: Come in out of the rain, Bud.
Bud: The Nite Owl case made you. Do you want to tear all that down?
Exley: With a wrecking ball. Want to help me swing it?
Ed: All I ever wanted was to measure up to my father.
Bud: Here's your chance. He died in the line of duty, didn't he?
This movie came out in 1997, and I've been waiting for something to live up to it ever since.
Nothing has.
Day 30 - My Favourite Film of All Time
Done in picspam form, celebrating it, rather than trying to explain. (Though Mr. Ebert does a fine job here & here.)
L.A. Confidential
Sid: Come to Los Angeles! The sun shines bright, the beaches are wide and inviting, and the orange groves stretch as far as the eye can see. There are jobs aplenty, and land is cheap. Every working man can have his own house, and inside every house, a happy, all-American family. You can have all this, and who knows... you could even be discovered, become a movie star... or at least see one. Life is good in Los Angeles... it's paradise on Earth." Ha ha ha ha. That's what they tell you, anyway.
Lynn: You're the first man in five years who didn't tell me I look like Veronica Lake inside of a minute:
Bud: You look better than Veronica Lake.
Captain Smith: I admire you as a policeman - particularly your adherence to violence as a necessary adjunct to the job.
Lynn: Some men get the world. Others get ex-hookers and a trip to Arizona.
Exley: Shut up. Being cut to look like Lana Turner doesn't mean you are Lana Turner.
Vincennes: She is Lana Turner.
Exley: What?
Lynn: Come in out of the rain, Bud.
Bud: The Nite Owl case made you. Do you want to tear all that down?
Exley: With a wrecking ball. Want to help me swing it?
Ed: All I ever wanted was to measure up to my father.
Bud: Here's your chance. He died in the line of duty, didn't he?