Resources to help me appreciate mov..., er films

I’m reading Flicker by Theodore Rosczak. It’s about the power of movies, and it’s chockfull of references to movies, some well-known and some not but most of which I’ve never seen. Some are real movies, like Children of the Paradise, and some are fictional, like the Max Castle films, maybe some others. The thing is, I don’t know when he’s talking about real movies and when they’re made up.

I’m also in the midst of watching my late mom’s movie collection, mostly Jimmy Stewart, Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, but also every single thing Sidney Poitier ever did. (Mom had a thing for Sid.)

The result of this is that I wish I knew more about the movies I’m watching (and the ones Roszak talks about in Flicker) – what to look for, what made them special, how to better appreciate them. I’m not much of a movie person but reading Flicker and watching mom’s movies makes me want to fix that.

What’s a good resource for movie appreciation? Are there books geared toward people like me? Websites? Is there a Pauline Kael archive somewhere?

I guess you might try IMDB

Depends on what you mean by “appreciating” movies. I’ll give you an example.

My wife and I watched Nurse Betty recently. (I had missed its original theatrical run.) In the first act, we meet Betty and her husband and get a sense of her life. Then we watch as she witnesses the brutal killing of her husband, and goes into shock. At the end of the first act, her shock transforms into delusion, and she makes the decision to go look for her fantasy doctor.

The specific moment where this happens is a shot in which the Betty character is still, but the camera is moving slowly upward, looking at her face from above. In the foreground is some sort of mobile with colorful trinkets on strings; as the camera moves up past it, focused on Betty’s face beyond, the objects in the mobile appear to move downward. The single object most clearly in focus, and passing “alongside” Betty’s head in the background, is a rainbow.

“She’s going over the rainbow,” I said. My wife looks: what? As the shot concludes, I point out how the composition can be read to confirm the Wizard-of-Oz theme that had been only vaguely suggested up to that point (e.g., Betty is from Kansas). By reading that shot correctly, we were primed to pick up all the other fairy-tale references in the film, and because we were conscious of the play of subtext, we were able to enjoy the film on its intended levels.

Is that what you mean by “appreciating” movies? Because I think of it as learning cinema’s grammar and perceiving the various aspects of a film simultaneously – camera composition, color schemes, editing choices, allusions in the writing or design, and so on – as well as understanding the various contributions of the dozens of artists that work on a given project. This takes time, without question, and requires watching lots and lots and lots of movies. The up side is that you escape being restricted to Hollywood’s typical output; the world of potential film enjoyment expands dramatically. The down side is that those typical movies, like Red Dragon and Sweet Home Alabama, lose whatever satisfaction they held for you previously. It’s a tradeoff.

So… Could you elaborate a bit on what you’re looking for?

Cervaise, you appreciated that scene in Nurse Betty because you were familiar with Oz, you caught the reference. That’s the kind of thing I’m looking for.

I can enjoy a movie without knowing every detail related to its production. But sometimes I think I miss BIG stuff, and that’s what bugs me, thinking that all I caught was what was on the surface, that major things were happening and I didn’t pick up on them.

I just feel so uneducated. If I didn’t live in the boonies, I’d be taking a film appreciation class. I was hoping there’d be some books or something that could get me started on learning how to appreciate good movies.

japatlgt, IMDB is a good resource for finding a particular movie, identifying actors, etc. Thanks for mentioning it, because I tend to forget it’s available, and I haven’t explored it very thoroughly. Thanks.

Well, not entirely. I think everybody knows the basics of goin’ off to meet th’ Wizard, but the specific shot in Nurse Betty is pretty subtle. There’s a lot of stuff later in the movie (calling Betty “Dorothy,” a blue dress with white apron front, etc.) that’s a lot more obvious; it doesn’t take a genius to pick this stuff up. My point in referencing that particular shot is that it happens fairly early in the movie and provides a major clue for interpreting what happens afterwards – and that casual viewers, I think, won’t really notice it, or put together what the director is doing with it. The more obvious Oz stuff that happens later may feel somewhat melodramatic and out-of-place if the viewer hasn’t noticed that it’s being subtly established from the beginning.

Let me suggest, as a starting point, that you read something off my website. I’m not offering it because I think it’s brilliant or anything; in fact, I think it could stand some rather serious revision. No, I bring it up because it gives insight into how I, personally, approach viewing a movie. Specifically, I’m referring to my essay on Kubrick’s final film Eyes Wide Shut. Start with the initial review, and then follow the link at the bottom to a much longer analysis. Be warned: It’s quite long. It also gives away basically the whole movie, which I don’t know if you’ve seen. Even if you haven’t, though, it might be worthwhile to read it first, and then rent the movie; it may make more sense if you have advance knowledge of what’s going on. It’s up to you.

As an alternative, in this thread I offer some thoughts (starting about a third of the way down the second page) about how to interpret Spielberg’s A.I., a movie I believe is deeply flawed but that nevertheless rewards the viewer who thinks a lot about it. I talk a bit about parallel composition, thematic echoes, and other aspects of the movie that, when subjected to careful analysis, greatly illuminate the filmmakers’ intentions. Again, I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie, but that may or may not matter.

Because if that’s the sort of deeper film appreciation you’re interested in, then I know where to start. But if you read either or both of them and say, oh, no, that’s not exactly what I was looking for, that’s helpful to know also. I’m just trying to find out where you’re coming from.

Cervaise, thank you, your website will definitely be helpful. (Did you know the e-mail contact address doesn’t work?)

I haven’t seen Eyes Wide Shut or A.I., but I want to, someday, so I’m avoiding those reviews for now.

I did read your reviews of a few movies that I’m familiar with, and I think we’re on the right track. Not too scholarly, a nice personal tone, and I’m getting the impression that your thoughts aren’t set in stone, you’re flexible.

I’m going to check out your links too.

Thank you again. Nice job on the website.