Chorus.Fm Weekly Movie Club • Page 23

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoise felt like a French take on a Monty Python film. Not nearly as zany as that, but definitely in line with other farcical comedies.

It lampoons both the sense of privilege and paranoia of the middle class. Our main characters just want to enjoy a comfortable and slightly lavish lifestyle, but their plans are constantly interrupted - by each other and by outsiders, often from what they would consider to be lower classes of people. The third act of the film consists mainly of dream sequences in which our middle-class protagonists are slighted by members of a higher military class. This could be interpreted as middle-class fears of the state taking away their privilege.

The film also takes the time to show how little these people actually work. It seems like they're able to maintain this lifestyle through diplomatic privilege and illegal drug trade.

The most interesting character is the Bishop. Being part of the church, he is technically in a different class, but he is still afforded many of the privileges of the middle class. He is tossed out when he is assumed to be a gardener, but when he is in his robes, he is called "My Lord" and doted upon. Yet, he has to work a little more than the other characters. At times it feels like he is cosplaying as lower and upper class. In the end, he absolves his parent's murderer but then shoots the man down like someone putting down a horse.

Overall, I enjoyed it. The entitled and oblivious nature of the main characters can be quite amusing. However, I did find the barrage of dream sequences in the third act, while on point with the themes, to be tiring.

 

@I Am Mick Is up!

@CarpetElf is next week

 

I'm going with Matt Johnson's 2013 brilliant dark comedy The Dirties. It's free on Prime.

When two best friends team up to film a comedy about getting revenge on bullies, the exercise takes a devastating turn when one of them begins to think of it as more than a joke.

I think it's an incredible feat to pull off a movie about planning a school shooting that is both unsettling and really funny. I initially had another movie in mind, but after showing some friends this recently I was shocked by how differently we viewed the movie so I'm curious to get everyone's take in here.

 

also please don't let the thumbnail of the trailer put you off, it kills me that they use that.

 

Like but don't fully love The Dirties iirc. I think I prefer Operation Avalanche to The Dirties and Blackberry, but definitely excited to revisit it.

 

Street Wise was really good. Crushing to watch those kids, even worse reading the wiki, worse again thinking about how it's going for children today

 

@CarpetElf is up!

Unless ive missed someone im up next week, which will be the final pick for this round.

 

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. I had a hard time making sense of this film, I did not understand the connections the middle class had to dinner parties or the meaning of the interruptions. I felt the film was hinged on something I was missing.


Norman Holland on Luis Bunuel's The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

 

YO I'm sorry for the delay.

I'm trying to watch all from my physical collection that I haven't seen and after some consulting the only one that I haven't seen that is also available on more than one platform is...

 

I loved that movie when it came out, also really loved the book. Hell, even Matt Reeves American remake is really good.

curious how it holds up

 

Loved The Dirties. First time seeing it, but Ive watched the first season of Nirvana The Band The Show. When I first heard about this the premise of extremely low budget, found footage documentary, debut school shooting comedy put me off. Blown away how well they pulled that together

The humour and bad film references won me over immediately. It goes on and ties in a serious theme of bullying without playing it for laughs while using the medium in very clever ways around it to sneak the laughs back in. I'm not aware what the discourse around this film was for how it handled bullying or school shootings. School often has a dichotomy, you have fun & friends, you get assaulted & traumatized.

Excited to check out his other stuff! I didnt know he did the blackberry movie? Was rewatching the Nintendo shopping song today.

 

EDIT: WARNING 2 hours of explicit french debauchery

For the last pick of the round ive chosen

Liberté (2019)


Pacifiction was my favourite of last year and ive been meaning to check out this out.

After this week we will take a break from picks to let people catch up. We will start again with another roll call when the interest returns.

 

Damn, the last few weeks have been nuts, so I still haven’t even gotten to Streetwise. Hoping I can catch up this week.

 

You are going to make a lot of people upset with this one.

 

Let the Right One In. I liked this when it came out but was kinda dreading revisiting, wasn't feeling an austere child vampire romance. I'd forgotten everything that happened, knew that its ends with a swimming scene but in my head I mixed it up with the kids pool scene in aftersun which is insane to forget and then replace it with that. I don't know but it worked on me again, was really rooting for those kids, loved how they shot all the vampire stuff.

 

oh boy. Is death of louie a better pick?

 

We are back for round 3 of the Chorus FM weekly movie club

Same rules as last time, everyone one is welcome! Post in here if you want to join in.
It's a new list, previous participants won't be included unless they post to join round 3.

Rules for picking your movie:
1.It must be easily available. That means a popular streaming service and/or digital rental. No one is buying some import DVD to watch it.
2. The film should be older than two years old. We don't need to repeat recent conversations.
3. The film should not be extremely well-known. There is no need to discuss a blockbuster like Avatar or a renowned canon masterpiece like Citizen Kane.

Each Monday will be a new recommendation from the chosen member. The next member will choose the movienext Monday.We will go in the order of the posted list and new members will be added to the bottom until we finish the list

 

i'd be into joining if y'all would have me

 

Your in baby!

 

Can I pick gone in 60 seconds?

 

Yes

 

I couldn't make it work last time but I'm on summer break from school rn so count me in.

 

I hear I'm first up?

 

Do you guys want an action classic I haven't seen, an 80s dramedy that is having a resurgence, or one of two Cronenberg classics

 

Fuck it - as much as I would love to make more people watch Frogman, my pick is David Cronenberg's 1988 psychological thriller, Dead Ringers. I recall liking but not loving this on first watch, but Cronenberg is my guy and I'm excited to revisit it. Looks like it's available to rent in addition to being on Peacock!