tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post96555876940810231..comments2023-08-16T10:10:36.008-04:00Comments on Silly Hats Only: A skill every cinephile should masterPaul C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02699493473242261477noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-48664247047827350692008-06-09T15:39:00.000-04:002008-06-09T15:39:00.000-04:00WHITE CHICKS IS FUNNY. Albeit an awful, awful film...WHITE CHICKS IS FUNNY. Albeit an awful, awful film, but I laughed A LOT. <BR/><BR/>Anyways, you can imagine the taste of MY friends, high school boys and girls...if it hasn't got a superhero or Zac Efron, then it is a no no. Well, I try steer them on the right track, but it is often no use. I get it, we all have our tastes.<BR/><BR/>Danny, I made a friend of mine watch "Paranoid Park," and when it ended I was still gasping for air, and he was like, "whatever, I want to watch Hot Rod." I nearly stopped breathing all together. <BR/><BR/>I am really not intelligent enough to contribute any more to this {awesome} discussion. Great post Paul.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-35516198483670513042008-06-04T14:00:00.000-04:002008-06-04T14:00:00.000-04:00Fabulous posts and comments - all so true. Really ...Fabulous posts and comments - all <I>so true</I>. Really an important discussion.<BR/><BR/>For me it can be frustrating when people ask you but they really just want to talk about some movie they're already thinking of, whether it be something like <I>White Chicks</I> or <I>No Country</I>. In either case, the discussion stalls as they try to tell you something about it you don't already know.<BR/><BR/>If you <I>are</I> able to get in a recommendation, it's usually something they haven't heard of and don't have the patience to hear about. This is why I think #'s 1 & 2 are so important.<BR/><BR/>The other difficult aspect of this is that you really only get one shot at a recommendation, as le says. A friend of mine took his brothers to <I>Paranoid Park</I> with disastrous results. How can you regain someone's trust?Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05222052132452709301noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-58047067105528120812008-05-31T16:43:00.000-04:002008-05-31T16:43:00.000-04:00I have two common experiences related to my status...I have two common experiences related to my status as the local movie guru.<BR/><BR/>1. People constantly demand that I tell them what my favorite film of all time is. I always respond by offering to name 10 of my favorites, and most of the time whoever I'm talking to sort of rolls their eyes as if they're frustrated that I didn't just say "Pulp Fiction."<BR/><BR/>2. People always tell me "hey, you gotta meet my friend, he is <I>so</I> into movies, at least as much as you are!" Without fail, the person they're referring to is in fact an active renter at Family Video, but knows about as much about the medium as I did in 9th grade. This type will usually have seen a fair number of good mainstream films and perhaps a few of the popular greats like "Taxi Driver" and "The Godfather," but if I start name dropping or talking about Hitchcock beyond "Psycho" the conversation hits a wall. <BR/><BR/>I developed a bizzare test for these people. I ask them if they've seen all of the Beverly Hills Cop films. They'll usually respond in the affirmative, to which I then challenge them to name three non-Eddie Murphy actors that appeared in at least two of the films, who directed each film, and what year they were all released. The goal here isn't so much to find someone who can answer all of these questions as it is to see how the react to a difficult query. Usually they shake their heads and assure me that only a supreme movie geek would even attempt to learn dates and grosses and things like that, which tells me about what I need to know about how much of a cinephile they really are.Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08310290563393412068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-31269647035978650452008-05-27T20:44:00.000-04:002008-05-27T20:44:00.000-04:00I worked at Hollywood Video for two years and my m...I worked at Hollywood Video for two years and my movie recommending skills were constantly put to work. <BR/><BR/>When I was asked questions like, "What's good?" I had to decipher the two word query into a number of sub-questions. "What's good that just came out?" "I have no idea what to watch tonight, could you recommend something that you like?" "Where's the nearest copy of "White Girls?" <BR/><BR/>It's rough but it's nice when you start to find regulars that come in and who trust your guidance. <BR/><BR/>That's when you can pull out the foreign films and the pre-1980 movies.elgringohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16856962746924193109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-30503140115597636912008-05-27T20:24:00.000-04:002008-05-27T20:24:00.000-04:00With personal recommendations, I try to steer peop...With personal recommendations, I try to steer people towards mainstream stuff that has an interesting edge to it or to arthouse stuff that has a mainstream appeal. <BR/><BR/>The hope is that people's horizon's will be broadened a little bit without freaking them out too much.<BR/><BR/>Sadly, most people I know don't take movies all that seriously...they're time fillers. If I can convince someone to fill their time with something a little more intersting than Alvin and the Chipmunks, it's worth almost as much as turning someone on to pre-WWII French cinema...and much easier.Craig Kennedyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00924813294666616097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-28656684355638150582008-05-27T12:34:00.000-04:002008-05-27T12:34:00.000-04:00Back in the first year of college, I made my frien...Back in the first year of college, I made my friends watch Happiness with me on my birthday. They've been making fun of my movie recommendations ever since.Ornichushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08001214552237996169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-86932511119513976972008-05-26T16:17:00.000-04:002008-05-26T16:17:00.000-04:00Hediwg, White Chicks is the favorite movie of one ...Hediwg, White Chicks is the favorite movie of one of my friends, he claimed to have seen it over 100 times.jahs34https://www.blogger.com/profile/05351443046355480222noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-13041653517339455662008-05-26T08:48:00.000-04:002008-05-26T08:48:00.000-04:00I'm the resident movie recommender for most of my ...I'm the resident movie recommender for most of my housemates, and I've gotten to know their tastes very well. In exchange, I made them watch <I>Casablanca</I> with me. I told them that if after half an hour they'd had enough, we'd switch to something more modern. Obviously, we watched the whole thing.<BR/><BR/>Still, it can be difficult to hide your, well, disdain, especially when someone (one of my colleagues, in this case) tells you they thought <I>White Chicks</I> was the best comedy they ever saw. But I try, and I've been able to stretch some of my friends' tastes a tiny bit, I think.Hedwighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17910606263248113264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-78128862195224478792008-05-25T11:29:00.000-04:002008-05-25T11:29:00.000-04:00I usually don't recommend movies to my friends, mo...I usually don't recommend movies to my friends, most of them are into lousy comedies and blockbusters.<BR/><BR/>What i do is ask them which movie have they seen lately and like, so i know what to avoid.jahs34https://www.blogger.com/profile/05351443046355480222noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-81940820195970196762008-05-25T11:28:00.000-04:002008-05-25T11:28:00.000-04:00About the classics, you can't go wrong with Wilder...About the classics, you can't go wrong with Wilder.<BR/>In fact if they mention they have seen one, and didn't like it, they are not worth my time.jahs34https://www.blogger.com/profile/05351443046355480222noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9688582.post-77428467015159146682008-05-25T10:44:00.000-04:002008-05-25T10:44:00.000-04:00Based on my video clerking days in the 90s and the...Based on my video clerking days in the 90s and the cinematic tastes of my current co-workers, I think you're giving the general public too much credit.<BR/><BR/>Believe it or not, there are still lots of people who have never heard of NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, despite its Oscar wins. And there are people who think NORBIT is just the bee's knees.<BR/><BR/>Also, the question most asked of me when I was a video clerk was: "You got a movie with a lotta killin' in it?"Scott W. Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15916284051875808947noreply@blogger.com