The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083851/
Intolerance (1916) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0006864/
The Twilight Samurai (2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0351817/
The Paper Tigers (2020) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6060444/
Nobody (2021) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7888964/
The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083851/
My first Peter Greenaway film, and I was and still am taken aback at the complexity and depth of layering shown here. I've read a couple of analyses afterwards that help in understanding, but still feel out of my depth. I'll try listing some of the themes explored, to give a taste of the intellectual craftsmanship:
1) Women vs Men power relationships; the extent of behind-the-scenes machinations and sexual manipulations women must resort to to affect the balance.
2) Language as a weapon: The stilted formal speech circles and circles around ugly truths and conspiracies, and conversations are thrust-and-riposte rapier-in-silk battles between opponents.
3) English historical developments of the period (set in 1694) and replacement of the older aristocratic establishment with European nobility.
4) Struggles over inheritance and estates that all fall to males.
5) 2D vs 3D, 'paint what you see, and not what you know' -- a concept that is used to portray not only the obtuseness of the Draughtsman himself, as he is unaware of the web being woven around him, outside the snapshot frames of his drawings. And probably as well a meta-statement about a director's view in making a film, and that of the viewer in watching it.
6) Formal geometric gardens with lots of obelisks (penises) showing a strict male-centric control that extends even unto nature.
Here's a couple links to useful articles about the film that helped me:
https://seul-le-cinema.blogspot.com/2012/04/draughtsmans-contract.html
https://www.academia.edu/6441469/Draughtmans_Contract_Framed_up_by_the_Frame_
Intolerance (1916) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0006864/
I was led to watching this 1916 silent film first by an interview of Orson Welles (on The Immortal Story disc) in which he says he preferred DWGriffith over Eisenstein, and Intolerance over Birth of A Nation; and then by a diatribe against BOAN in Ring Shout (2021 Nebula novella winner) calling it 'that damn movie'.
Intolerance is a curious film, as I wonder just what the motivation for it was. DWGriffith apparently argued that it's release was not intended to counter the uproar over charges of racism in BOAN, but it's hard not to think that in fact that was the motivation. It's also very curious that a film that wears its heart on its sleeve as a cry against intolerance and injustice throughout the ages, never mentions the elephant in the room: Slavery.
Regardless of the slant, we are shown some wonderful stuff here in the 3 or 4 interlocking stories that make up the film. The attention to detail and scale of the production in the Babylonian segments in particular are astounding and a pleasure to behold. I've read The Day Of The Locust recently, set in 1930's Hollywood, and the mentions there of seeing massive potemkin movie villages and sets with hundreds of milling extras evokes what it must have been like on the Intolerance sets. This is nearly a 3-hour film, and I watched it over two days, but was never bored. Recommended!
The Twilight Samurai (2002) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0351817/
An endearing period drama that deserves all the heartfelt praise it receives. Yoji Yamada set out to portray the little guy, beset by poverty and social pressures in a time of famine and upheaval, who carries out his duties with honor and infinite care for his family -- the director expounds on this in an on-disc interview -- and Hiroyuki Sanada is brilliant as the humble Twilight. I love this movie.
The Paper Tigers (2020) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6060444/
Nobody (2021) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7888964/
These two are both takeoffs, if not outright clones, of recent hits. I enjoyed Paper Tigers for its all asian-american cast, amusing dialog, and a decent effort at portraying friendship and community between the characters. Nobody was a shallow clone.
