epistolary memoria: a shunji iwai any% speedrun — reviews and musings
shunji iwai is an independent japanese filmmaker specializing in dreamy melancholia. despite that, he has worked in many genres, although he is most popular for directing the coming-of-age hits all about lily chou-chou (2001) and hana & alice (2004).
these are several short musings on his films in one post.
epistolary memoria: a shunji iwai any% speedrun — reviews and musings
is the internet truly artificial when real life is so artificial that it becomes an awaking dream? when real life no longer needs us, can we turn to the internet to find others who need us?
shunji iwai asks those questions in his 3-hour dreamy epic a bride for rip van winkle (2016), through the nomadic journey of a woman in the artficial city of tokyo...and her attempts bring realness in her life through internet.
This is it. 2001: A Space Odyssey, the movie that changed movies in the Anglosphere forever. A movie that shows the evolution of the medium itself, and shows what the medium can do.
Project SK8: A Stanley Kubrick any% speedrun
Reception of Stanley Kubrick (Star of the City) Final Act: A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
My eyes, buttered and wide open, have seen it all to the end.
This is a Steven Spielberg film. The sensibilities, feel, and philosophy is all Spielberg. But it also all Kubrick.
This is the final send-off from a futurist who envisioned a future. 2001: A Space Odyssey imagines a future of mechanical humanity from 1968 lens, A.I imagines a future of human mechanism from 2001 lens.
Project SK8: A Stanley Kubrick any% speedrun
Reception of Stanley Kubrick (Star of the City) Act 8: Lolita (1962)
That was....a lot. For starters, I read the book back in highschool and actually planned to see this adaptation, but never gotten around to. Took me 6 years but I guess better late than never?
And yeah, very different from the book. This is less of “Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita” and more of “Stanley Kubrick's Quilty” (drop your ao3, king stanley!! you're good at making canon-divergent fanfics of books!!!) to me.
Project SK8: A Stanley Kubrick any% speedrun
Stray thoughts and minor writings on SK11 – The Shining (1980) and SK13 – Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
Reality, distorted to hell and back (Kim Jihoon moment you say? Yes)
Stanley's String Theocracy goes into the human mind...The rainbow ends in overlooked minds. Fidelio
Slight NSFW warning for the Eyes Wide Shut section!
Project SK8: A Stanley Kubrick any% speedrun
Reception of Stanley Kubrick (Star of the City) Act 5: Full Metal Jacket (1987)
People didn't lie, the first part is simply....chef's kiss....perfect. One thing I am beginning to notice about Stanley the Manley is that his comedic skills are pretty good. R. Lee Ermey and Vincent D'Onofrio out-Joker'd the hell out of Modine that it's funny to see 'Joker' being the cringe one in the beginning.
But the second part is where the film shines. It is a good piece of anti-war film. And with that, we say goodbye to our sweethearts....
Goodbye, my sweetheart...
