tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post6427684967601983221..comments2023-10-11T03:42:59.033-07:00Comments on The Criterion Contraption: #83: The Harder They ComeMatthew Dessemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09288268335735601918noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-39836750151866821832009-06-02T07:13:36.774-07:002009-06-02T07:13:36.774-07:00Ah WELL- yes I remember *THAT* house- but at the W...Ah WELL- yes I remember *THAT* house- but at the Wells we often cared about the masses more than the neighbors (to our chagrin).. like handing out free food (mostly comprised of our baker Melinka's wonderful Bread) out of the back door of the restaurant. After all these years- I can say we are sorry to have intruded... but you have to admit- those were some heady daze.Dkstarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-4248060543264135612008-09-02T13:52:00.000-07:002008-09-02T13:52:00.000-07:00I was fairly certain that "Beau Travail" was film ...I was fairly certain that "Beau Travail" was film in Djibouti, but I could be wrong or they left it off since it's first associated with France.LadrĂ³n de Basura (a.k.a. Junk Thief)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13051974174001458812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-46179078589384061312008-08-09T12:10:00.000-07:002008-08-09T12:10:00.000-07:00Enjoying your site. I just discovered it.In 2005 I...Enjoying your site. I just discovered it.<BR/><BR/>In 2005 I lived a block from where the Orson Welles had stood, and I have noted that yellow house many times. <BR/>Way back when, The Orson Welles was a formative part of my movie-addiction. Yet, I never saw "The Harder They Come" (that summer I was working in Cambridge). I saw tons of movies, but not "Harder". Guess I thought it might be too Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-75912162914990630672008-06-16T17:03:00.000-07:002008-06-16T17:03:00.000-07:00I loved this film actually... I know it's got terr...I loved this film actually... I know it's got terrible moments, but it has this rawness of a young country trying to capture a mood. Fantastic!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-20846992200200351882008-04-13T21:23:00.000-07:002008-04-13T21:23:00.000-07:00Anonymous,I didn't ever get to live in that house;...Anonymous,<BR/><BR/>I didn't ever get to live in that house; I wasn't born until 1976. By then, my parents lived in Ohio, so I never had the pleasure of seeing a film at the Orson Welles. The only place to see good movies during my childhood was the student center at the University of Tennessee (I grew up in Knoxville), and then in college, Images Cinema in Williamstown. These days I'm all Matthew Dessemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288268335735601918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-79201500641071509182008-04-13T21:20:00.000-07:002008-04-13T21:20:00.000-07:00CCBC,There's something on the commentary about tha...CCBC,<BR/><BR/>There's something on the commentary about that scene—apparently it was more explicit, but Roger Corman (really!) made Henzell cut it down. It's a great, economical series of shots the way it is, though.Matthew Dessemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288268335735601918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-30528056245329244142008-03-26T12:10:00.000-07:002008-03-26T12:10:00.000-07:00Oh word, you lived in that house? Crazy that it's ...Oh word, you lived in that house? Crazy that it's still there. I lived (practically) in the Orson Welles, and the Brattle, and the H. Square. <BR/><BR/>The Orson Welles is where I made my movie-geek bones as a youngster, sneaking out my window to catch midnite shows. Remember the sign at the concessions counter? "Hot Budded Pupcon".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-6863362199399197102008-03-25T02:28:00.000-07:002008-03-25T02:28:00.000-07:00One of the scenes in this movie has Ivan being bea...One of the scenes in this movie has Ivan being beaten as official punishment. His penis goes though a hole in the wooden apparatus he is strapped to and we literally see the piss being beaten out of him. I don't know of any other movie that has done anything similar. It was effective, too, not just for showing harshness and pain but also the humiliation that is part of Ivan's existence.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-27776315198695923172008-03-20T10:32:00.000-07:002008-03-20T10:32:00.000-07:00Cinetrix,Glad you liked the essay, and it sounds l...Cinetrix,<BR/><BR/>Glad you liked the essay, and it sounds like you taught a great course. What else did you show? And I've been looking for that shirt or a reasonable facsimile, but so far, no luck!Matthew Dessemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288268335735601918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-77058859788550112872008-03-15T11:23:00.000-07:002008-03-15T11:23:00.000-07:00Thank you. This post was great, and not just becau...Thank you. This post was great, and not just because I used to work in one of those office buildings next to your old place. [Harvard owns it now, I think. Harvard owns everything.]<BR/><BR/>I taught THTC last fall for a world film in American contexts class I designed in which I screened only Criterion DVDs. I included it for a buncha reasons: to make sure blacks were represented on the screen, cinetrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03751120098220598743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-65085281275128374422008-03-10T16:33:00.000-07:002008-03-10T16:33:00.000-07:00Jeff,I was actually curious about Vigorton 2 mysel...Jeff,<BR/><BR/>I was actually curious about Vigorton 2 myself, and had a note to look it up, but never did. So: It's a vitamin tonic, produced by the Federated Pharmaceutical Company and distributed by Lascelles Laboratories Limited, both Jamaican firms. It now has a more modern logo, which you can see <A HREF="http://www.lascelles.com/content.php?action=products_brands&do=products_brands_infoMatthew Dessemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09288268335735601918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8796371.post-9877544285592193362008-03-10T15:34:00.000-07:002008-03-10T15:34:00.000-07:00Since this seems to be one of your most research-i...Since this seems to be one of your most research-intensive writeups yet, I want to know what Vigorton 2 was. (Only if you have any downtime in the near future.)Jeff McMahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17455194268519396055noreply@blogger.com