Posted: 3/5/17 at 2:35am
Just saw Mionlight tonight and I'm surprised the film (and Mahershela) won. I liked the film but didn't feel that it was the best of the bunch. I was more moved by La La Land. Feels like Crash again.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 3:43am
No. Moonlight was the best reviewed film of 2016. It has a score of 99 on Metacritic Crash's score is 69. They're not comparable.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 11:17am
I don't get the Crash comparison, either. Crash is the movie that defeated the wildly overrated gay movie, not was the wildly overrated gay movie. And it's a much better movie than Moonlight.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 11:56am
Well, I guess I did come back to this thread. In hindsight, which is always 20/20, I should have just mentioned that I saw that card, and let it go. I don't know how it was that I saw it but I had nothing to gain by making it up. It's fine that others didn't see it but to tell me that I didn't is what angered me.
So, on that note, I didn't think Moonlight should have won either. I didn't see la la Land but that doesn't matter. I didn't think Moonlight was a film deserving of awards.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 12:16pm
Brokeback Mountain, Moonlight and Crash are all vastly different films. Referring to the former two as gay films or the latter two as race films is reductive.
The similarity between Moonlight and Crash is that they both pulled off shocking Best Picture wins. But the difference is, many were rooting for Moonlight to do so and very few were rooting for Crash to.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 12:29pm
I'm curious. Many now on here, have stated that they were very moved by Moonlight. Some have said the most by a movie in years. What was it about the movie that moved you? I saw Moonlight months ago and although I didn't hate it, did not see what the fuss was about. I certainly don't feel it deserved best picture. (I didn't think La La Land was that great either) Convince me and maybe I'll rent it at the Redbox and watch it again.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 12:36pm
Can only speak for myself ArtMan but as a white, straight woman that lives in England without any addiction issues in the family, the fact that this movie made me empathize with a fictional character more than I ever have before shows its power and the quality of the filmmaking. Every component of the film is masterfully crafted. Most visceral reaction I've ever had to a film.
I'm sure the universally positive critical reviews have more insight on why it manages to effect people so much so I'd give those a read too.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 1:20pm
froote said: "Brokeback Mountain, Moonlight and Crash are all vastly different films. Referring to the former two as gay films or the latter two as race films is reductive.
Not really. I mean, no more so than calling both Hacksaw Ridge and Apocalypse Now "war films," despite being vastly different films.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 1:38pm
I don't know how it was that I saw it but I had nothing to gain by making it up. It's fine that others didn't see it but to tell me that I didn't is what angered me.
That must be a very difficult way to go through life. This wasn't "What color is the dress?" This was you asserting what AND WHERE you saw what you saw. Your fury about being told you didn't see what you saw WHERE you swore you saw it is where the conflict arose. This has always been a great opportunity to learn about the unreliability of human memory and the dangers relying on it. I myself accept your apology Jane2.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 1:41pm
Hacksaw Ridge and Apocalypse Now are described as war films in the first sentences of their Wikipedia pages. Moonlight and Brokeback are described as dramas. There's a difference.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 2:02pm
Can this thread die?
Posted: 3/5/17 at 2:03pm
No.
It will outlive us all.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 2:04pm
Don't they die on their own like the aux cable one? When people don't contribute to them?
Posted: 3/5/17 at 3:00pm
ArtMan said: "I'm curious. Many now on here, have stated that they were very moved by Moonlight. Some have said the most by a movie in years. What was it about the movie that moved you? I saw Moonlight months ago and although I didn't hate it, did not see what the fuss was about. I certainly don't feel it deserved best picture. (I didn't think La La Land was that great either) Convince me and maybe I'll rent it at the Redbox and watch it again.
This is an excellent question Artman, and I appreciate that you asked. It's a difficult question to answer in just a few sentences. There may be slight SPOILERS for those who haven't seen it
This film moved me like great art can move me. It was many small details throughout the film that seem rare in mainstream films. All of these details together, as well as the exquisite cinematography and stellar acting, made it a masterpiece for me. If you do watch it again, notice how Chiron says very little throughout the whole film, yet his expressions and body language (at each of the 3 ages depicted) say so much more than words could have. It's Juan's nonjudgmental reaction to Chiron's question about his own sexuality. It's the calmness and beauty of the scene with Juan at the ocean and seeing true joy in Chiron for the first time at that moment. It's Chiron's first encounter with Kevin at the beach and how hardly any words were necessary (what a beautiful scene that was). It's the shock of seeing Chiron ("Black"
as an adult for the first time. It's the awkwardness of Black's encounter with his mother, and the fact that Jenkins didn't feel that he had to sentimentalize that moment. Heck, even the departure of Juan received no fanfare, much like most things in real life. Finally, it was the last scene with Black and Kevin, and how so much was unspoken, yet understood. Even then, the outcome isn't entirely clear, but there is hopefulness. At every turn, Jenkins let these characters just be, which is rare in mainstream cinema. It was amazing to me that all of this beauty was depicted in a place that one normally would mostly see hardship and suffering (the inner city of Miami). No doubt, hardship and pain were also depicted, but the love and humanity overshadowed that.
I'm not a critic by any means and I'm not sure that I've been very clear, I'm just trying to give a few examples of why I think that this film is transcendent, at least for me.
"
Posted: 3/5/17 at 3:38pm
froote said: "Hacksaw Ridge and Apocalypse Now are described as war films in the first sentences of their Wikipedia pages. Moonlight and Brokeback are described as dramas. There's a difference.
It also refers to Moonlight as an "LGBT film." But regardless, for the purposes of my argument, in which I was refuting a comparison rather than making one, "gay movie" is apropos and not reductive.
Posted: 3/5/17 at 5:25pm
Luvcaroline, That was a great response to my question. I will definitely give Moonlight a second look.
Posted: 3/11/17 at 1:34pm
Luvcaroline, I watched Moonlight last night and enjoyed it more than in the theater. It helps, for me, to watch with the subtitles on. I feel I get alot of the dialogue that I missed while watching in the theater. I definitely think it deserved to be a best picture nominee. I still enjoyed some of the other nominees more, so it would still not be my pick for best picture if I was a voter.
Posted: 3/11/17 at 1:34pm
double post
Updated On: 3/11/17 at 01:34 PM
Posted: 3/12/17 at 12:20am
I'm glad to hear you gave it another chance, Artman. I actually just watched again at home myself, and I found myself even more moved than when I saw it in theater. Thanks for reporting back.
