Philip Kaufman

[King Prendergast]

What do people think of the sometimes radical shifts in tone that occur in Kaufman films? I'm thinking particularly of The Right Stuff....
and in Unbearable Lightness where there is some clunky attempts at humor that are just bizarre in the context of the otherwise serious politics and eroticism.
He reminds me somewhat of Bertolucci in this regard.

[Anhedionisiac]

It's true that there's a certain brand of directors who, for better or worse, live and die by Kubrick's old phrase of “A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later.”
In that respect, I can see your linking Kaufman and Bertolucci, certainly.

Furthermore, I admire the way you apply your devious cunning in steering the conversation towards the great question of the day: "What would an Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake by Bertolucci be like?"

[Dylan]

I'll go one step further: what would a science fiction Bertolucci be like? They should get him in on the new Heavy Metal movie.

Back on topic, I'm looking forward to Interrupted.

[King Prendergast]

At this point I would love to see BB do anything. Supposedly his bad back is keeping him out of the directing game though.

[Quot]

Interesting observations about Kaufman. I've always felt that the whole surreal sequence with the Ducky Boys (from his 1979 gang film, The Wanderers) felt jarringly out-of-place. The two scenes that feature them make for downright uncomfortable, tho quite intentional, tonal shifts, especially given the context in which they appear. There are other examples, though none quite as obvious. The bit with the Galasso brothers and the bowlers also also stands out against some of the lighter material.