FBG Movie Club - DotM: Kelly Reichardt (1 Viewer)

[Long Ball Larry]

Texted my sister about reichardt because i thought she might like the movies and she said she had seen Andy and Lucy and wanted to see first cow. I mentioned certain women, since it was streaming in a few places and then we texted:

Sister:
Just started Certain Women on Plex

Me:
It gets better as it goes on imo, in case you don’t like it so much at first…

Sister:
Yes, kind of a bleak start…

Me:
Well it’s not going to get much less bleak, but more interesting I think…

 

[Eephus]

It was curious that the tie with her husband was in there and they never did anything with it. Half the time I was wondering if it was really the same guy

I went back to the credits to make sure.

He seemed like kind of a jerk and an unlikely candidate to be able to pull both Michelle Williams and Laura Dern especially in a place where men likely outnumber women.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

@Long Ball Larry - yes, she has edited all the movies besides her debut River of Grass.

This is actually kind of interesting because I watched River of Grass this week. It feels like all of the themes in this movie are central to her later works and I would have guessed that she did the editing. I will say that of all of the works of art with chekhov’s guns, this movie might be the Chekhov’s gunsiest. That gun should have been listed in the credits.

In many ways, this film feels like the quintessential 90s indie film. Folks in uncinematic locations and lives generally overcome by malaise and dealing with pretty low stakes events that feel like existential crises carried out by actors who are not the best but have something interesting about them. At times, this reminded me of bottle rocket, Buffalo 66, suburbia, clerks, kicking and screaming, etc. the way Reichardt frames shots in a lot of her movies as something like a tableau vivant also brings to mind Wes Anderson. Anyway, not a perfect movie but a fairly impressive debut, imo, especially considering the budget and the time.

 

[KarmaPolice]

I skipped order and watched the disc I had of First Cow the other night. It might be her best movie, but it's wasn't my favorite. On my rankings on the last page, I'd put it 3rd between Wendy and River of Grass. Hectic week so I am not sure I will get to Certain Women this month or not. I timed my cancel of Paramount+ poorly, so I missed Showing Up.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Something else I completely forgot about this month - @Ilov80s and I are looking for your input on directors. You, the masses, will get to choose the DotM coming up!!! I would like all reading and following these adventures to PM me your top 3 directors you want to see in this format. I will add up points, so only 3 and have them in order. I will take these from now until the end of Sept.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Since I missed the boat on Showing Up, I went searching for what might be a bridge movie to ramp up for September. What I landed on last night was:

Snow Trail (1947)

I was just going off title and description. It was surprisingly good (I had 0 expectations). It did loosely tie in some ways - aspect ratio, slow pace, beautiful shots of the environment. I was laughing a bit though, and that's something I don't remember doing during any Reichardt watches. It also had bits of action and a fantastic looking avalanche scene, so there was that too. The downfall was the version of the movie was quite choppy. For once I don't think it was my internet, it seemed more like the film was a bit obscure and damaged, so that is the version to stream too.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Month 1 Steven Spielberg
Month 2 Billy Wilder
Month 3 Martin Scorsese
Month 4 Denis Villeneuve
Month 5 George Miller
Month 6 Richard Linklater
Month 7 Ridley Scott


We wanted to switch gears after a lot of action movies, and also had been talking about how to mix it up a bit as far as the type of people we feature behind the camera. We both liked the idea of some quieter drama movies, and the August director was at the top of both of our lists. I also like that she ties into the theme and discussions about these directors having a muse, as we will get a good dose of Michelle Williams this month. As with some of the others we have picked, she also has a a newer movie out that I haven't gotten to. We will see how the discussion goes with somebody with only 8 movies, but both of us were really interested in talking about...

Month 8: Kelly Reichardt

I am hoping that the movies stay on the current streaming options, because as of now it looks like most people will be able to see 1 or 2 of her movies. I also think a few of these ideas could get some great movies watched this month...

HERE is a list of her favorite movies. There are a few on there I've never heard of and a I've only seen 1 of them (Safe)
1/2 her movies have been with Michelle Williams. I think I will watch one of hers I haven't seen or rewatch one that might fit in tonally here like Brokeback, Blue Valentine, Take This Waltz, Manchester, etc..
I am sure we can brainstorm other interesting pairings that would go with this month tonally. I've been hankering for a rewatch of Days of Heaven. Would that fit in with one of her movies?

Watching Wanda from her list now that I got hbo back for free (thank you, Sunday Ticket!) and took all of about 30 seconds to see why it is one of her favorites.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Month 1 Steven Spielberg
Month 2 Billy Wilder
Month 3 Martin Scorsese
Month 4 Denis Villeneuve
Month 5 George Miller
Month 6 Richard Linklater
Month 7 Ridley Scott


We wanted to switch gears after a lot of action movies, and also had been talking about how to mix it up a bit as far as the type of people we feature behind the camera. We both liked the idea of some quieter drama movies, and the August director was at the top of both of our lists. I also like that she ties into the theme and discussions about these directors having a muse, as we will get a good dose of Michelle Williams this month. As with some of the others we have picked, she also has a a newer movie out that I haven't gotten to. We will see how the discussion goes with somebody with only 8 movies, but both of us were really interested in talking about...

Month 8: Kelly Reichardt

I am hoping that the movies stay on the current streaming options, because as of now it looks like most people will be able to see 1 or 2 of her movies. I also think a few of these ideas could get some great movies watched this month...

HERE is a list of her favorite movies. There are a few on there I've never heard of and a I've only seen 1 of them (Safe)
1/2 her movies have been with Michelle Williams. I think I will watch one of hers I haven't seen or rewatch one that might fit in tonally here like Brokeback, Blue Valentine, Take This Waltz, Manchester, etc..
I am sure we can brainstorm other interesting pairings that would go with this month tonally. I've been hankering for a rewatch of Days of Heaven. Would that fit in with one of her movies?

Watching Wanda from her list now that I got hbo back for free (thank you, Sunday Ticket!) and took all of about 30 seconds to see why it is one of her favorites.

Great timing. I was looking at that list to see if there was something that stood out for a watch at the end of the month. Taste of Honey and Mouchette stuck out, but i don't think i am in the correct headspace. I might try Playtime though.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

This movie should have been called the accidental whorist

 

[KarmaPolice]

Thanks for @Eephus and @Long Ball Larry and others for the posts this month for doing some of the heavy lifting in discussion this month. It was a chaotic month here. I watched most of Reichardt's movies and some others, but life got in the way of me being around here and posting too much. Next up we have my month, and the start of the school year which means days off to myself to watch movies again!!! I will be posting September's director later today since I work the next 4 days. We will have our first foreign language director and will be traveling where I spent 5 of the first 6 years of my life....

 

[Long Ball Larry]

OLD JOY

honestly this is more like an art installation than a movie. About half of it is just landscapes or objects. I suppose it’s not totally surprising for her, but this had the least plot or character development of anything I’ve seen of hers. I still know nothing about Mark and only have a vague impression of Kurt. I would say that the only reason that there is any tension at all is that you know you are watching a movie and expecting something to happen. To be fair, it is certainly an interesting artistic achievement and there are a few cuts and shots that are well done to create a sensation of drama just from the image, even though nothing is actually happening in the movie. And of course the film is well shot and there are a number of nice frames, especially of the hot springs (which does not actually allow nudity or alcohol, per the end credits). I guess I feel like this was a really good backdrop for a film and it could have been built out with like 20 more minutes that created a real narrative and it would have been awesome. As it is, it feels more like a pure art piece than entertainment.

 

[KarmaPolice]

@Don Quixote - did you end up seeing any more at the end of the month?

 

[KarmaPolice]

OLD JOY

honestly this is more like an art installation than a movie. About half of it is just landscapes or objects. I suppose it’s not totally surprising for her, but this had the least plot or character development of anything I’ve seen of hers. I still know nothing about Mark and only have a vague impression of Kurt. I would say that the only reason that there is any tension at all is that you know you are watching a movie and expecting something to happen. To be fair, it is certainly an interesting artistic achievement and there are a few cuts and shots that are well done to create a sensation of drama just from the image, even though nothing is actually happening in the movie. And of course the film is well shot and there are a number of nice frames, especially of the hot springs (which does not actually allow nudity or alcohol, per the end credits). I guess I feel like this was a really good backdrop for a film and it could have been built out with like 20 more minutes that created a real narrative and it would have been awesome. As it is, it feels more like a pure art piece than entertainment.

More than others i watched, I left this one with a sense of not quite understanding things. To me there was still quite a bit left in the air about what their relationship was before and how it tied into the tension and the end part at the hot springs. I also wasn't quite sure what i thought about the very end after they part ways.

 

[Don Quixote]

@Don Quixote - did you end up seeing any more at the end of the month?

No - Nothing more from me. Went into a stretch where was working until 11pm most nights and movie-watching kind of fell by the side the past couple of weeks. But plan to watch some more, as did enjoy her movies.

 

[KarmaPolice]

@Don Quixote - did you end up seeing any more at the end of the month?

No - Nothing more from me. Went into a stretch where was working until 11pm most nights and movie-watching kind of fell by the side the past couple of weeks. But plan to watch some more, as did enjoy her movies.

No worries, I just forgot you in the mentions and liked reading your input. You seemed to click with this month more than some previous ones as well.

 

[Don Quixote]

@Don Quixote - did you end up seeing any more at the end of the month?

No - Nothing more from me. Went into a stretch where was working until 11pm most nights and movie-watching kind of fell by the side the past couple of weeks. But plan to watch some more, as did enjoy her movies.

No worries, I just forgot you in the mentions and liked reading your input. You seemed to click with this month more than some previous ones as well.

Yeah, she did resonate with me more than most of the others. Enjoy a slow drama. Would take her over Ridley Scott ten times out of ten.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

OLD JOY

honestly this is more like an art installation than a movie. About half of it is just landscapes or objects. I suppose it’s not totally surprising for her, but this had the least plot or character development of anything I’ve seen of hers. I still know nothing about Mark and only have a vague impression of Kurt. I would say that the only reason that there is any tension at all is that you know you are watching a movie and expecting something to happen. To be fair, it is certainly an interesting artistic achievement and there are a few cuts and shots that are well done to create a sensation of drama just from the image, even though nothing is actually happening in the movie. And of course the film is well shot and there are a number of nice frames, especially of the hot springs (which does not actually allow nudity or alcohol, per the end credits). I guess I feel like this was a really good backdrop for a film and it could have been built out with like 20 more minutes that created a real narrative and it would have been awesome. As it is, it feels more like a pure art piece than entertainment.

More than others i watched, I left this one with a sense of not quite understanding things. To me there was still quite a bit left in the air about what their relationship was before and how it tied into the tension and the end part at the hot springs. I also wasn't quite sure what i thought about the very end after they part ways.

No doubt, though I did kind of like the ending, even though I don’t really know what it’s supposed to mean for the movie. I guess maybe the idea is that Kurt is possibly homeless or at the very least totally transient and keeps trying to find some peace somewhere but has a lot of trouble with it, except when he’s with mark maybe. Mark seems to be not too into the whole married life and trying to find his own peace as well but is really bottled up and unwilling to engage seriously with that, except maybe when he’s with Kurt.

 

[KarmaPolice]

OLD JOY

honestly this is more like an art installation than a movie. About half of it is just landscapes or objects. I suppose it’s not totally surprising for her, but this had the least plot or character development of anything I’ve seen of hers. I still know nothing about Mark and only have a vague impression of Kurt. I would say that the only reason that there is any tension at all is that you know you are watching a movie and expecting something to happen. To be fair, it is certainly an interesting artistic achievement and there are a few cuts and shots that are well done to create a sensation of drama just from the image, even though nothing is actually happening in the movie. And of course the film is well shot and there are a number of nice frames, especially of the hot springs (which does not actually allow nudity or alcohol, per the end credits). I guess I feel like this was a really good backdrop for a film and it could have been built out with like 20 more minutes that created a real narrative and it would have been awesome. As it is, it feels more like a pure art piece than entertainment.

More than others i watched, I left this one with a sense of not quite understanding things. To me there was still quite a bit left in the air about what their relationship was before and how it tied into the tension and the end part at the hot springs. I also wasn't quite sure what i thought about the very end after they part ways.

No doubt, though I did kind of like the ending, even though I don’t really know what it’s supposed to mean for the movie. I guess maybe the idea is that Kurt is possibly homeless or at the very least totally transient and keeps trying to find some peace somewhere but has a lot of trouble with it, except when he’s with mark maybe. Mark seems to be not too into the whole married life and trying to find his own peace as well but is really bottled up and unwilling to engage seriously with that, except maybe when he’s with Kurt.

Thats where i was leaning as well. It also ties in to him waiting in front of the house a bit before Kurt shows up. (And never goes into from what i remember)

 

[Long Ball Larry]

OLD JOY
). I guess I feel like this was a really good backdrop for a film and it could have been built out with like 20 more minutes that created a real narrative and it would have been awesome. As it is, it feels more like a pure art piece than entertainment.

So NIGHT MOVES seems to be kind of the movie that I’m talking about with reichardts classic visual style, but with a lot more of a plot to it. Acting performances were good and I’m kind of amazed that a movie with this much star power grossed less than a million bucks. I mean, I’m not surprised that most people wouldn’t be into it, just seems like enough people would be curious enough to check it out. Maybe we were passed that even back in 2013.

I found the film a little tonally uneven and the momentum of the film didn’t really sustain a lot of the time. I thought that the suspense was maybe not portrayed as well as it could have been. Reichardt’s hyper realistic style works for lower stakes events where you just feel the emotions of the characters because she gets out of the way. I thought that some of the “action” scenes lost some juice because of this and that they might require an editor more well-versed in that kind of a story.

But I enjoyed seeing her get a chance to handle material like this and to see top notch actors work with her stuff.

 

[krista4]

I didn't participate here because I'm a jerkface, but I wanted to give a shout-out to Old Joy, Wendy and Lucy, and First Cow as movies I loved (in that order). No more information or argument from me on them, because again, I'm a jerkface.

 

[Ilov80s]

I didn't participate here because I'm a jerkface, but I wanted to give a shout-out to Old Joy, Wendy and Lucy, and First Cow as movies I loved (in that order). No more information or argument from me on them, because again, I'm a jerkface.

Yeah I wish I had particiapted a little more but life has been too hectic...and I have selfishly been doing my own little movie project.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Before I get to Wanda, I have to say that reading about it and its writer, director and star Barbara Loden got me super interested in her life and career. That led me to watching A SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS (1961), in which she plays a supporting role.

Set in a small Kansas town in the 1920s, this movie is about a pair of extremely homely parents who somehow spawn the world’s most beautiful people: Warren Beatty (in his first movie) playing a mix of Jim Stark from Rebel and Mox from Varsity Blue and a young Natalie Wood who idolizes Beatty, her boyfriend. Unfortunately, Ms. Wood’s overwhelming beauty leads to the central problem of the film, which is that Mr. Beatty is driven to the brink of madness from the most epic case of blue balls that the world has ever seen. He’s got a fever and the only cure is more Natalie. Literally, he develops a 104 degree fever and passes out during a basketball game. The doctor suggests he might have pneumonia (I guess from all that semen backing up into his lungs). After Beatty recovers, he talks to the doctor about his problem and mentions that his father told him that he should seek out a “different type” of girl, just to tide him over. The doctor looks like he’s seen the ghost of Christmas future at the mere thought of sexual congress, and advises against it. Fortunately for Beatty, a young libertine in the school, Juanita, is all too happy to have sex with Beatty underneath a waterfall. Unfortunately, news of this encounter must have been broadcast on KMOX, because shortly thereafter everyone in the school knows about. This leads to Natalie wood reading a Wordsworth ode, containing the titular “splendor of grass”, and her interpretation of the poem moves the town whore to tears as Natalie runs out of the room hysterically and she has to be shot up with a sedative by the nurse. Well, you can imagine where it goes from there.

The first half of the movie is very ham-handed about the issues of sexual mores, in this town where every man only wants to have sex but any woman who even has sex, let alone enjoys it is literally the worst person in the world. Natalie Wood’s mother tells her that never had sexual feelings, even for her husband, and that nice girls don’t have those feelings and that when women get married they are still not interested but just have to let their husbands do what they want because it is important to them. The second half is more interesting and subtle in the way that it handles repression, hypocrisy, social virtue and the challenges resulting from these things being passed down through generations and being replicated, to many people’s detriment. I liked the ending, which felt organic.

Barbara Loden plays a fairly tangential role as Beatty’s wild and disrespectful sister who does things that no one would think twice about if she were a man, but because she is a woman, cause her to be completely vilified by her father. She doesn’t have much of an arc and just disappears after a New Year’s Eve party goes awry.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

WANDA (1970)

Kelly Reichardt cites this as one of her 10 favorite films (or at least it is among the 10 in the article at the beginning of the thread) and it is quickly evident why. The cinema verite style shows itself immediately as we see her sisters family waking up and getting ready for the morning while Wanda herself comes to on the couch in bra and panties.

The main character is quite similar to Cozy in river of grass , in that the normal suburban housewife life does not resonate with her at all and leaves her resentful and rebellious. Wanda walks out on her husband and doesn’t contest the divorce or custody of the kids, aware that she is not the mothering type. She is unable to get hours at the factory where she works (she is too slow) and this basically sets her on a course of aimlessly wandering around town from bar to bar, sleeping with men she meets without any real care. This wandering leads her to a petty criminal with whom she becomes intertwined romantically and professionally (if you want to call his crimes a profession). He is at times controlling and abusive and at other times sweet and protective. This at least parallels her relationship with Elia Kazan, who she eventually married. In his autobiography, “he revealed his desire and inability to control her. Kazan wrote about Loden "with a mix of affection and patronization, emphasizing her sexuality and her backcountry feistiness. In a "condescending" way, Kazan bemoaned that Loden had depended on her "sexual appeal" to get ahead and that he was afraid of "losing her.". But Kazan was also, in his words, "protective" of Loden. In turn, Loden felt inferior to Kazan.”
Eventually, it doesn’t really work out for Loden and her criminal gentleman friend and she continues on with her aimless life, seemingly defined by a void that can never be filled.

the thing that draws me most to movies (and any other creative pursuits) is imagining what it was like for the artist to create the work, what they were thinking and feeling and trying to say and who they were at that time. Sadly, Loden died of breast cancer at 48, which was at least partially the reason that she didn’t make more films. But it was 8 years before her diagnosis and 10 before her death and I can’t help but feel that, as a woman, she just had too much to offer creatively and that intimidated the men in the business. Wanda is not a super easy watch, but it is a really interesting work from a fascinating artist (IMO). She wasn’t in that many movies, but has done a fair amount of stage work. Her top filmed credits were as a regular on the Ernie kovacs show and the above mentioned splendor in the grass. The fact that she could conceive of, write, direct and star in this movie at that time is nothing short of remarkable.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

MEEK’S CUTOFF

Finally got to this, which I believe means that I got through all of her feature length films. I don’t have too much to add that I haven’t said about her other films. One of the reviewers on rogerebert.com mentions that it seems like the most realistic portrayal of how gruesome life was on the trail. I guess after seeing 1883, it didn’t really hit me that hard, but it definitely did seem like it’s main point was just to make you think and feel what it was like then.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

After watching them all, I guess that I would rank them by my personal enjoyment as

1) showing up
2) river of grass
3) certain women
4) Wendy and Lucy
5) first cow
6) old Joy
7) night moves
8) meek’s cutoff

I do wonder if I would have liked meek’s cutoff more if I had watched it first and/or farther apart from the other films. Because the plot is so sparse, ther was probably a little bit of a quality of “I get what you’re trying to do and I’ve seen it before”

If I were going to recommend a movie to a random person, I would probably go with First Cow, since I think it contains a lot of her signature elements but also has an interesting arc. If I were going to recommend a movie to someone who is more of a movie buff or has stronger artistic leanings, I would probably go with river grass or maybe Wendy and Lucy, though certain women would also be a possibility. Since it is multiple short films, I don’t know that it would be the first thing I would suggest.

I think that my main takeaway from her films is that she wants to represent the world as it is and not just from a human perspective. Many shots framing a natural landscape or some other setting and having people, animals or conveyances moving through the frame. Trying to remind us, I guess, that the world exists and persists and unfolds on its own and that human beings are just a part of that story.

 

[KarmaPolice]

After watching them all, I guess that I would rank them by my personal enjoyment as

1) showing up
2) river of grass
3) certain women
4) Wendy and Lucy
5) first cow
6) old Joy
7) night moves
8) meek’s cutoff

I do wonder if I would have liked meek’s cutoff more if I had watched it first and/or farther apart from the other films. Because the plot is so sparse, ther was probably a little bit of a quality of “I get what you’re trying to do and I’ve seen it before”

If I were going to recommend a movie to a random person, I would probably go with First Cow, since I think it contains a lot of her signature elements but also has an interesting arc. If I were going to recommend a movie to someone who is more of a movie buff or has stronger artistic leanings, I would probably go with river grass or maybe Wendy and Lucy, though certain women would also be a possibility. Since it is multiple short films, I don’t know that it would be the first thing I would suggest.

I think that my main takeaway from her films is that she wants to represent the world as it is and not just from a human perspective. Many shots framing a natural landscape or some other setting and having people, animals or conveyances moving through the frame. Trying to remind us, I guess, that the world exists and persists and unfolds on its own and that human beings are just a part of that story.

Great post, Larry. Thanks for your input this month. I honestly was nervous that August could be a dud month (and not just because of the jerkfaces ) , but it's seems there was just as much or more interest than a couple of our other choices. We should look at more directors like this and maybe not be so concerned if a director doesn't have a huge filmography to dig through.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

After watching them all, I guess that I would rank them by my personal enjoyment as

1) showing up
2) river of grass
3) certain women
4) Wendy and Lucy
5) first cow
6) old Joy
7) night moves
8) meek’s cutoff

I do wonder if I would have liked meek’s cutoff more if I had watched it first and/or farther apart from the other films. Because the plot is so sparse, ther was probably a little bit of a quality of “I get what you’re trying to do and I’ve seen it before”

If I were going to recommend a movie to a random person, I would probably go with First Cow, since I think it contains a lot of her signature elements but also has an interesting arc. If I were going to recommend a movie to someone who is more of a movie buff or has stronger artistic leanings, I would probably go with river grass or maybe Wendy and Lucy, though certain women would also be a possibility. Since it is multiple short films, I don’t know that it would be the first thing I would suggest.

I think that my main takeaway from her films is that she wants to represent the world as it is and not just from a human perspective. Many shots framing a natural landscape or some other setting and having people, animals or conveyances moving through the frame. Trying to remind us, I guess, that the world exists and persists and unfolds on its own and that human beings are just a part of that story.

Great post, Larry. Thanks for your input this month. I honestly was nervous that August could be a dud month (and not just because of the jerkfaces ) , but it's seems there was just as much or more interest than a couple of our other choices. We should look at more directors like this and maybe not be so concerned if a director doesn't have a huge filmography to dig through.

For me, the smaller filmography is part of the draw because I tend to be a completist and want to feel like I have a full grasp of what the artist is really about. I also had never seen anything by Reichardt and suppose I was somewhat hooked by the non traditional approach to her movies. I mean, no screenwriting class would ever say to write a movie like pretty much any of these. But I also feel like I can feel her thoughts and feelings (feel me?) and intentions in what she is trying to do and it has a lot of artistic merit, IMO. There’s a lot more to think about than just what you are seeing, I guess.

 

[Eephus]

Next up: A heist movie

Josh O’Connor To Star In Kelly Reichardt’s Next Film ‘The Mastermind’ From Mubi

Josh O'Connor is set to star in Kelly Reichardt's 'The Mastermind'

deadline.com