Film watching

Well, I've just bought some filum watching gizmo, which means I can start ransacking all those classic movies I've never got round to viewing.

Comments on two:

Mr Smith Goes to Washington - every inch a political classic - tragic in the finest sense in that we are all expected to empathise with the realism of Senator Paine while also aspiring to the idealism of SMith - thje archetypal SPGB parliamentarian, using the platform to rail for liberty while no bugger listens. Intriguing politics of the film - it casts a shady eye on populism and the Democrat consensus of the time. The scenes with kids are eye watering and verge on fantasy, until they get their arses kicked by the real political gangsters. Carefully paced with due and wry wit, the acme of libertarian politics, rooting for the abuse of teh undemocratic Fillibustering rules (why should one member of a body be able to hold the whople thing up indefinitely - fun though). Slightly relevent in the current age what with the threat to eliminate the fillibuster by the Bush administration that can't control the senate.

The Third Man - intriguing film about loyalty and conscience - the a great apprehension of the banality of business evil - look at all those dots, would you care if one of them dies? A rogue chancer managers to bind the hearts of all of his friends while he essentially abuses them for his own gain. Interestingly, Harry Lime is a believer in God, but that doesn't stop him and his thoroughly immoral activities which are tied up with the behaviour of the occupying governments of the world brought together in the crucible of post-war Vienna.

I doubt my potted reviews are new or insightful, but these are films I've oft heard about and not seen, so I urge my readers (those who aren't spambots - comments are now giftrapped, btw) to seek em out.

I won't chunter about all the ones I track down, just the ones I think might make for a fifteen minute post when I've been quiet for a while - anotehr string to the blogging bow of the impossiblist blog.