tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post6326840731744810018..comments2024-03-03T10:32:45.969-08:00Comments on Mr. Peel's Sardine Liqueur: An Idea I Had That Looked Like YouMr. Peel aka Peter Avellinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10553482286909862975noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-63606184258914024332009-02-05T09:25:00.000-08:002009-02-05T09:25:00.000-08:00Haven't seen the film in years, but I remember lik...Haven't seen the film in years, but I remember liking it for pretty much the same reasons J.D. gave - there's a charming messiness that endears the film to me and I found the characters (and especially Rickamn and Kline) fairly likable.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-88042945392112787562009-01-09T14:19:00.000-08:002009-01-09T14:19:00.000-08:00Actually, I've never seen STARS AND BARS and barel...Actually, I've never seen STARS AND BARS and barely even remember it existing. I think it was one of those Columbia films from the late 80s that barely got a release, maybe a product of the period when David Putnam was president of the studio. I think Spalding Gray actually does turn up in that one.Mr. Peel aka Peter Avellinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10553482286909862975noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-51036263360823439692009-01-08T22:20:00.000-08:002009-01-08T22:20:00.000-08:00All this makes me want to re-visit O'Connor's prev...All this makes me want to re-visit O'Connor's previous film STARS AND BARS. I recall that one falling short but leaving a good after taste. There's moments in that film I want to see once more before I die.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-75851089147172381752009-01-08T17:09:00.000-08:002009-01-08T17:09:00.000-08:00Joe—Thanks very much for that, although now you ha...Joe—<BR/><BR/>Thanks very much for that, although now you have me wondering what you’d think of it. It is a mess, but there is something there and maybe you’d get something out of it. <BR/><BR/>J.D.—<BR/><BR/>Glad you liked the piece, even if we’re not quite on the same page. I guess we do agree about how it’s a mess but it just works better for you, which is fine. I don’t dismiss it—I freely admit I’ve watched it a number of times over the years—and it does feel like something’s there but maybe I just feel that somewhere in the idea and that footage is a better movie than the one we get to see. But I’m still glad to see someone defending it!Mr. Peel aka Peter Avellinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10553482286909862975noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-16770089016779437782009-01-08T07:29:00.000-08:002009-01-08T07:29:00.000-08:00Good article, altho, I disagree with your assessme...Good article, altho, I disagree with your assessment of the film. I keep coming back to this film over the years and enjoy it for the mess that it is.<BR/><BR/>You write:<BR/><BR/>"Character relationships and histories are unclear-- at one point Keitel’s character says something unforgivable to Kline, his screen brother, but it’s never made clear where this hatred comes from and what we do get doesn’t hint at what’s unseen in a satisfying way."<BR/><BR/>If memory serves, I think Keitel's character had something to do with Kline getting kicked off the force. Either that, or I think the source of the friction is Susan Sarandon's character. I'd have to watch it again...<BR/><BR/>"By the time we’re an hour into the movie so little has actually happened that it’s not even clear what the movie is really supposed to be about. It certainly takes way too long for Kline’s character to begin working on the case so we can see something of interest about him beyond living like a bohemian and annoying people."<BR/><BR/>Actually, that's what I really like about this film. I always felt that the messiness of the film reflects the messiness of Kline's character's life. Trying to solve the murders that take place in the film finally gives his life some kind of a structure... as does meeting and getting involved with Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio's character.<BR/><BR/>Alan Rickman's laid-back, low-key artist/sidekick is probably my favorite thing in the entire film. He steals every scene he's in and makes me wish that he and Kline would team up for another film, preferably as those characters. The interplay between them was funny and engaging.<BR/><BR/>I guess I like this film more than you did, just thought I'd offer my two cents.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08164105442273577128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2118574901486983093.post-49134910541879802722009-01-07T21:46:00.000-08:002009-01-07T21:46:00.000-08:00Great review, Peel. I feel like I've seen the movi...Great review, Peel. I feel like I've seen the movie now. It sounds as if so much hit the cutting room floor that a lot of the material left in the movie didn't make a whole lot of sense. Like you, I can see merit in an idiosyncratic serial killer thriller. Sounds like Shanley wasn't sure which dartboard to aim at and the dart ended up hitting neither.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com