This week James drags us to the BFI IMAX for Gravity’s 10th year anniversary re-release, on a mission to prove that the cinematic experience is worth leaving the house for.
Film Pharmacy
The Full Monty (1997) dir. by Peter Cattaneo
Pride (2014) dir. by Matthew Warchus
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If you love what we do, please like, subscribe and leave a review!
Original music by James Brailsford
Logo design by Abby-Jo Sheldon
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This week James drags us to the BFI IMAX for Gravity’s 10th year anniversary re-release, on a mission to prove that the cinematic experience is worth leaving the house for.
Film Pharmacy
The Full Monty (1997) dir. by Peter Cattaneo
Pride (2014) dir. by Matthew Warchus
-----------
If you love what we do, please like, subscribe and leave a review!
Original music by James Brailsford
Logo design by Abby-Jo Sheldon
Follow us
Email us
Okay, so we are on our way to the BFII. Max, talk me through your, your memories of, uh, 10 years ago seeing Gravitude. The first times.
Lily:Honestly, all, all I remember is feeling a, a bit bored. Okay. It's like, I feel really bad saying to you, James, because you're a fan of this film, is, ive hard to say, I always say
James:about how every 10 years or so, uh, when I watch a film, I've changed. And so my views on when I re-watch films change, I'm like, oh shit. Maybe I'm going to be like, this film ain't so good these days. Oh my
Lily:god, I would love it if that was you and I was like, this is the most amazing film I've ever seen. I mean, I wouldn't love that. I want you to enjoy the film, but...
James:So what made the film boring for you? Because I mean, it's a 90 minute film, it's not a long
Lily:film. I think it's just my feeling about space in general, which I think it's boredom from some kind of phobia about the idea of being... Stuck in space. That would be so profoundly boring. That one is very scary. But I'm, I'm very open to feeling differently this time around. I'm really excited to see it in IMAX. And hopefully I, I won't feel that way anymore. I mean,
James:I'm hoping that the experience of seeing it at the best quality picture, largest screen, best sound, does it alter what you think of the film? You know, in 90 minutes time, are you going to be just as bored as you were 10 years ago? That's what I'm curious about.
Lily:Yeah, me too. Bring it on.Welcome to Groovy Movies. My name is Lily Austin.
James:And my name is James Brailsford. Hello.
Lily:Hello, and what you've just heard was James capturing on tape my trepidation at being forced into an IMAX a film about space.
James:shoved into that seat, just out, just going to fold you up there, compact you
Lily:Exactly, these are the things I do for the love of the podcast, and for the love of you, James.
James:Well, thank you, I'm very honoured.
Lily:Well, I kind of, part of it is that I feel like we have done quite a few episodes recently. You know, the one on witches, the one on the seventies, where James is very much supporting my interests and passions. So I kind of feel like it's only fair that we actually now devote an episode to one of the things you're so passionate about, the cinematic experience.
James:Finally, hooray.
Lily:finally got here.
James:Yes, it's Groovy Movies, not Groovy Television, folks.
Lily:Not groovy, watching on your phone. So why, why did we go see Gravity, James?
James:Well, there's a number of reasons. Firstly it was getting a 10th anniversary re-release, and there's not many films in general that warranty release and especially not a 10 years, 10 year anniversary is quite a a recent anniversary. Films are normally like 25, 50. They're the big hitters. So 10th anniversary is a little unusual. But then also as far as what I like, which I love going to the cinema and having a cinematic experience, I love, love getting that feeling that you can only get at a cinema, and I remember seeing it 10 years ago, and I wasn't really expecting much, it was just something to do one evening, but I was blown away by it. I just like came out and said, I think that's one of the best times I've had at the cinema as far as the overall effect and how it, how, how into the film I was. Because of how well presented it was, how well made it was, how good it looked. I remember thinking it's probably not going to be that great an experience. If you watch it at home on a TV or just in a. In a non theatrical environment, it's probably not going to have the same effect. And in fact, in subsequent years, I remember chatting to a few of my friends and they were like, Oh, it's boring, that film. And I was like, yeah, did you watch it at the cinema? No, watch it at home. I was like, I think it's a different experience if you were just fully immersed in the biggest... picture, best sound, you know, it felt like a film that was custom engineered to be a theatrical experience. Part of the reason I took, took this gig, part of the reason I'm co presenting this podcast
Lily:I accepted this opportunity.
James:Sorry, sorry. But part of my ulterior motives was like, right, I'm going to be able to pester you into going to see films the way that I decide you should see them, rather than how you like to see them, Lily.
Lily:That's true. I don't think when I first proposed the idea of Groovy Movies to you, James, I had no inkling. That it would become an ongoing project of How are you seeing the film? What, what kind of screen are you seeing it?
James:Yeah.
Lily:or whatever? See, I don't even really know the words I mean, the fact that it's even got to this point of where I'm just like, James, look at the screens, the options for me, just tell me which one I'll go to. And then obviously I often do not. And I feel your disappointment and The sadness.
James:I'll be honest with you, Lily, the one that still stings to me and I was thinking about it then was like, Ah, goddammit, it was when you went to see Avatar in 2D. What kind of crazy person sees the film that James Cameron developed, the latest, greatest, the world best...
Lily:saw the first one in, in, in 3D. Yeah, yeah, I believe so at the, yeah, yeah, I vaguely remember that. I know, I, I, I
James:And I was like, and when you went to see Avatar 2 in 2D, I was like, right, this is it, there's no more Mr. Nice Guy, I'm
Lily:I didn't even realize, like, until we saw Gravity last week, I thought that 3D had evolved and no one had to wear the glasses anymore. at the time you did break it to me that I'd obviously not seen Avatar in 3D, but I mean, I, and I had the best time. So, this is all evidence to put forward the argument that it doesn't matter, but I'm not going to do that. because I think. What we're landing on is the argument that There are certain films that you can only see in the cinema. There are only, or, there
James:that only work properly, or that only, or that only have the desired effect that are in the cinema.
Lily:Yes, and Gravity is one of those. Do you think that's why it's got a ten year
James:Yeah,
Lily:release?
James:I think, that's exactly why, and I think Studios are now realizing that TV and just streaming has really eaten into their business model. People need a reason to go to the cinema. And so I think they're realizing they need to, I mean they should have been doing this all along, they really need to make a point of what's different about going to the cinema. And so they don't have that much good product. You have a Christopher Nolan film that'll come and knock your socks off every, every four years. Um, but, you know, Gravity is something that that they had on the shelf. And it's, It's a labor of love by Alfonso Cuarón who spent five years working on the project. And you know, it's meticulously well done like a roller coaster ride of a film really. So I suspect they were like, right, we need something. But they didn't promote this at all. Like I only knew Gravity was getting a re release when you'd put, you'd done some research and you pulled up a list of all the films that were coming out this year that we could discuss. And in the middle of it, it said Gravity. I was like, what the hell? And so I, I, I tried Googling and nothing came up. The only things I could find were article from 10 years ago. And so I asked you where you got it from, and it was from one website. And I emailed the, the, the journalist on this one website is Gravity, really getting a re-release. So he never got back to me. There was no publicity around this. There was no information. And then, so I kept checking on the view website. It just said it was coming up and it didn't have any time. So you couldn't see what screening it was going to be on. Then it finally got its screens announced and it was on IMAX is like, Oh, right. So it is getting my max release, but nobody knew about it. And I was checking the view IMAX and it was like two seats sold for the entire run of it.
Lily:Okay, here's what I'm thinking. Newness is the most important thing when it comes to press around films, right? A new release, that is what makes headlines. It's quite a rare thing for anniversary re releases to, to make headlines. So, I'm thinking Groovy Movies. This is going to have to be the place you come to get, to get the buzz around re releases. We've got to make that, that's going to have to be something we champion. Because if you couldn't even find one article, you couldn't find any information about this gravity.
James:Yeah.
Lily:And I even forgot about it. You had to remind me when we were going in that, I was like, how do you hear about this?
James:And the only thing I could find online was this one website that you sent me. Ha Ha
Lily:was totally random, it was just luck that I googled and came across this article about some of the things that were coming up in the months to come.
James:And I guess as well, you know, it costs money to run adverts
Lily:yeah. But I think what helps is. So obviously, there must have been press email at some point, saying there will be this, and that's why it ended up in that article, but everyone else just ignored it because it's like, oh well, it's only a ten year re release, who even cares about gravity, the film journalists did not pick up on it, the media outlets did not pick up, so that's why I'm thinking, okay, this has got to be our cross to bear, this has got to be our, what is the word I'm looking for, our, our, uh,
James:This is a This is what we're struggling to bring you, the Groovy Movies listeners. We are bringing it upon ourselves. To push and promote the, uh, the cinematic experience that might slip through the net. I do check on the View and the Odeon. Just see what films they've got, because for example, today, they've got the Lost Boys 35th anniversary re release in cinemas. And, oh, and Hocus Pocus is also on tonight. I think that's a 30th anniversary release. So,
Lily:And whenever we're doing work on a new episode, I'll, you know, I'll Google the film to see where I can, stream it. And often it will come up at the Prince Charles or something. Old films are actually often being re released now, but I think probably in part because of the strike. But, I mean, that's obviously what Prince Charles is, like, known for. But I feel like amplifying those films that are worse in cinema. Because the thing is, there are loads of films that are really just, laptop movies. And Well, not loads, maybe.
James:For example, I would say films that the effect of them isn't changed depending on where you see it. For example, I really enjoyed, not a great movie, but I enjoyed watching it, Dumb Money. But did I need to go see it at the cinema? Absolutely not
Lily:Oh my god, I forgot all about that one. I really wanted to see It It slipped me by. And like, one of my favourite documentaries, Wiener, that is like, perfect, hungover, in bed on a laptop movie. It really... It doesn't need to be seen on a big screen. It's not that kind of a film and that's great and we need to have those films. Those are important when we're hungover and curled up in bed. But we should definitely be like, turning people's attentions to the ones that you've got to see in the cinema.
James:To me, it's trying to create the ultimate experience, because not all cinemas are created equally, you can pay your ten pounds and you can get a very, very small screen with very poor quality projection, milky blacks, not much contrast, or you can pay the same ten quid and you can get a pristine, high resolution, top notch image.
Lily:Okay, I think we need a bit of a, in layman's terms as much as possible James, a breakdown of, of the tiers of cinema screen. Because. I think, I don't, I feel like, I don't know if we've talked about this fully on the podcast before, about your, uh, working spreadsheet, is that
James:Trello, Trello
Lily:So, okay, yeah, sorry, so please do, take, take the floor.
James:Oh, well, I know I have a Trello board where I make my own little reviews of each cinema screen that I go into, uh, it's pretty much Manchester based because like, I'm not going to revisit probably an Odeon screen six in, in Leicester more than once in my life. So for, for Manchester it's like, oh yeah, avoid all of those screens because they are terrible. But screen 17 in view is actually a wonderful screen,
Lily:I think when we start a Patreon, we should, we'll definitely have to put that on there, for
James:Sure. For sure.
Lily:Your project should be adding the Leicesters, the, the, wherever you go, I think ultimately we want it to be, that's my ambition for you, is to
James:Fine.
Lily:and then ultimately global, because I was looking at our, our stats the other day, and we have quite a few listeners in the US. Hello to you guys. So they'll want to know too.
James:Sure. Okay. No, no problem. I'll take, I'll take my Trello Board of Screen Reviews International.
Lily:Please, but, but, take us behind the curtain before then, we don't want to keep everything behind the paywall of an imaginary patron. So what are some of the criteria?
James:Oh, well, it is. It's not all about size. It's about the quality. I'm not just I love a big screen. The bigger the better, to be frank with you, but also small and perfectly formed. I can handle
Lily:That's more my speed, I have to say.
James:Right, so what I'm looking for, I'm looking for a high resolution image, like high quality, a lot of image quality in front of you. So we're talking things in terms of K like most people's television sets these days are 4k. So that's 4, 000. Vertical lines of resolution. So that's how many re the resolution. So if 2K is half that resolution. And then TVs that we watched like 20 years ago were 500 lines resolution. So 0. 5K was the resolution of your TV. So the higher that number, the better the image looks, the more detail you can perceive in it.
Lily:Okay, so basically you want a 4K.
James:Absolutely. I mean, that, that should be the minimum and 4k is only just in the past few years started coming in as a standard in the cinema. It used to be 2k open to, I mean, 90 percent of cinemas you go to a 2k, so they're lower resolution than your TV in your living room and yet the image is stretched much bigger on a screen, so you're kind of Right Yeah. Right now, if you go, if you just go to the Odeon or view or any of the cinemas and just pick a screen at random, I guarantee you nine times out of 10, you'll be getting a 2k low res, you know, Lower resolution than your TV in your living room image.
Lily:Okay, so if you're going to your general, say, view cinema, is it often the case that there might be one 4K screen and it's saved for the biggest release, or how does it usually work? How can we ensure that we're always going to a 4K? Okay.
James:It's totally random, Lily. This is the thing that really pisses me off. What I would say is a good rule of thumb is, especially for things like view in ODEON, the the more seats, the better. So I always look at how many seats are in a cinema. If it's like a 50 seater cinema, it's not likely. So if it's a 100, 200, possibly. So screen one is usually their... Premium cinema and probably screen one is the best, but, but that's not always the case. I've noticed what Odeon have started doing. This is a really good tip. Actually, Odeon have started marking up on the, on the screening times. It'll have a little tab next to it and it's either got nothing on the tab. It's a blank. Tab, which means it's just a probably a regular 2k screen, but then it'll have Dolby IMAX and laser and either of those three are going to give you a good time. Laser is basically 4k, but laser sounds sexier, right? And I would recommend going for at least laser if you don't want to pay more for IMAX. So I think they are starting to cotton on the audiences need a bit better when they go to the cinema.
Lily:Right, okay. And now you've spoken about Dolby and Laser and IMAX, which is your preferred out of the three? What are the differences?
James:Horses, for courses, Lily. Um, so if I, if it's been filmed specifically for IMAX, then yep, I'll IMAX every time. But not, not all films have been. And so if it's just like, for example, Killers of the Flower Moon that is being presented on IMAX, but it wasn't filmed in the format. I prefer Dolby Theater because the sound's better, full reclining seats. Uh, and the image is a bit smaller, but it's brighter. And it's got what you call high dynamic range, which is the only projection system that has it. It's basically more, brightness levels between bright and dark. So you just, there's more texture and depth in the image.
Lily:You said that that was what you thought I would be into, that was the screening for me, because I'm really not a fan of IMAX in general.
James:Is it really IMAX? Or is it just the, the BFI IMAX's seating is a bit too cramped?
Lily:Okay, yeah, you've outed me, it's true.
James:Like, when you come to Manchester to watch Dune 2, I'm hoping I can change your mind on the comfort factor of IMAX.
Lily:Yeah, yeah my understanding of IMAX, because it's quite limited, my experience is limited, I should say, is that it's really uncomfortable environment to watch a film in, but then, yeah, Jay, we've cracked what it is and it's just that the the BFI itself is horrible, the seats are really, there isn't much gap between you and the seat in front and the um, they've got a very steep rake, which we talked about before actually,
James:I love a steep rake. I've definitely got issue with the amount of legroom. That's awful. But the rake, I'm here for the
Lily:yeah, yeah, you're right, the rake, the rake isn't really an issue at all, it's just It's just when there's so little leg room, the chairs are so uncomfortable. And you're watching these really long films, so people are coming, trying to slip past you the whole time, you're knocking knees. It's not nice. It's not a nice environment.
James:which is another reason why I felt like, well, if we are going to see an IMAX movie together, let's make it a short one, which is another of, so gravity's a 90 and done. It's a nice, it doesn't overstay its welcome. It gets in, gets out.
Lily:Exactly. Well, yeah, let's move on to gravity. Because, okay, so I think people are getting a bit of a sense of what, what, the checklist they need to have in their mind when they're choosing where to see a film. It's not just... About the convenience of the location and time, even though for me that is always, always number one.
James:I mean, like, I've gotta confess, even though I was recommending Dolby for, uh, killers of the Flower Moon, I went to, uh, I slumped it at Sydney World Super Screen, which is Sydney World's best quality screen, but it's still not good enough for me. But, you know, it was closer
Lily:Okay. So let's talk about gravity. What makes it the ideal cinematic experience? I think you've nailed the first point for me, which is that the runtime is ideal.
James:It's 90 minutes and I think, uh, the story couldn't really sustain much more than that. I mean, shall I give a plot synopsis,
Lily:Yeah, Yeah, let's do a quick one in case you guys haven't seen it.
James:It's a Sandra Bullock is starring with a supporting role from George Clooney and they play astronauts. George Clooney is the veteran with lots of experience. Sandra Bullock in almost like the ultimate Sandra Bullock every woman. She's just a, uh, is she a teacher or a scientist? But she's not an astronaut.
Lily:Wasn't she like a doctor or something? I feel like she was a medical person. So she's just the ideal dream woman. Very virtuous. She spends her times in hospital and then somehow ended up in space. Nightmare.
James:So,
Lily:But yeah, she's a newbie, he's an oldbie. He's about to retire, right?
James:Yeah, it's his last, oh my god, it's his last mission, all that kind of stuff. And, uh, And, surprise, surprise, guess what, things go a bit, go a bit doolally,
Lily:Just a bit, yeah.
James:just a little bit, I think it's the Russians detonated a nuclear warhead at
Lily:I thought, oh wow, this film has aged so well. Perfect. Perfect baddie. Though it was an accident, of course. Was it an accident? Maybe not. I don't know. They never really go into it.
James:Unclear. That is for sure. so that explosion sets off a chain reaction of explosions, like the debris, the space debris, because obviously there's no atmosphere in space. It just means that even tiny, tiny bits of debris are hurtling at the speed of a bullet and all that kind of stuff. So it says a chain reaction. And finally, the chain reaction of all this debris And of course it takes how most of the crew, and it detaches, Sandra Bullock from the Spaceship, and she's spinning around. And so then it becomes a, a kind of, how do we get outta the situation? How is Sandra Bullock and George Cloy, how are they gonna get back to safety back to Earth?
Lily:So what, what about that story makes it, or the film, makes it so perfect for seeing in the cinema, seeing in IMAX?
James:It's, um, a high concept film. It's, you know, I don't go watching Gravity for anything that I think exists in the real world. It's clearly like a Hollywood film,
Lily:Do you think? I actually think it's quite low concept. It's simply a person trying to survive and get home. Like, it could not be more simple.
James:Yeah, you're quite right. But it's the fact that it happens to be somebody in space and they
Lily:but that's actually, I think that's the magic of it. think it's the strength and also the weakness. That it's so, so simple.
James:Ultimately, whatever the plot was to make this work, it needed to be something that is very visual, and it's very experiential, like, you feel a lot of what happens, Essentially, it's the ultimate, to me, it's a, it's a tense thrill ride that goes through peaks, peaks and troughs, and I think it's almost Custom engineered to give you those thrills, calm you down a bit so that when the thrills come again, you feel the thrills. Cause you know, if it's nonstop, action all the way, you, you would just get numbed out to it. So I think having that short run time, having a story that's a very visual led one, it's lots of sequences of trying to escape the debris or grab hold of something. The larger those visuals are, the more impact that they have,
Lily:yeah, I think that, that is, that's definitely how I felt when I was watching it. Those moments of imminent threat, are really scary. And my heart was racing, And it was very stressful to watch. And,
James:That's a cinematic experience.
Lily:yeah, and that was, I think that was all the cinematic experience. It's because it was filmed so well that, You have no doubt, you feel like you're in space with her, there's never a moment of thinking this isn't really real, it's not like watching Star Wars where, it just feels like pure fantasy, this feels like you're very much with her in this environment and you really feel the fear of the emptiness, the abyss that she's in, I feel like, if you don't see that in IMAX, you don't really, wouldn't really get that so much.
James:Those visceral shots and the vistas, the fact that it's set in space and often the earth is in the background. These are, epic images to a degree. So a big presentation helps sell that more.
Lily:Because it's so stripped back. Because it's just her, scared, in space. That, if you're watching it on a laptop... It would be very easy to, if you're not immersed in that world, in that with her, there's not that much more to pull you in, which is I think partly why for quite a bit of it, I was a bit bored because the moments when very directly, her life was at risk. I was with her and terrified. Then the in between ones, where she's just trying to get to the next bit, I disassociated, not disassociated, but, became disconnected from what was going on. and, that's because also, with what I said before about it being stripped back, there's no B plot. There's nothing else going on in this film. We're not cutting to George Clooney in his place, wherever he
James:We don't, we don't go to Houston with people going, how are we gonna get her down?
Lily:Yeah, which obviously is a very deliberate choice, right? That he wants us to just be with her the whole way, to be experiencing it with her. But I'm like, well, I would be bloody bored if I was. I'd be scared and stressed, but I'd also be like, God, there's nothing else to do, but...
James:nothing to do! ha ha!
Lily:There's nothing to do in space.
James:can't WhatsApp anybody!
Lily:Literally, it's tapping into my attention deficit disorder, and I can't cope.
James:I Think as well that the film often, I don't know if you noticed this, had point of view shots, very literal point of view, where it's clearly, we are Sandra Bullock and you see the hands in front of which,
Lily:And her, her, her, helmet is
James:in films.
Lily:fogging up.
James:Yeah. Oh, yeah. And I love the shot very early. Well, it's in the first 15 minutes where the first shot is like a shot by Emanuel Lubezki, by the way, incredible cinematography, especially when you consider how it was made, which I might go into later, but not now. but the first shot is a long uninterrupted take with lots of camera movement. And finally, when the debris hits, Sandra Bullock is cast adrift and she's spinning around the camera slowly starts moving towards her and he gets closer and closer and it Almost without you noticing it, the camera travels through her helmet so you've gone from the outside of the glass inside and you're right next to her face and then the camera pans round then you see what she's looking at and you look at the earth so suddenly, for a brief moment, you have become the eyes of Sandra Bullock and then the camera moves back onto her and you see her face again and we pull out you are really being put in her shoes, in the most literal sense, really, which I think, again, draws you in. And if you are watching that on a laptop, probably won't work the same. You're probably just a bit distanced from it all.
Lily:I think the main thing is the vistas. I think this incredible representation of space and the planet from that position. That filling every part of your vision is, what it's all about in this film, right?
James:and, there's not many films where I've enjoyed the 3D, I've often thought the 3D is not very well implemented or it's a little bit gimmicky or it pulls you out of the story rather than pulls you in. I would say this is the only 3D film I've seen where it definitely works to pull you into the film more than it pulls you out of it. I think it's very well, well done. What did you think?
Lily:think it did pull me out a bit, because every time something noticeably 3D happened, I would go, I would think, oh, that's cool. So, you know, think I can't help but be, it's always a bit pulled out, but I appreciated it, so
James:Yeah, that's my reaction, I was the same, I was, ooh well, ooh yeah, that's cool. And I was pulled out, but I didn't mind because it was a bit of a cool thing to be pulled out by, I guess, yeah,
Lily:so I think it was done as well as it ever could be done, so I was happy with it, I didn't have a problem with it whatsoever,
James:If you don't think you like 3D, you're probably right, but I say, if you, there's only one 3D film I'd recommend and it's this one,
Lily:I want to talk a bit about Alfonso Cuaron because as much as this film I have I have some misgivings about that, but I will hasten to say I did really enjoy seeing in the cinema with you, babe, so I'm very grateful for your insistence, but my main thing is I'm like, wow, this is a real man who like, I think he is a director who loves the challenge of directing because this film is so, so different to his other films. obviously I like was aware that he made Roma quite recently, but I didn't realize that he made, Etoumama Tambien. I'm probably mispronouncing that, but that's one of my favorite films. I love that movie and it could not be more different to Gravity, like these films are like worlds apart and both excellent in what they're trying to do. they're both nail the achievement in the, in those. Exactly, yeah,
James:You want a coming of age, sexy story? Fine. He told Mama Tambi. he's like one of the very best. If you
Lily:it. That's it in a nutshell.
James:ride space adventure, then off you go to Gravity. I mean, I'm a huge fan of Children of Men. I think that's one of his best films.
Lily:I've not seen that.
James:You've not seen Children of Men. Oh, my. Lily. Oof. That's, I think it's an incredible film. As is, I also think his Harry Potter is the best Harry Potter of the
Lily:I was gonna say, Heralded is the best, though I believe She Who Shall Not Be Named was not a fan. Yeah.
James:because he changed too much stuff.
Lily:Yeah, no, it is, it's out of a Bad Bunch is probably the best. Yeah. And also, A Little Princess. He did that. Which was a childhood favourite. Childhood favourite. Fantastic film. I mean, I don't know how it stands up now as an adult, but it was one of my favourites when I was little. It's
James:And, and all of these films we're discussing as well, I think, apart from, uh, Little Princess, I think they were all, yeah, they were all shot as well by, Immanuel Lubecki, or Chivo, as he's referred to, he's one of just the best cinematographers, so not only is it the same directors worked on those disparate films, but the same cinematographers, like the creative core, is the same, but yet they're so varied,
Lily:that's just wild to me. It blows my mind, because we've all He's actually not at all an auteur director in a,, in a way, would you say?
James:I think he is an auteur director, but I know what you mean. He's not like a Tarantino or a Nolan. his imprint is very clear. It's about watching a Quentin Tarantino movie more than it is watching a movie. Whereas Alfonso Cuarón is more about, I don't know, I can see in Gravity a lot of his style from Children of Men. Children of Men is lots of sustained long takes that develop.
Lily:right. And that was the same with Two Mama as well, actually. There was a lot of that,
James:that is definitely part of his directorial style. I notice that thread in a lot of his films. Even in Prisoner of Azkaban, it's more just occasional sequences of these long takes. Especially with all the time travel stuff. There's these long takes. But, um, so, so he does have a style, but he's just a bit more malleable, I think, than the directors we consider to be auteurs.
Lily:But that's, that makes me like him even more because it feels like he's got less ego and it's just about creating,
James:The best.
Lily:The best. piece of individual art, what makes sense for telling that story in the best way possible. Like, this is all in service of telling the story, like, gravity of the cinematic experience all works to make us, really, like, feel like we're there with Sandra Bullock and experiencing that story with her.
James:Yeah, absolutely. Like I said, I think he worked on the film for five years and everything, like the 3D is the best in class. You can tell that he's studied 3D. the, him and Isidore Proctor, they've worked out what doesn't work and what looks cool. Because I agree with you, watching this film after ten years, it still holds up so well. the effects are as close to flawless as you can get in a Hollywood film. you never, Like you said, you don't really get pulled out by the fact that, oh, they're not really in space. You you never really question that for the entire film, so well as it's realized and sustained throughout the film.
Lily:Absolutely.
James:and that, and when you see how they did it, when you realize that Sandra Bullock spent months by herself in a huge LED Cube that she was surrounded by motion control cameras. So motorized cameras that were hurtling towards her very close to face at high speeds. that was her day to day job for months.
Lily:God, oh my god, literally my worst nightmare, but good for her.
James:but yeah, shows how great director is now. Great and actor is you never feel that when you watch the film, you never think, Oh, that's her alone in a box in a studio somewhere. you just, she completely sells you on the fact that no, she's a drift in space.
Lily:yeah, okay. Let's bring it back to, the cinematic experience proper.
James:Ooh, yeah.
Lily:because James, when we were discussing this episode, you specified what you called your classes of presentation. I don't know if you remember this, but I made notes.
James:It's more about the two types, the two classes of cinematic experience, is this more like? The fact that one of them is about the cinema itself, and the screen, and the projection, the quality, and the, the grit, how good all that is. And the other one
Lily:Yeah, picture and sound I'd written down as part of class one.
James:Yeah, class one. That's the truest, purest cinematic experience, is that how good is the presentation, how good is the picture and sound, and then,
Lily:Right. And the, and that takes like first priority, right? That's, you've got to nail that first. Is that correct?
James:oh, no, sorry, it's not that, it's not that it's got, that's first, the other one's second. It's that I, there's two separate categories to experience.
Lily:fine. So both are equal? Equal?
James:I prefer number one, which is probably why it's number one. but number two, but not far behind is just the environment you're going to see it in. So for example, immersive, theater events, for example, I went to see the Grand Budapest Hotel at one of these secret cinemas. It was inside a hotel yard, actors in character going around. So things, or maybe you'll go to a cinema and it's an art deco cinema. So the surroundings are beautiful, That's another type of cinematic experience, which I think is just as valid, really. but the likelihood that you'll get that environment plus, the best cinematic technical quality is unlikely.
Lily:When you saw the Grand Budapest Hotel, was there a 4K screening? With, or a Dolby? How was it?
James:it was a bunch of chairs in a room, but I mean, beautifully done. Yeah, yeah, I know. so there was no raking, Lily. It was completely flat. And once you sit in a completely flat cinema, you will really, really be yearning for some raking.
Lily:me I don't like, I'm not really about that. Because it's If I can't, if I might as well see it in the comfort of my own home, you know, on the sofa with like snacks and stuff, I think it, it does need to be that cinematic space, it has to be a cinema, I think, to make it work, I think.
James:Absolutely. I mean, we've been together, we've been to C2001 on two separate occasions when you very kindly bought me, tickets for us to go, for my birthday when it was like a, live orchestra and live choir along with the film itself. And, and, and I loved it. And that was like the end of the environment. The experience of that event was mind blowing. I've never experienced 2001 like that. But then a little while later, it was getting re released on a 70 mil film print. I was like, let's go and see it on a film print. So you can see the difference
Lily:yeah, so I saw 2001 for the first and second time within a couple of months of each other with James, which was nice, yeah. It's your favourite film, it seemed, I felt quite honoured to, to, get this introduction into it. so which was, which was better out of those two?
James:Oh, see, here you go, there's an emotional better, the emotional better was the fact that we went to see it at the Royal Festival Hall and the fact that you bought me tickets for my birthday, and we'd only known each other a little while, so it's oh, I was really touched, so that's amazing for that, and then, but as far as, you know, the presentation, and all that stuff, then it's the film print, you
Lily:Yeah, it's gotta be, it's gotta be, the film print, but I think 2001 is another good example of a film. Well, what do you think? I think that is a film, I don't think you can only see it in a cinema, but it definitely again really is take, it really is meant to be seen on a big screen, I think,
James:Yeah, and I think, that was the first film where I really understood, the power of the cinematic experience. I was going to see that when I was 18 at the Pictureville Cinema in Bradford. Uh, which is worryingly closed down at the moment because they've got rack as well. That concrete area to concrete.
Lily:Oh no.
James:yeah, so anyway, so that, that, hopefully that'll get sorted. But yeah, so, so seeing that, and I had seen it on video before 2001, and I just thought it was boring old rubbish. To see it at the cinema. That was the first time I was like, Oh seeing a film at the cinema can make a difference for certain films.
Lily:I think actually, yeah, let's talk about the films which you really do need to see in a cinema. Because I think that is also true of Tar. Tar that came out last year that we both loved. A friend of mine saw it, I believe, on her laptop and she found it quite boring. She wasn't really into it. And I really feel like I would have probably felt similar if I'd watched it in that, because the film is so... It's the sound, I think. The sound with the shots. There's two things, I think, not that much happens in the film. Like, a lot is actually happening, but it's a very slow pace. You need to be in that environment, completely immersed in it, to be captured by it, I think.
James:Yeah, I loved seeing tar at the cinema and I looked out, I happened to get one of the biggest screens in the cine world. So I was like, very happy, um, with that. And you've just pointed out a thing about the sound design. I mean, most people have very good TVs in their living rooms now, incredible TVs, but what most people don't have is a good sound system, or if not, they don't have a surround sound system. And that's one thing you get in every cinema screen and like to hear a good sound mix and to hear it surround you, like say in tar, you're probably not even aware that there's surround sound going on, but it's It's subliminally immersing you in the world of that film and yet, Tars is a very good example, it's a vibes movie. And I think the vibes are helped by being in the cinema, almost by the fact that you are in this box of a room, so it almost feels claustrophobic, the story that you're watching, and even the cinema that you're in, it
Lily:Yeah. Yeah. because that story, it's like both claustrophobic, but then there's also all these expanses of space. There are these long shots of her driving through tunnels, you see the street ahead and these huge concert halls where she works and her very cavernous, large flat. I think the combination of those two things does kind of echo the environment of the cinema. So it is definitely the place to see it. Are there any others, other films
James:yeah.
Lily:come to mind? We didn't, I didn't like, We didn't prep for this at all, this is off the cuff, but any other films that strike you as only really being suitable for the cinema?
James:Oh, well, for example, I think Dunkirk does not work unless, you know, it properly works. I mean, you could, I think most Christopher, most Christopher, Nolan films definitely work outside the cinema. see them as he intended in IMAX, then that's the ultimate experience for them. But I think Dunkirk specifically, because it's very stripped back, doesn't really have characters as much as it's more about events and experiences that to experience that in IMAX, it's, it's mind blowing. it's an ultimate cinematic experience.
Lily:I think that's what it comes down to, really. I think when there is less characterization and it's, and it's, like you say, stripped back, I think that's when it's best suited to the cinema.
James:Yeah, I agree. and oTher films that I think are wonderful experience in the cinema, but I have to say they do work at home at Star Wars, for example, you see Star Wars on a big screen. it's phenomenal. but it's also a cracking adventure on your TV. I was watching it recently, you know, so it's not exclusively, but it certainly was designed for the cinematic experience, especially the surround sounds. Have you,
Lily:some point, I'll have to give that a try.
James:you, have you seen Dunkirk at the IMAX?
Lily:Uh, I can't lie. I'm not, don't think I saw it in IMAX. I saw
James:No. Cool.
Lily:about that,
James:That, no. that's fine. I'm just like, okay, next time that gets a re release of the BFI, I'll hit you up for
Lily:Yeah, I would love to actually. I would love that. I really did enjoy that, but I definitely think I wouldn't watch it at home on my laptop on the TV.
James:yeah, it doesn't really work, to be honest, it doesn't really work and it's quite stressful.
Lily:yeah, that's it. It's the stress of it. Yeah, it's, yeah, I feel like I need to be being forced to stay in my seat in the cinema. Exactly. I need to feel like there's no escape to stick with it because it is stressful.
James:But yeah, look, when I'm going to the cinema, I am looking for that special something that you can't quite put your finger on, that you only get from, you've seen the film in a cinema. And, it's, yeah, it's, I guess I'm always seeking that out. That's what I'm looking for. Every time I go see a new film, I'm always hopeful that I will just get something out of seeing it at the cinema that felt unique to being in the cinema.
Lily:Yeah, I think that's beautiful. I think that's right. For me, it's about being forced to be completely present. That's generally what I think it is. It's about the fact that
James:ha
Lily:we all have such terrible attention spans and find it hard to sit through a whole film when it's not going to disrupt anyone to look at our phone or pause it and go, get a snack or whatever. I think, I feel like I, it's like so important to me to see something in the cinema because to be made to really experience it as you're meant to. I feel like I want that full. experience of being taken out of myself and completely immersed in a story, but I do not have the strength to do it for myself. I need the cinema to do it for me.
James:Needs to be forced to pay attention.
Lily:Exactly, so thank you. Thank you for taking me to see Gravity because, I need that.
James:ha. so would you say in, I get the gist that you had a good time at Gravity. Would you say you enjoyed it more the second time around compared to what you can vaguely remember the first time around?
Lily:Yeah, I think, yes, I think I'm, I think very likely, I don't know though, I think, I couldn't really remember it before we were watching it, but then as the film started to progress, I, it all did come back to me and I remembered feeling the terror and being with her,
James:Okay.
Lily:in total honesty, I'm not, I'm not sure because I really, I don't appreciate the quality of a screen or those sorts of things nearly as much as you do, so I'm not sure if I did. I feel, I have a feeling my feelings were very similar first and last time, which was like, enjoyed bits of it, was very, moved, but also, yes, a teeny bit bored for some of it.
James:I mean, I start tuning out the bit where there's the, uh, the, the guy she's chatting to on the radio. Um,
Lily:Yeah, yeah,
James:but, watching it, I do think there's got to be moments where they have to calm it down, just for A, to keep you engaged with the action when it does kick in and B, to save money with the budget because there's a lot of CGI and they need bits in the film where there's no CGI. So that's why she has sequence inside the capsules.
Lily:Right, right, right, right.
James:allow, it allows moments of calm in the, in, in the plotting, in the pacing. But also you don't need CGI for those sequences and everything outside in space. That's CGI everywhere. So that's money, money, money
Lily:Okay, alright, yeah, just to, let's bring it back down to earth with the cold hard economics of the situation.
James:Which is obviously, all this shit goes through my head when I watch a film, Oh yeah, they've probably done that for pacing and monetary reasons, yeah. And there's probably another reason why the film's 90 minutes long, because there's only 90 minutes of CGI to make.
Lily:I was gonna say, I feel like I'm constantly being reminded of what a, Philistine I am when it comes to the quality of presentation of a screen compared to you, James, but actually when I was watching Curse of the Fire Moon, I did take a minute to be like, ah, this is a Quite a great, like I thought about it a bit more than I, so I'm, you are changing how I see these things, I'm like, I'm taking it in a bit more and appreciating the look of a film presentation
James:And that's, that's, that's, all I could ever hope for, Lily. Yeah. I'm super, super nerdy, way too off the scale as far as how into it I am, but as long as a little bit of that filters down, that's all I hope for,
Lily:yeah, hopefully our listeners will. Take something away from this and appreciate Going in a little bit more in depth into options of cinemas and and how best to enjoy a film.
James:The main thing is, the cinemas don't care about letting you know what you're getting for your money. The same money could get you a better experience than the worst one. And if I'm paying my money, I'd rather get the best experience. It's how I pitch it.
Lily:Yeah, totally. And I think we have to, We have to highlight that because we can all see films on our laptops, on phones and everything. so
James:Well, the...
Lily:to,
James:Answer the question, why? Why go to the cinema? What's the point of going to the cinema? Yeah.
Lily:Exactly.
James:And like, I find with IMAX films, especially because the images are so large and so clear that I often go to sleep and have intense dreams with all the visuals from the film because I think they've burnt themselves onto my subconscious, which, I don't know, that's quite a fun thing for the cinema to have done to me.
Lily:my gosh.
James:But Jordan Peele's Nope was fucking intense for all of us. We went to see that in IMAX.
Lily:I was going to say, I remember you messaged me after Taylor Swift saying, God, I just keep, it's made such an impact on me. I keep thinking I might go see it again. Okay, let's
James:I just listened to a few tracks off a 1989 Taylor's version. I did a compare and contrast between the original and the re release, yeah. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. Yeah.
Lily:I feel like we've discussed everything we can discuss, read the cinematic experience, shall we move on to a film pharmacy? Dear Lily and James, I recently moved back to London having lived abroad for a year, and since my return, often can't help but feel, like many people at the moment, a bit bogged down by the current state of affairs in UK society. stream of political scandals and depressing news stories makes me want to hoff on another plane out of here. Do you have any movie recommendations that will help to remind me that it's not all bad when it comes to Britain and make me want to stay from a disheartened but hopeful Groovy Movies fan?
James:Yeah.
Lily:We got this one a little while ago, but I feel like it's prescient now given how horrible everything in the news is right now, So what have you got, James? Do you have any suggestions to help us all take our minds off everything that's
James:the, the, the, the, the, thing that k that kind of keeps pulling me back down to earth, is the fact that it's got to be UA British film, a UK film.'cause I dunno,
Lily:You don't think British Cinema can do that for us?
James:it just doesn't really, I it is films that have British film. I'm, I struggle to immediately come up
Lily:Really? I had quite a few came to mind for
James:thank God. Because the only one that keeps coming up for me is the full Monty.
Lily:That was the first thing that came to my mind. That, and then, is it called a brass off? Brassed off.
James:Brassed off, yeah, yeah.
Lily:Yes. Uh,
James:There was a little mini genre of films in the late 90s which were, Northern, working class, musical brass bands or something. and I've said that which...
Lily:unlikely
James:Ha!
Lily:northern guys who come together and overcome some kind of adversity. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
James:There's a slew of them came out, but Full Monty is, yeah, Sheffield, so to hear the Sheffield accent, to see places and to hear references that are like very Sheffield. Ah, yes. My inner Yorkshireman was happy. And, it's a good, feel good movie.
Lily:Yeah, that, that film can't help but make you feel better about things. It's very uplifting and I, again, I have to admit that, okay, I say there are loads, I think there's actually just this one genre of British film, because the film that came to mind for me is, I think, it's a, it's definitely an extension of that cinematic universe, which is Pride. You know, the film from 2014. If you haven't seen it, it's about the story of, gays and lesbians supporting the minors, this charity, so it's the same, it's set in, even though it's made more recently, again, set in the 80s, like, during the miners strike. Yes. Yeah, but that film, it just is so uplifting. It's just amazing cast, of course, and funny, heartwarming, just all good things. and it's also about, unexpected communities finding common ground and coming together, and I think that's, that's, that's a nice thing that I think we'll feel like we can all appreciate. hopefully that will make you go, you feel a bit better and not want to leave. Just watch these films and think, oh, there are some great people. Perhaps more in the North, on the whole, but
James:I was,
Lily:that's cool.
James:be comforted by us Northerners in our filmic form.
Lily:Okay, great. Well, I think that's it for another episode of Groovy Movies. Thank you guys so much for listening.
James:a like or review on our podcast, it all helps us get out to a wider audience.
Lily:Yes, and if you have any ideas, suggestions for themes you'd like us to talk about, we get them every so often, um, on our Instagram. We also have a TikTok now. Big
James:Oh,
Lily:guys didn't know.
James:we are so down with the
Lily:We're so down with the kids. Yeah, we're, we're, we're widening our community to more and more generations. But yeah, if you have any ideas of things you want us to talk about, just let us know. Drop us a DM or give us an email. We'd love to hear your suggestions. Cool. All right. Well, we will see you next week.
James:See you next week. Goodbye.
Lily:Bye.