Roman Polanski

[Br!an]

physical maturity and willingness and provocativeness of victim

She's. Thirteen.

In some societies a young woman could be considered of age to be married at thirteen.. That is not the case in the US. In the United States a minor cannot give consent to sexual relations with an adult.

He plead guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

There isn't any question of his guilt.

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To get back on track I do agree that he is a very talented film director.

[Mattrick]

I watched Carnage (only the second Polanski I've watched) and I loved it. Just seeing four great actors going at it the way they did was a spectacle.

[Jean]

I watched Carnage (only the second Polanski I've watched) and I loved it. Just seeing four great actors going at it the way they did was a spectacle.

yes!

I posted my review here, but since you haven't watched The Tenant (the key film to all the rest) yet, I can't offer it to you. (I refer to Pontypool there a lot, by the way )

Watch The Tenant!!!

[Mattrick]

I have The Tenant but you love that film so much I'm a little intimidated to watch it...kind of like why I haven't watch the much touted Citizen Kane. As for Carnage, the final shot (I believe it keeps running during some of the credits) is a stroke of genius.

[Jean]

don't be intimidated! I will perfectly understand if you don't like it (although I don't really think it is going to happen), exactly because it is a film that has personal appeal for me, and so doesn't have to be universally liked!

I would also absolutely recommend Cul-de-Sac, Kinife in the Water, Death and the Maiden and The Tragedy of McBeth (in any order). I strongly suspect you are going to love them.

[mae]

There will soon be a great new edition of Macbeth from Criterion: http://www.criterion.com/films/28020-macbeth

[Jean]

oh, that's good news! a great film so regrettably under-appreciated!

[Heather19]

I have The Tenant but you love that film so much I'm a little intimidated to watch it...kind of like why I haven't watch the much touted Citizen Kane. As for Carnage, the final shot (I believe it keeps running during some of the credits) is a stroke of genius.

What was the other film of his you've seen? Out of the ones I've seen I'd probably rank Carnage near the bottom (that's not to say it's a bad film though). And I still have to watch some of the ones Jean recommended to you. What about Repulsion Jean? I thought that was one of your favorites?


And how is it that you've never seen Citizen Kane?!?!....

[Mattrick]

I've always wanted to see Polanski's Macbeth because I know the Manson Family played a big roll in its genesis.

What was the other film of his you've seen? Out of the ones I've seen I'd probably rank Carnage near the bottom (that's not to say it's a bad film though). And I still have to watch some of the ones Jean recommended to you. What about Repulsion Jean? I thought that was one of your favorites?

The Pianist, about a dozen times. I also saw a good chunk of Frantic one time when my dad was watching it.

EDIT - Totally forgot I watched Chinatown last year and I loved it.

[Jean]

What about Repulsion Jean? I thought that was one of your favorites?

They are all my favorites - all 20 (to date) of them, plus all the shorts. But some are my, well, special favorites, and they are not either the two Hollywood whales, nor Repulsion - which is a masterpiece, definitely, but it only proves that a genius can make a masterpiece at any pretext.

I don't know if you know its history. Polanski just left Poland and came to Paris, met Brach there and they became friends (till Brach's death in 2006); they tried to make some money, taking various cinema jobs, but without much success; at that time, they were writing and rewriting Cul-de-Sac, and failing to find anyone to sponsor the production. Then (it's a long and very funny story, but I'll make it short), Gene Gutowski appeared and introduced them to Compton group - the group was making porn movies in a small, obscure studio in London and wanted to make something a step (just one step!) higher, namely, a horror B-movie. Polanski accepted immediately, and together with Brach wrote Repulsion within two weeks - with the only purpose to pave the way towards Cul-de-Sac.

All the time he was filming, Compton group drank his blood, saying, "We don't need a masterpiece, we only want a B-movie!" meaning that his perfectionism was entirely out of place. These pages in his memoir are hilarious, I love them, and you really should read it. Then, when the film was released, it immediately got the Silver Bear at Berlin festival, to the profound astonishment of the Compton group (who put the bear behind the glass in their office and never gave it to the director, bastards!). Anyway - Polanski says that this was the closest he ever came to prostitution; but after this Compton group agreed to finance Cul-de-Sac - which subsequently got another Bear, the Gold Bear this time. And Repulsion is considered a supermegaclassic. And it truly is.

I love Repulsion, I really do, and I analyzed it in all its profound, existential details - but still I can't take it too seriously!

P.S. Both Frantic and The Ninth Gate are among my special favorites (shit, all of them are, as I said! except those three above mentioned that I adore anyway too) - they are very much alike, hirariously funny and somehow soothing to watch. Both horrendously underappreciated.

[Heather19]

Do you have a ranking of his films somewhere Jean, or would that be an impossible task?

[Lookwhoitis]

I need to watch some more Polanski...

[Jean]

Do you have a ranking of his films somewhere Jean, or would that be an impossible task?

It would! I can only say that The Tenant is my everything, and the three most popular ones - Repulsion, Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown - would be at the bottom of my list if there ever was such a list. I am going to review some lesser-popular ones (like Frantic, Bitter Moon and Pirates) and try to explain why they are so incredibly awesome; some time during the summer. Meanwhile, it would be great if you watched those of what I recommended to Mattrick that you haven't seen yet, I am sure you're gonna love them!

I need to watch some more Polanski...

You definitely do!

[mae]

What about The Fearless Vampire Killers?

[Jean]

I absolutely adore it! But the same can be said about the other 17 (even the three I love a little less). I actually started writing a review of it a few months ago, but got distracted by The Ninth Gate, which took a lot of time to write.

ETA: and it ain't The Fearless Vampire Killers! It's Dance of the Vampires!!!

[mae]

Well officially it's still: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fe...ampire_Killers

[Jean]

you know, of course, what bears will choose if the options are "what wiki says" and "what the director called his film, which he specifically emphasizes"?

[mae]

Well Wikipedia only uses what is the most prevalent English title.

[Jean]

Yes. It's the title invented by the American distributor, who also cut the film beyond recognition, re-scored it, removed the best parts as irrelevant, and altogether ruined the version that was shown in the USA (of which Polanski said, "I felt like a mother who gave birth to a deformed chid"). When speaking about that film, I always mean the original version, not "new and improved" (reference to one of my favorite, and also regrettably underappreciated, King novel )

[mae]

Well, the DVD released in the US (I have it) is of the complete version but still under that title.

[Jean]

yes, because otherwise nobody would have recognized it. I will always call it the way it was and is called by its creator

[Heather19]

Do you have a ranking of his films somewhere Jean, or would that be an impossible task?

It would! I can only say that The Tenant is my everything, and the three most popular ones - Repulsion, Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown - would be at the bottom of my list if there ever was such a list. I am going to review some lesser-popular ones (like Frantic, Bitter Moon and Pirates) and try to explain why they are so incredibly awesome; some time during the summer. Meanwhile, it would be great if you watched those of what I recommended to Mattrick that you haven't seen yet, I am sure you're gonna love them!

Will do. I actually have Tess near the top of my queue at the moment. It's been on a long wait forever, but hopefully they'll send it soon. And I wonder if I saw a cut version of The Fearless Vampire Killers. I wasn't all that impressed with it.

[frik]

The Fearless Vampire Killers is one of my top-3 Polanski movies. The other two being The Tenant (love Shelley Winters here!) and Rosemary's Baby!

sk

[Heather19]

The Ninth Gate is my absolute favorite. Then I'd probably rank Cul-de-Sac, Knife in the Water, Repulsion, and The Tenant next. Followed by Rosemary's Baby. Carnage was just ok, and the only ones I didn't enjoy were The Ghost and The Fearless Vampire Killers. I've still got so many I need to watch.