Kanopy
Have you heard of Kanopy?
Kanopy is a film library that you can access for free through your Calgary Public Library membership or any other library that’s a part of the network. If your library isn’t signed up you can let Kanopy know and that will set the wheels in motion, so to speak.
Every month you get ten credits and you can play ten different films. They have documentaries and foreign films and quality dramas and a whole assortment of weird and wonderful stuff. Some of it’s mainstream. Some of it’s not. You have two days from the time you start watching a film to finish watching it. And once finished watching the film you can watch it again – as many times as you want during that two-day window.
I’ve used Kanopy a few times over the last couple of months but last weekend – the long weekend in Canada – where we celebrate Canada Day – I did a bit of a binge and watched a bunch of films including Kansas City Confidential.
Kansas City Confidential by Phil Karlson.
This 1950 film noir thriller has a decent plot and it’s fun to watch but nowadays the pace feels a bit slow and some of the tough guy stuff comes across as more comical than gritty. But still, a fun film and I love noir – The Maltese Falcon directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart is still one of my favourite films. In fact, my play, Heart of Stone: A Jessica Quinn Mystery, is partly inspired by The Maltese Falcon.
Here’s the plot for Kansas Confidential from Kanopy: “In this noir-thriller, three convicts are contracted by a mysterious benefactor to pull a bank heist. The four men, having worn masks during the crime, are complete strangers and are anonymous to one another, but plan to meet up in Mexico to divvy up the loot.”
I love that plot – that’s why I watched it. I thought it was a cool idea. Nobody knows who the other members of the gang are. It’s a device that other filmmakers have no doubt used and it’s an idea I like. I might use it myself in some form. Always lots of possibilities when a group of crooks pull a heist and don’t know each other’s true identities. After all isn’t that what Reservoir Dogs is about to a certain degree? Or else maybe I’ll just write about a group of crooks who don’t know who Mr. Big is. I kind of like that idea better because then the story becomes the search for Mr. Big. It focuses the story. There’s always a Mr. Big, isn’t there?
My rating 3/5 stars
The Seven Samurai by Akira Kurosawa.
Okay, why I’d never seen this film I don’t know. It’s a classic. Any film buff worth his salt would have seen this one. But in my defense, I have high blood pressure so I’m on a low sodium diet which gives me a legitimate excuse. Granted it’s a stupid excuse, but then aren’t most excuses stupid? Or maybe it just means I’m worthless when it comes to being a film buff. Yes, I like films but I’m not crazy about film – it’s not my life – and as I’ve gotten older I find it harder and harder to find stories that keep me entertained. It’s one of the penalties and benefits of getting older – you’ve seen more and heard more so sometimes you want more.
Anyway, I watched The Seven Samurai on Sunday and I loved it. It’s a long film clocking in at 207 minutes, but I never found it boring and maybe that’s because at its root it’s a story about survival in a hostile world. It’s primal. It’s not a kind depiction of man and it makes no attempt to humanize the bandits – who are terrorizing a small village. These men do evil things and therefore that makes them evil.
Here’s how Kanopy describes this 1954 classic: “One of the most thrilling movie epics of all time, SEVEN SAMURAI tells the story of a sixteenth-century village whose desperate inhabitants hire the eponymous warriors to protect them from invading bandits. This three-hour ride from Akira Kurosawa — featuring legendary actors Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura — seamlessly weaves philosophy and entertainment, delicate human emotions and relentless action, into a rich, evocative, and unforgettable tale of courage and hope.”
It’s a brutal film. The fight for life and death ends in a torrential rain storm that turns the village into a muddy and bloody battlefield where the bandits are systematically slaughtered.
Do you like Superhero films? I’m not a huge fan mostly because no one ever dies in a Superhero film. Superman will never die – neither will the Hulk. Batman lives forever. And for me without the threat of death, there is no tension. The hero always wins. And that’s fine. I don’t want anyone to change their film for me. Superhero movies make billions so they’re doing something right.
But for me, since there’s no actual tension in watching the fights and chases the film needs to be entertaining through spectacle. Sort of like fireworks. Fireworks usually aren’t about story as much as they’re about creating a spectacular show. But even fireworks – can become boring.
Now here’s the funny thing. Even though I’m not a huge fan of Superhero movies I loved The Avengers Infinity War. I didn’t think I would. I liked the first Iron Man movie. Loved the first Deadpool. And I thought Ant-Man was terrific fun. But most of the other superhero movies don’t do much for me. So, when I saw Avengers Infinity War and enjoyed it – I was a little surprised but totally delighted. I had fun! Loved the villain Thanos because he was motivated from his understanding of good. He reasons that what he has to do is bad but that’s okay because it’s all for the greater good.
It’s sort of like that Star Trek episode Conscience of the King where Kirk thinks he knows an actor in a theatrical group is really the Governor of a colony who had put 4,000 people to death. The reason – the colony was starving and so desperate action was required. So he did what Thanos did. He culled the herd because they would have all starved if he hadn’t but it was unnecessary in the end because the supply ships arrived. So, of course, he became a hunted man and went from mass murderer to Shakespearean actor. No greater fall have bequeathed a man. Anyway, I’ve gotten totally sidetracked. I’ll talk about Superhero movies, Star Trek and Shakespeare another time. The Triple S as it’s better known.
So, what did I think of Seven Samurai – it’s a great film and I can see how easily it adapted into the Hollywood western the Magnificent Seven. I like that movie too. But then I like westerns and I love all those old Spaghetti Westerns and Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven is one of my all-time favourite films. And the Seven Samurai feels very much like a western where the gun was the law.
Another reason the film works so well, I think, is because there’s a cost to victory. Not all the Samurai live. And that makes it real. When everyone lives and there is no cost then the story feels false. In life, there is always a cost to victory – to everything we do. At a minimum whatever we do costs us time.
My rating 5/5 stars
Rashomon by Akira Kurosawa
So, having just watched 207 minutes of Japanese cinema I dived back in and watched Rashomon another film by Akira Kurosawa. I watched this film because my son told me about it when he’d seen it in a film class at University and he thought I’d enjoy it.
The film is told from multiple perspectives. Not unlike The Affair by Sarah Treem. Have you seen The Affair? The first two seasons are brilliant. The third I liked and the fourth has just started. And basically, the fourth season feels like it’s totally ignoring the third season. From what I’ve been able to gather – though I haven’t dived very deep – people didn’t like the third season as much as I did and in particular people weren’t as fond of one of the characters but I loved the third season. It worked for me. So, I was surprised to find season four having all the main characters moving forward in different geographic locations with little reference being made to the past season. There were two or three lines of explanation about the past and then it’s as if season three never happened. It felt sort of like a Bobby Ewing in the shower moment to me. But because I like the show – and I love the creators – I’m willing to give season four a chance. We’re three episodes in and I’m hoping it’s leading somewhere amazing.
Anyway, Rashomon is a story told from different perspectives. The question is which story is true?
Here’s how Kanopy describes the film: “This riveting psychological thriller that investigates the nature of truth and the meaning of justice is widely considered one of the greatest films ever made. Four people give different accounts of a man’s murder and the rape of his wife, which director Akira Kurosawa presents with striking imagery and an ingenious use of flashbacks. This eloquent masterwork and international sensation revolutionized film language and introduced Japanese cinema–and a commanding new star by the name of Toshiro Mifune–to the Western world.
Now here’s the interesting thing for me personally about watching this film. Last week I rewrote the opening to my play – Stories from Langford. The opening monologue needs to give context to the entire play and it wasn’t really doing that until the rewrite. Now the opening talks about the fact that you don’t ever really know people but at the same time, people probably don’t really know themselves either.
You see everyone has their own truth. Everyone is the hero of their own story. That’s why I liked The Avengers Infinity War – Thanos isn’t a villain. He’s a hero. He’s saving the Universe. Yeah, he’s killing half the beings in the Universe to do it but sacrifices have to be made, right? Anyway, I’m much happier with my play now that the opening monologue has been rewritten.
But what did I think of Rashomon? I liked it. It’s always interesting to see something that makes us think about our own truth and the reality we live in.
My rating 4/5 stars.
9 Songs by Michael Winterbottom
Okay, you’d think I’d be done after watching almost six hours of Japanese cinema but no I wasn’t. I decided to watch something a little more modern and a little more risque.
Have you ever heard of the film 9 Songs? It’s a film from 2004 where the actors who are in a physical relationship in the film actually have sex. Every so often a film comes along and tries to be naughty just for the sake of being naughty. I don’t know if that has much impact these days considering how so much graphic sexual content is easily available. But in 2004 I’m sure it caused a bit of a stir. And I’ve seen other films that have had graphic depictions of sex even though it wasn’t real. Last Tango in Paris, The Sailor Who Fell With Grace from the Sea, and Body Heat. But those films and in particular Body Heat use sex to move the story along.
So, here’s how Kanopy describes 9 Songs: “In London, England, love blooms between an American college student, named Lisa, and a British glaciologist, named Matt, where over the next few months in between attending rock concerts, the two lovers have intense sexual encounters.
The good thing about this film is that it’s only 68 minutes long at least according to Kanopy. According to Wikipedia, the film is 70 minutes long. It should have been 69 minutes long considering the theme. And maybe it is. Maybe Kanopy and Wikipedia just don’t want to make the juvenile joke. So, I made it for them.
The film gets a 24% from critics and a 34% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes so I’m not alone on this one – the film is – well rather dull. Boring actually. Because there’s really no story. We simply see this couple go to concerts over the course of a year and watch them make love. So, I wouldn’t recommend this one but clearly 24% of critics liked it and 34% of audiences liked it so if your particular tastes run in this direction enjoy. And I just noticed Rotten Tomatoes lists the running time as 69 minutes – how juvenile – who would make such a joke?
My rating 1/5
So, what got me started watching all these films this weekend. Is it the fact that I have no friends and I live in a bunker? No that’s not true. I don’t live in a bunker. Bunkers are just on my mind because I’m watching season 3 of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, but more on that another time.
No, the reason I started watching films last weekend is because I saw they had Lucky by John Carroll Lynch.
Lucky by John Carol Lynch
Lucky stars Harry Dean Stanton and I really like Harry Dean Stanton because he’s genuine. That’s the secret of all great actors. They are genuine. There are a lot of actors who put on the rubber nose and rage across the screen but I usually don’t find their performances genuine. They’re dramatic. Over the top. Sometimes laughable and fun to watch but they aren’t good acting.
Kanopy describes Lucky as: “LUCKY follows the spiritual journey of a 90-year-old atheist and the quirky characters that inhabit his small desert town. Having out lived all of his contemporaries, the fiercely independent Lucky finds himself at the precipice of life, thrust into a journey of self exploration, leading towards that which is so often unattainable: enlightenment.”
I liked Lucky. It’s a gentle quirky little film about an old man and his view on life and there are too few films reflecting the wisdom and foolishness of a life long lived. Maybe it’s because I’m getting a little older myself and so I want to see stories about what I’m facing – you know death and diminishing health and an uncertain future. You see all movies and plays and novels need a way for you to get into the story. Sometimes its hard to do that because the story is too different from you but because all stories are human and reflect some aspect of the human experience and if you can find a doorway into the story chances are you’ll learn something about yourself and what it means to be human.
Oddly enough the film reminded me of Five Easy Pieces by Bob Rafelson which stars Jack Nicholson. That’s a contemplative film about finding your purpose and meaning in life as well. Not sure why those two films separated by 47 years are somehow connected in my mind. Or not so much in my mind but in my gut. They both gave me a similar emotional experience. So, I liked Lucky – a good film to watch with a friend I think. I saw it alone because, as I stated earlier, I live in a bunker. A bunker with Wifi, fortunately.
My rating for Lucky 4/5 stars.
It’s terrific to have streaming services like Kanopy which feature a lot of different films from a lot of different countries. My watch list has 121 films and documentaries on it. That’s a year’s worth of viewing at 10 films a month. You see Kanopy gives you ten credits every month. You use a credit each time you watch a film and then you have two days to watch the film as many times as you want. I already said that at the beginning of this blog. If I had a good editor that would have been cut, but as a marketing person I know the importance of repeating the sales message.
Here’s a list of a few of the films on my to watch list:
The Blue Kite by Tian Zhuangzhuang
The most acclaimed and controversial film of the new Chinese cinema, THE BLUE KITE traces the fate of a Beijing boy and his family as they experience the political and social upheavals in 1950s and ’60s China.
L’avventura by Michelangelo Antonioni
Michelangelo Antonioni invented a new film grammar with this masterwork. An iconic piece of challenging 1960’s cinema and a gripping narrative on its own terms, L’AVVENTURA concerns the enigmatic disappearance of a young woman during a yachting trip off the coast of Sicily, and the search taken up by her disaffected lover (Gabriele Ferzetti) and best friend (Monica Vitti, in her breakout role). Antonioni’s controversial international sensation is a gorgeously shot tale of modern ennui and spiritual isolation.
We Live in Public: The Changing Role of Privacy and Technology in Daily Life by Ondi Timoner
In 1999, Internet entrepreneur Josh Harris recruited dozens of young men and women who agreed to live in underground apartments for weeks at a time while their every movement is broadcast online. Soon, Harris and his girlfriend embark on their own subterranean adventure, with cameras streaming live footage of their meals, arguments, bedroom activities and bathroom habits. This documentary explores the role of technology in our lives, as it charts the fragile nature of the dot-com economy.
Man Up by Ben Palmer
When Nancy is mistaken for Jack’s blind date, she decides to take a chance and just…go with it. What could possibly go wrong? Lake Bell and Simon Pegg star in this hilarious romantic comedy about taking chances and rolling with the consequences.
Manchester By The Sea by Kenneth Lonergan
In this Academy Award-winning drama, starring Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams, a depressed man must face his painful past when he returns to his Massachusetts hometown after the sudden death of his brother. Upon arrival, he finds that he has been made sole guardian to his teenage nephew — and that redemption may be possible from even the darkest regrets. “The sadness of MANCHESTER BY THE SEA is the kind of sadness that makes you feel more alive, rather than less, to the preciousness of things.” – Ty Burr, Boston Globe
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So check out Kanopy. It’s free – with a library card – what else in life is free? Not much. And I figure if it’s free that’s only because the government or big business hasn’t figured out how to charge you for it yet. But they will. There will come a day when you pay a fee for the air you breathe.
So, now if you’ve actually read this entire blog – that’s insane – this thing is over 3000 words. You should be rewarded. So, go out and reward yourself. Go get yourself a chocolate sundae and then tell me about it in the comments section below because you deserve it. It’s hard work reading a rambling semi-coherent blog post. I want to know all about the place you went and why you went there and what the sundae was like. Or if you’ve been on Kanopy what films have you seen that you’d recommend? Happy viewing all.
lifeisanact 