941 Smithereens

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swo17
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941 Smithereens

#1 Post by swo17 » Tue May 15, 2018 4:23 pm

Smithereens

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Susan Seidelman established her distinctive vision of 1980s New York with this debut feature, the lo-fi original for her vibrant portraits of women reinventing themselves. After escaping New Jersey, the quintessentially punk Wren (Susan Berman)—a sparkplug in fishnets who lives dangerously downtown—moves to the city with the mission of becoming famous. When not pasting up flyers for herself or hanging at the Peppermint Lounge, she's getting involved with Paul (Brad Rijn), the nicest guy to ever live in a van next to the highway, and Eric (Richard Hell), an aloof rocker. Shot on 16 mm film that captures the grit and glam of the setting, with an alternately moody and frenetic soundtrack by the Feelies and others, Smithereens—the first independent American film to compete for the Palme d'Or—is an unfaded snapshot of a bygone era.

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION:

• New 2K digital restoration, approved by director Susan Seidelman, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
• Audio commentary from 2004 featuring Seidelman
• New interviews with Seidelman and actor Susan Berman
And You Act Like One Too (1976) and Yours Truly, Andrea G. Stern (1979), two early shorts by Seidelman, with new introductions by the director
• PLUS: An essay by critic Rebecca Bengal

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hearthesilence
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2005 4:22 am
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Re: 941 Smithereens

#2 Post by hearthesilence » Tue May 15, 2018 4:45 pm

Richard Hell in now in the Collection. F*** yeah.

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The Masked Marvel
Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2009 11:47 am

Re: 941 Smithereens

#3 Post by The Masked Marvel » Tue May 15, 2018 4:56 pm

hearthesilence wrote:Richard Hell in now in the Collection. F*** yeah.
...along with more music from the Feelies.

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domino harvey
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Re: 941 Smithereens

#4 Post by domino harvey » Tue May 15, 2018 8:19 pm

the first independent American film to compete for the Palme d'Or
That can't possibly be true, can it?

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zedz
Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2004 7:24 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#5 Post by zedz » Tue May 15, 2018 8:43 pm

domino harvey wrote:
the first independent American film to compete for the Palme d'Or
That can't possibly be true, can it?
I found it surprising too, so I did some searching. In 1974, there was The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat, produced by AIP. And I don’t believe Johnny Got His Gun was a studio film.

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colinr0380
Joined: Mon Nov 08, 2004 4:30 pm
Location: Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, UK

Re: 941 Smithereens

#6 Post by colinr0380 » Wed May 16, 2018 12:17 pm

Smithereens previously had a DVD release back in 2004 by Blue Underground, so I wonder if the other 'debut film by a female director' that Blue Underground released at the same time, The Loveless by Kathryn Bigelow, may also be upcoming?

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dwk
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Re: 941 Smithereens

#7 Post by dwk » Sun Jul 22, 2018 10:38 am


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cdnchris
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Re: 941 Smithereens

#8 Post by cdnchris » Fri Jul 27, 2018 9:58 pm

I thought this had been licensed from Westchester Films but Shout Factory! is listed as the licensor. I thought they only got the films for streaming...

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knives
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#9 Post by knives » Fri Jun 19, 2020 2:56 pm

I guess I'll break the silence and say this was a pretty great film. It reminded me a lot of Demme to the point where I'm a little surprised it predates the most obvious points of comparison. The film's wonderfully sensitive to the way we act as dependent upon how we view others. This is heavily tied to being in or out of the punk scene, but gives forth many other examples the most plain being with the boy following around our lead like a puppy as he gets increasingly frustrated with the pawnshopper.
Are any of Seidelman's other films as good or at least worth watching.

beamish14
Joined: Fri May 18, 2018 3:07 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#10 Post by beamish14 » Fri Jun 19, 2020 3:09 pm

knives wrote:
Fri Jun 19, 2020 2:56 pm
I guess I'll break the silence and say this was a pretty great film. It reminded me a lot of Demme to the point where I'm a little surprised it predates the most obvious points of comparison. The film's wonderfully sensitive to the way we act as dependent upon how we view others. This is heavily tied to being in or out of the punk scene, but gives forth many other examples the most plain being with the boy following around our lead like a puppy as he gets increasingly frustrated with the pawnshopper.
Are any of Seidelman's other films as good or at least worth watching.

I'm glad you enjoyed this gem of a film. Regarding Seidelman's other works, I'm a big admirer of Making Mr. Right; if you enjoy
True Stories, give it a shot, as they share a similar comedic DNA.

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bdsweeney
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2008 7:09 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#11 Post by bdsweeney » Fri Jul 10, 2020 2:47 am

knives wrote:
Fri Jun 19, 2020 2:56 pm
Are any of Seidelman's other films as good or at least worth watching.
If what you enjoyed was the loose, skittish, though humanist feel, I can thoroughly recommend Desperately Seeking Susan. One of my fav. American films of the 80s.

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The Narrator Returns
Joined: Tue Nov 15, 2011 6:35 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#12 Post by The Narrator Returns » Fri Jul 10, 2020 2:49 am

I like both Cookie and She-Devil a lot; Cookie in particular is very Demme in how sweetly it handles its violent subject matter.

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knives
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm

Re: 941 Smithereens

#13 Post by knives » Fri Jul 10, 2020 9:47 am

Cookie was looking mighty attractive to being with because of the cast and I'll definitely keep an eye out for Susan as well.

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