Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Top 10 Dinner Party (Gone Wrong) Films

There’s something so amusing about watching a handful of friends (or complete strangers) sit down and have a seemingly pleasant meal crumble before their eyes. I don’t know what it is about that situation that I enjoy so much, but below are my favorite film dinner parties gone wrong. I’ve taken liberties with some inclusions here; most occur over the course of an evening, some are spread out for a weekend. Few are about the food, many are about awkward social conventions.

10. The Last Supper (1995)
The Last Supper actually contains a series of dinner parties in which five insanely judgmental liberals make a habit of inviting radical conservatives over for a meal, and poising them just before dessert. The liberals hear the views of their respective guests (including an ex-soldier, a priest, and a Neo-Nazi) before agreeing to murder them and bury their remains in the back yard. The Last Supper is a pitch black comedy that, while far from a perfect film, is certainly good for a few laughs. And the ending is pretty tops, too.

9. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967)
Stanley Kramer’s socially conscious and extremely audacious film is interesting because it’s about the anticipation of a dinner party, as opposed to the actual meal itself. When a young, white, free spirited young woman introduces her kind, black, doctor fiancé to her parents, everyone waits to see how everyone else will respond. And when his parents are also brought into the mix, the stakes are raised exponentially, resulting in a fitting conclusion that still gives me chills of joy to this day.

8. Murder by Death (1976) / Clue (1985)
Murder by Death and Clue are intentionally hammed-up spoofs of whodunit thrillers. The former features an amazing cast (Truman Capote, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, David Niven, Maggie Smith, to name just a few), and is modeled, in part, on the work of Agatha Christie. Clue is modeled, in part, off Murder by Death, and, of course, the board game of the same name. Both films belong to the same family, and would make for an excellent (and damn silly) double feature.

7. The House of Yes (1997)
Jackie-O (Parker Posey) is many things. Spoiled rotten, obsessed with the JFK assassination, and oddly fascinated with her twin brother, Marty. Oh, and she’s batshit crazy to boot. So when Marty brings his new fiancée home for Thanksgiving, Jackie-O attempts to appease her shock and disgust but setting in motion a ruthless scheme to end their relationship. Again, The House of Yes isn’t really about the dinner party, but rather, what the formation of the dinner party causes those involved to do.

6. House on Haunted Hill (1959)
House on Haunted Hill is a timeless horror camp classic. Radical millionaire playboy Frederick Loren (Vincent Price, never better) invites five strangers over for a party he’s throwing for his wife. The party is taking place in a supposed haunted house, and if any of the guests survive the night, Loren will give them each $10,000. My dad showed me this movie when I was about six years old, and I’ve been in love with it ever since. Let the games begin.

5. You and the Night (2013)
You and the Night is a sexy French surrealist comedy that, despite being a success on the festival circuit last year, failed to find theatrical distribution. This is a damn shame, as You and the Night is one of the finest modern mindfuck films I’ve seen. The movie is about a young couple (who may or may not be ghosts) who invite four strangers over for an orgy. Most of the movie takes place in just one room, with occasional interludes set in purposefully low-brow (but stunning) interior locations. The film is directed by Yann Gonzalez, brother of M83 frontman Anthony Gonzalez, who created an astonishing original score for the movie. According to Amazon, You and the Night is being released on DVD Oct. 14. I give it my highest recommendation, and not just because I’m an M83 fanatic. It truly is a unique and visually breathtaking film. 

4. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
When Yann Gonzalez made You and the Night, he said his two biggest influences were The Breakfast Club and Luis Buñuel’s The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. A fitting tribute if there ever was one. One could write a book as to what in the hell The Discreet Charm is about, but, essentially, the film concerns itself with a handful of wealthy people who, despite their best efforts, are unable to sit down and have a meal together. This being the world of Luis Buñuel, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie doesn’t make traditional narrative sense, but there’s a reason why it won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film. Several reasons, actually.

3. Rope (1948)
I’ve written about Rope many times on this blog, mainly because I find it to be a continually arresting visual exercise. The film is best known for containing just 10 editing cuts, most of which director Alfred Hitchcock tried to conceal so the film looked as though it ran for 80 uncut minutes. The film begins with two preppy students killing their former classmate, for no other reason than they think they can get away with it. They hide the body in a large chest and proceed to have a dinner party, in which the chest is used as a buffet table for food. Rope is Hitch at his most playfully macabre, and, of course, technically brilliant.

2. The Rules of the Game (1939) / Gosford Park (2001)
Two of the finest upstairs/downstairs films ever made are split apart by more than 60 years, but, amazingly, that matters little. Both films are as relevant and intriguing as they were at the times of their respective releases. Jean Renoir’s The Rules of the Game is the prototype of every other comedy of manners film that followed, and, simply put, Robert Altman’s Gosford Park is the finest such film that did follow.

1. The Exterminating Angel (1962)
If you’ve seen Midnight in Paris, perhaps you remember Owen Wilson’s character giving the director Luis Buñuel a tip for a film about several strangers who can’t seem to leave a house after attending a dinner party. The Exterminating Angel is the film Wilson’s character was describing, and it is without question my favorite dinner party gone wrong film. Much like the other Buñuel film on this list, The Exterminating Angel doesn’t exactly make sense, but rarely is surrealist cinema as wonderful as it is here. The plot description is exactly what it sounds like, and not much more. A handful of wealthy dinner guests conclude their meal in a lavish home, and retire to the music room for a nightcap. Once the night should seemingly come to a close, everyone moves to the floor to sleep, as opposed to heading to the door to exit. This goes on for days, much to the confusion and frustration of those inside the room (and their friends and family outside). I love the intentionally nonsensical nature of The Exterminating Angel. It’s second only to Belle de jour as my favorite Buñuel picture.

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34 comments:

  1. I think this is one of your best lists to date. Extremely well done, and I love the fact that you have both well known and little seen films :) I think that all of them (the ones that I've seen anyway) or all just great, my personal favourite being The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.

    I remember once there was a double feature coming on TV: Murder by Death and Clue. I loved every second of each film. Once again, amazing list!

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    1. Also, I hope you don't mind, but I've taken a page from your book and decided NOT to watch the Inherent Vice trailer. I want to be stunned and completely and utterly amazed when I see it :P

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    2. Wow, thanks Aditya! It's always nice to be able to include some well known and obscure films on the same list. Love that you enjoy The Discreet Charm... whatta headtrip that movie is.

      Ahh trailers. I've had a love/hate relationship with them my entire life. I'll be the first to watch a trailer for a film that I'm mildly interested in, but I don't see the point in watching one to a.) a movie I'm crazy excited about, and b.) a movie I know I'm already going to see anyway. They suck the blood out of spontaneity!

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  2. Ooo nice list. Quite a few I haven't seen but the ones that I have, like Clue and Gosford Park, I love. My list would totally include the party from hell in Festen.

    It's seriously like one of my life goals to go to a party or even like a wedding where a lot of shit goes down and I just sit there, eating my food, watching the drama unfold. This needs to happen!

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    1. I haven't seen Festen! So I need to ASAP. Thanks for the reco!

      Now, to more important matters... you've never been to a party or wedding where crazy shit goes down?! Don't worry, the day will come, my friend. I think damn near every wedding I've been to in the past 5 years has, at one point, turned into a shitshow. Went to one a few weeks ago at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood (a very traditional and nice place) and a girl got completely housed. Falling over, eyes in the back of her head, drunk. It was amazing.

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    2. OMG I have recommended something non-Indian to you! This is a big day :P And I just know you'll love Festen.

      Indian weddings, especially the Muslim ones I usually go to or get dragged along to by my family, are really boring, proper affairs.

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    3. It's one I keep meaning to see, but always forget about. Hopefully check it out this weekend!

      Ahh, boring is never fun. You need some American weddings - they're total shitshows.

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    4. I'll back my compatriot! If Festen qualifies, it would be my number one. Its a train wreck you seriously don't want to witness but can't take your eyes off. "What the FUCK!" on repeat film. :)

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    5. I'm so excited to watch this now. Definitely going to make room for it this weekend.

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  3. I bow to your #1. Like...that was ALL I kept thinking when I read the title of your post and then, BAM, you delivered!

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    1. Thanks buddy! I LOVE that movie so much. Glad you're a fan!

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  4. I've seen all of these, except for the one that is unreleased. When I saw the post title I thought to myself, "I'll make sure to mention The Last Supper in my comment" figuring it wouldn't be on the list because it was a little too obscure. This isn't the first time I've had a thought like that only to find out, lo and behold, you've already included it.

    I agree it is truly macabre comedy that has a great ending to it.

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    1. Hey man, I try. Ha, but really, The Last Supper seems like a film you'd enjoy, so I'm happy to hear that you like it. Ron Perlman is such a beast in that movie. Hilarious.

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  5. Oh that is a good list. The Discreet Charms of the Bourgeoisie and The Exterminating Angels is a great Bunuel double-feature while I totally agree with you on linking Gosford Park and Rules of the Game. Clue is extremely underrated while The House of Yes is alright though I think it would be a better film if they recast the roles that were played by Tori Spelling and Freddie Prinze Jr.

    So you saw Glitter on some festival for bad movies? Man, that film is shit. There's many reasons why it bombed. Among them is the fact that it fucking sucked. Yet, it is laughably entertaining for all of the wrong reasons such as that sequence where Mariah and boyfriend are writing the same song but in very different locations as I laughed my ass off in that scene as I all can do in that scene is "do-do-do-do-do-do-do-do-do-do" as if I'm a computer.

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    1. So there's this podcast called How Did This Get Made where three comedians and a guest make fun of really bad movies. I think you'd dig some of their episodes. But every once and a while, they host a live recording in Hollywood. I went to their latest live show and yeah, Glitter was the film they talked about. What a shit bag movie. Even better: they played clips of the film with the director's commentary on... oh my god man, I've never heard bullshit spun the way that guy does. He really thinks he made an amazing movie, it's nuts.

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  6. Great list, Alex. And damn your inspiration in regards to the subjects you choose for the blog never seems to end. This is such a terrific subject and such an amusing one. The Exterminating Angel is a really inspired choice for #1 as well. Really surprised "Coherence" didn't make it to your list, phenomenal film and a great pick for a list like this in my mind.

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    1. Ha shit... well, Coherence completely slipped my mind, which is so funny, because it's more recent than any of these films. But hey, it happens! Great call though man, I loved that film.

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    2. Also glad you dig The Exterminating Angel coming in at number 1!

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  7. Damn good list, Alex. A lot of those I haven't seen so you've added to my ever-growing "to watch" list. Some other dinner parties gone wrong I love (though I'm not sure they all qualify as "parties" per se):

    The Untouchables
    Deadfall
    August: Osage County
    You're Next
    The Nutty Professor (Eddie Murphy version)
    Killer Joe

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    1. Thanks man! Oh, those are definitely some dinner parties gone wrong, but I was more looking for films based entirely around the party, you know? Still, I had a chuckle at your Killer Joe conclusion. Fuckin' hell.

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  8. Clue! Such a fun movie. I really want to check out Gosford Park.

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    1. So fun. Gosford Park is pretty meaty material, meaning there's a lot to sift through. But if you're a fan of that upstairs/downstairs dynamic, I'm sure you'll like it. And the cast is killer.

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  9. The Rules of Game and The Exterminating Angel are high up on my watch list. I even have Exterminating Angel slated for Dec blind spot. If I haven't seen Rules of the Game by the end of this year, I'll make sure to add it on next year's blind spot.

    Discreet Charm has a funny story to it. I hated it all the while I was watching it. I was trying to make sense of the whole thing and it just felt like comp0letely unrelated parts just with the same characters. In the end, I realized that is exactly what it was supposed to be. It made lot more sense then. Stupid me! :)

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    1. Dude, there are so many people who can't get into surrealist films for that exact reason - they spend the movie trying to figure it out, when, maybe, the intention is that it's unsolvable. I don't think they're stupid at all, you know? Just a taste thing. But I'm glad that you "got" that the point is that there was nothing to get.

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  10. Great list! Every film on it seems interesting and intriguing, some of them which I haven't heard of. My watch list is getting longer!

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    1. Thanks! Oh I promise that, at the very least, they all make for intriguing viewings. The Discreet Charm and The Exterminating Angel, in particular, are out there.

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  11. Awesome list! Way up my alley as I love Clue and Murder By Death. I'm glad you included House of Yes which is just really fun and weird. I really need to check out The Exterminating Angel.

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    1. Thanks Jess! Clue, Murder by Death and The House of Yes are so odd and fun. But The Exterminating Angel... whoa, it's crazy, and crazy good. Hope you have a chance to watch it soon!

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  12. Clue was the first one to come to mind when I saw the title. Love that movie! Nice list, Alex.

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    1. Thanks Kristin! It's such a funny little movie, love it!

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  13. Well if nothing else, you've made me feel ashamed for not having seen more Buñuel films lol - something that will be corrected soon thanks to this list! Honestly, I haven't seen a lot of these but the Buñuel ones are the ones that haunt me most. I've wanted to check out Clue for some time but never got around to it. You and the Night also sounds quite intriguing based on your description of it and will have to look into it once it's released as well.

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    1. Don't feel ashamed! In truth, Buñuel is a very, very challenging director. None of his films are "easy," so it makes sense to me that people put them off. Hell, I haven't come close to completing his filmography. It's a very tough one to get through. But when he was at his best, the films were pure gold.

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  14. Nice to see The House of Yes on here, and I love your 2-4 picks. I still need to see The Exterminating Angel, though. Really intrigued by You and the Night. It's on my Netflix Instant queue, so I'll give it a look soon.

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    1. I need to review You and the Night. Maybe that would push a few people to watch it, I dunno. It's such a trippy little experiment.

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