Comments on: Tony Scott’s “The Hunger” opening sequence

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 15:22:04 +0000

A friend took me to see a midnight showing of The Hunger on Friday night, in homage to Tony Scott. I’m not very familiar with his work, but I think I’m about to be.

Deeply engaging cinema, especially good at midnight, shown on crackling, scratched film. I still have cigarette burns in my peripheral vision.

By: christian.ryan

christian.ryan — Wed, 22 Aug 2012 04:34:31 +0000

I teach an excerpt from Peter Greenaway’s “The Pillow Book” in my Video 1 class (focusing on the formalist cinematography design…)
now, thanks to VB, I’m remembering exactly what’s next for my Video 2 class. thanks! <3

By: Violet Blue

Violet Blue — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 20:25:27 +0000

I just read that he had inoperable brain cancer:

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/top-gun-director-tony-scott-inoprable-brain-cancer/story?id=17039434

This hits a little too close to home for me. I lost a very close friend a few years back when she’d decided she had enough with battling brain cancer. I miss her every day.

I’m still close with her sibling, but I apparently look so much like her that it’s somewhat challenging when I see her family.

By: Jason

Jason — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 15:56:58 +0000

I honestly don’t recall if this or Henry & June was the first *erotic* movie I saw. I had seen movies including sex, but none really felt hot to me until these two. Sad news, and I feel for his family and wish them well.

By: Iamcuriousblue

Iamcuriousblue — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 08:01:42 +0000

Wow – sad news indeed.

The Hunger is certainly one of my personal landmark films, one that pushed me toward goth after I was done with punk, and also on my short list of great film opening sequences.

Interestingly, I never even knew who directed it until now, and I’m enough of a film buff to usually care about such things. I had no idea he was Ridley Scott’s brother, but it fits. Blade Runner, the other great landmark film of the 80s, was less than a year before. Both were very stylish updates of earlier genres and really left their mark on the whole look of the ’80s, though unlike so much else from the ’80s, manages to look fresh today, rather than completely dated. (Compare “To Live and Die in LA” for a good example of the latter.)

According to Wikipedia, “Witnesses said he did not hesitate before jumping off the bridge.” No idea what demons drove him to that point. At least he’s left the world a film for the ages, far more than most of us will ever leave for posterity.