Aug
29
2
Aug
24
District 9 (South Africa/New Zealand, 2009, Neil Bloomkamp)
District 9, an energetic and tantalizing sci-fi action flick, is being given a bit too much credit. Perhaps the films long list of admirers (and, yes, my name appears as a fan of said film. I like it, I really do. I just don't LOVE it, as so many here clearly do) shows us just how hungry audiences are for intelligent as well as exciting action flicks.
District 9, an energetic and tantalizing sci-fi action flick, is being given a bit too much credit. Perhaps the films long list of admirers (and, yes, my name appears as a fan of said film. I like it, I really do. I just don't LOVE it, as so many here clearly do) shows us just how hungry audiences are for intelligent as well as exciting action flicks.
Aug
23
Inglourious Basterds (USA, 2009, Quentin Tarantino)
Dan Begins:
I am no scholar on war movies, which would seem to counsel my silence on (a) the matter of how well director Quentin Tarantino deploys and/or subverts the conventions of the genre (b) where Inglourious Basterds, his latest cinematic offering, should ultimately reside in the pantheon of the genre. However, I will say this: Inglourious Basterds, despite its flaws, is one helluva lot of fun.
Dan Begins:
I am no scholar on war movies, which would seem to counsel my silence on (a) the matter of how well director Quentin Tarantino deploys and/or subverts the conventions of the genre (b) where Inglourious Basterds, his latest cinematic offering, should ultimately reside in the pantheon of the genre. However, I will say this: Inglourious Basterds, despite its flaws, is one helluva lot of fun.
Aug
15
One Love (Canada, 2009, D.J. Matrundola)
Beautifully shot and uniformly well-acted, One Love is a short film that manages what many full length features cannot: It is a probing, provocative and intelligent treatment of a (quite literally) motherhood issue.
Beautifully shot and uniformly well-acted, One Love is a short film that manages what many full length features cannot: It is a probing, provocative and intelligent treatment of a (quite literally) motherhood issue.
Aug
8
My Year in Film Studies (part 6)
If you missed part 5, you can find it here.
Stanley Kubrick Meets Alfred Hitchcock As We Stay Immersed in the Auteur Theory
And so now came the decision of whether or not the study of the auteur theory could be put to rest solely on the evidence of the ouevre of Kubrick. Much as I love SK, it felt like I would be short changing the students if his feature film work was the only evidence we had to go on.
If you missed part 5, you can find it here.
Stanley Kubrick Meets Alfred Hitchcock As We Stay Immersed in the Auteur Theory
And so now came the decision of whether or not the study of the auteur theory could be put to rest solely on the evidence of the ouevre of Kubrick. Much as I love SK, it felt like I would be short changing the students if his feature film work was the only evidence we had to go on.
Aug
4
In the Loop (2009, UK, Armando Ianucci)
Shot in guerilla documentary style, with shaky handheld cameras and weird mid-scene jump cuts (that suggest editing that hints of coverup. Is the editor Richard Nixon's secretary?), In the Loop is one of the best written, most vicious, enthusiastically performed films of the year. It is also the best political satire since Bulworth or Wag the Dog, and is more pointed, more relentless and funnier than both of them.
Shot in guerilla documentary style, with shaky handheld cameras and weird mid-scene jump cuts (that suggest editing that hints of coverup. Is the editor Richard Nixon's secretary?), In the Loop is one of the best written, most vicious, enthusiastically performed films of the year. It is also the best political satire since Bulworth or Wag the Dog, and is more pointed, more relentless and funnier than both of them.
Aug
3
The Brothers Bloom (2009, USA, Rian Johnson)
The Brothers Bloom is sassy, savvy, sexy, funny and surprisingly affecting. Adriotly written, expertly directed, amusing self-reflective, and filled with a capable and intelligent cast, this is one of the best Hollywood releases of the year.
The Brothers Bloom is sassy, savvy, sexy, funny and surprisingly affecting. Adriotly written, expertly directed, amusing self-reflective, and filled with a capable and intelligent cast, this is one of the best Hollywood releases of the year.
Aug
3
All That Jazz (1979, USA, Bob Fosse)
Bob Fosse's not-so-thinly veiled autobiographical film is a viciously honest portrayal of the central character, Joe Gideon, a brilliant but deeply troubled and self-absorbed director/choreographer who has ongoing problems with drugs, alcohol, and fidelity.
Bob Fosse's not-so-thinly veiled autobiographical film is a viciously honest portrayal of the central character, Joe Gideon, a brilliant but deeply troubled and self-absorbed director/choreographer who has ongoing problems with drugs, alcohol, and fidelity.
Aug
3
12 Angry Men (1957, USA, Sidney Lumet)
12 Angry Men centres on a jury's attempts to come to a verdict in a first degree murder trial, back in the day when guilty verdicts brought a mandatory death sentence. Which is to say, the stakes in this situation are high. In what appears to be a slam dunk case, an unnamed or only briefly glimpsed 18-year-old boy is accused in the stabbing death of his father case.
12 Angry Men centres on a jury's attempts to come to a verdict in a first degree murder trial, back in the day when guilty verdicts brought a mandatory death sentence. Which is to say, the stakes in this situation are high. In what appears to be a slam dunk case, an unnamed or only briefly glimpsed 18-year-old boy is accused in the stabbing death of his father case.
