Saturday 31 October 2020
Numéro deux (1975)
An analysis of the power relations in an ordinary family.
Experimental video essay is quite a demanding watch, since Godard manages to continuously irritate and provoke his audience off guard, but again compelling enough to keep its attention.
Maltin**1/2: "Fascinating but self-conscious and confusing aural visual
smorgasbord detailing the effects of capitalism on a modern family."
Friday 30 October 2020
Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice (1989)
The work of a notable civil rights crusader in the late 19th and early 20th century.
This is a good, but rather standard TV documentary that traces the life of a fascinating, brave and important civil rights pioneer; highlight: Toni Morrison reading from Wells' memoirs.
Thursday 29 October 2020
La tendre ennemie (1936)
Two ghosts return to Earth to stop a young woman from marrying a man she doesn't love.
Good-hearted and humorous ghost tale with a morale; entertaining for what it is, but not too remarkable.
Halliwell*: "Decorative whimsy which is not among its director's best, but mildly amusing none the less."
Halliwell*: "Decorative whimsy which is not among its director's best, but mildly amusing none the less."
My Cousin Rachel (1952)
A young man plots revenge against the woman he believes murdered his
cousin, but his plans are shaken when he comes face to face with the
enigmatic beauty.
Superior adaptation of a Daphne Du Maurier,novel has, similar to Rebecca, a mystery about an enigmatic woman and good Gothic settings and atmosphere as well as a competent cast, although the the ending is somewhat confusing.
Halliwell*: "Well-wrought but dramatically unsatisfactory Victorian melodrama from a bestseller; plenty of suspicion but no solution makes Rachel a dull girl."
Maltin***: "Successful filmization of Daphne du Maurier mystery..."
Maltin***: "Successful filmization of Daphne du Maurier mystery..."
Deliria (1987)
A group of stage actors lock themselves in the theater for a rehearsal of their upcoming musical production, unaware that an escaped psychopath has sneaked into the theater with them.
Tuesday 27 October 2020
Malchik russkiy (2019)
The story of a simple village boy who goes to the front of the First World war with a naive youthful dream of fame and medals.
A masterfully directed (short) feature is photographed as if it was a movie from the time it plays and presents an intense, heart-breaking war drama; the framing device of showing a modern orchestra rehearsing a musical piece may have some artistic merit, but is quite confusing as well.
Sunday 25 October 2020
20,000 Days on Earth (2014)
Writer and musician Nick Cave marks his 20,000th day on the planet Earth.
Not really a documentary but rather autobiographical essay, the film does shed light on the musician's mind and music, at times humorous as well as self-critical.
Saturday 24 October 2020
The Maidens of Fetish Street (1966)
A series of kinky vignettes centered around a lonely, wandering soul,
purportedly set in a 1928 Los Angeles that seems curiously infused with
1960s S&M iconography.
Wildly sleazy semi-documentary uses an artsy pretense to string together a series of scenes of supposed sexual depravity, well photographed and at times absurdly tense, but just as well downright silly.
Las Vegas Bloodbath (1989)
After his wife has betrayed him, a man goes on a bloody killing spree in Las Vegas
Friday 23 October 2020
Primer (2004)
Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something
bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices
they've built, wrestle over their new invention.
Impressive low-budget time tale does an intelligent (and at times humorous) job with the paradoxes of its topic, although it can be hard to follow.
Maltin***: "Quirky, original sci-fi thriller...loaded with ideas and imagination; occasionally bogs down in technical jargon, but still well worth watching - and pondering."
Insomnia (1997)
In a Norwegian city with a 24-hour daylight cycle a Swedish murder investigator has been brought in on a special case. Sleep deprived, he makes a horrible mistake which is discovered by the killer he has been hunting.
Thursday 22 October 2020
First Man (2018)
A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.
Excellently produced and quite realistic rendition of the first moon landing is fully focused on Neil Armstrong and who he was, very successfully so, enhanced by Gosling's immersive performance, but somehow misses out on giving both the man and the mission any substantial meaning.
Guilty Bystander (1950)
An alcoholic ex-cop, now the house detective at a scuzzy hotel in an
even scuzzier part of town, stumbles through New York City's sleazy
underworld searching for his kidnapped son.
Low-budget Noir crime drama has its flaws, but it has a menacing atmosphere, good b/w cinematography and some twists and turns in its plot.
Maltin**1/2
Tuesday 20 October 2020
Duran Duran: Unstaged (2014)
Duran Duran Unstaged is a multimedia event that takes the audience on a
cinematic journey with one of the most successful acts in the world
during their performance at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles.
This is simply a rock concert with a David Lynch light show; although the projected images are easily identifiable as confluent with the director's style, this was certainly more impressive live and mostly of interest for the band's fans and Lynch completists.
Sunday 18 October 2020
Dear Murderer (1947)
When a successful business man suspects his wife is having an
affair, he sets out to find her lover, kill him, and make it look like
suicide.
Basically a standard crime drama with a quite construed plot, this movie hold's tour attention to the evil twists its tale takes.
Halliwell (no star): "Thoroughly artificial pattern play set among the unreal rich, from one of those unaccountable West End successes, here boringly filmed."
Maltin**1/2: "All-too-familiar "perfect crime" melodrama sparked by fine Portman performance."
Maltin**1/2: "All-too-familiar "perfect crime" melodrama sparked by fine Portman performance."
Friday 16 October 2020
Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013)
A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a
rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically
elected president of South Africa.
Well-made biopic with an excellent cast does a good job as a portrayal of the man, but sparks no excitement or has anything original to add to the story.
Maltin**1/2: "Respectful but routine biographical drama...Elba is excellent in all phases of this saga, while Harris does the best she can with an underwritten part as his wife Winnie."
Family Romance, LLC (2019)
A man is hired to impersonate the missing father of a young girl.
With a topic as if created for Werner Herzog, this (fictional) story is slyly presented in his unmistakable documentary style with lots of amazing and surprising moments.
Thursday 15 October 2020
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