“Just because ‘The Wages of Fear’ is dire and pessimistic, that doesn’t make it any less perceptive or accurate. Quite the contrary: the virulent truth only makes it that much more engrossing…”
“‘Benny’s Video’ implicates us, the audience, for watching. Haneke chides the spectators, removed from the action by a screen, for their inability — or perhaps their unwillingness — to stop the violence.”
“In ‘Crash,’ sex feels like a traffic accident. In ‘Videodrome,’ it becomes the subject of a warped, projected fantasy.”
“In ‘Human Desire,’ the train tracks carry its hero into the sunny paradise of the American Dream, not the depths of noir’s endless night.”
“Undeniably the central focus of ‘Summer with Monika,’ Andersson’s overt sex appeal somewhat minimizes her remarkable range in the film, her seamlessly oscillating moods and subtle facial intimations.”
“The vomit moment in ‘Dead Bang’ is unfailingly human.”
“‘Hounds of Love’ makes an intriguing case for suggestion in place of an all-out, sensationalized show.”
“‘Amar’ is passionate without being pretentious.”
“Nothing in ‘Le Bonheur’ produces lasting unhappiness, and to approach it in a spirit of contemplation, rather than one of judgment, may allow the movie its most favorable terms of engagement.”
“The married couple’s conversation in ‘La Pointe Courte’ is a spellbinding predecessor to Richard Linklater’s ‘Before Trilogy’ and further proof that no great film needs ‘action’ to be great.”
“Like his characters, Demy’s camera in ‘Lola’ moves everywhere but goes nowhere; it’s a paradoxically headlong hesitation.”
“‘I Am Cuba’ is more than a picturesque travelogue. It is a pulsating ethnographic profile, an excavation of sorts, uncovering and unleashing its discoveries with a sweeping scope.”
“With ‘American Mary,’ the Soska sisters tell a story that deserves a place alongside the likes of ‘I Spit on Your Grave’ and ‘Hostel’ in its bold but nuanced steps that push forward the genre entire.”
“It’s in Louise’s absolute refusal to allow our barbaric side to win that ‘Arrival’ shows its moral core.”
“What is awkward about these ‘Arrival’ reviews is how they oppose the film’s best qualities to its generic roots.”
“Whatever its genus, ‘In Vanda’s Room’ is one harrowing motion picture… It is also one of the best films from the past 20 years.”
A Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
“‘Fear and Desire’ is more than just a curio for the Kubrick completist. It is indeed a genuinely revealing work.”
“Jean-Pierre Melville’s ‘Le Samourai’ is the definition of cinematic precision. Each shot, each cut, each movement is a slice of redolent, provocative and sometimes even banal accuracy.”
“‘Manchester by the Sea’ will make your dad cry by showing him how he deals with emotions and the instructional framework through which he learned how to deal with emotions.”
