“‘Advice for Taxidermists and Amateur Beekeepers’ succeeds not only as a realist narrative about family, loss, sex and death, but also as a quietly reflexive genre piece.”
“‘It Chapter Two’ ends up as a self-conscious adolescent that nervously giggles any time it’s on the verge of doing something profound; a cringe-inducing ‘no homo’ walk-back writ large to avoid accusations of nastiness or tenderness.”
“Noé’s work has always been concerned with errant self-expression, what happens when we are wrenched from sensation and how we adjust to the comedown.”
“The experimental nature of Jenkin’s production means it might take a few scenes to really get hooked. ‘Bait’ reels the audience in, however, by casting a uniquely strange line, capturing elements of old and new cinema.”
“An efficient script and commanding central performance from Sarah Bolger produce a memorable film with mostly intelligently drawn characters.”
“The Kitchen fares so much better when read as a kind of self-aware meta-narrative of the gangster film, and an examination of Berloff’s construction of the men is one argument for why this rare, female-helmed genre piece deserves a second look.”
“‘District 9’ might not be a classic like ‘Alien’ or ‘The Terminator’ (not many films are), but it’s still an effective sci-fi film with depth and style.”
“A sense of restlessness began to be addressed tentatively, and was confronted with increasing boldness as the decade progressed. Battles were being waged on multiple fronts of this unacknowledged war, claims were being sought from historically neglected constituents.”
“As we careen further down the barrel of late-capitalism, it has become clear that the laborer is now the product.”
“While it might be easy to assume that films like ‘Natural Born Killers’ and ‘Funny Games’ simply demonise their audiences as wanting the thrill of violence without thinking about the consequence of it, the films instead ask questions, instead of only providing answers.”
“Fathers make sense when we can reduce them to symbols, but the actual business of parenting is so defined by ‘feminine’ qualities — emotional openness, compassion, gentleness, patience — that we often struggle to correlate them with a father figure.”
“Both Lucas and Lynch’s world views allow for the possibility of personal atonement, and for external peace emerging from inner peace.”
“If part of the horror genre’s mission is to elicit fear through the erosion of safety, then the endings of ‘Hereditary’ and ‘Midsommar’ are the ultimate expression of that mission.”
“The questions ‘New Money’ poses are numerous and mostly left unanswered. The film is scattershot at times and tonally inconsistent throughout, flirting with elements of a crime thriller and a goofy comedy.”
Photo Essay: Andy Witchger on Rock the Garden 2019 feat. The National, Courtney Barnett, Adia Victoria, X, Dem Atlas, Heart Bones, The Beths and Bad Bad Hats
“…an energizing portrait of working class, mad-as-hell action — and the birth of a national celebrity.”
“Featuring powerful lead performances, ‘Manta Ray’ is like a perfectly wrapped present that needs to be opened with care.”
“Playing almost like a self-eulogy, ‘Varda by Agnès’ resonates as both a manifesto to untamed creativity and a testament to future generations of artists.”
“Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy has become THE Batman interpretation, heralded for its gritty realism. But in my book, ‘Batman’ is the better comicbook movie.”
“With the Acid Western, the genre had once again proven itself capable of assimilating new grievances and anxieties.”