Fantasia Fest Review: Stefan Lernous’ ‘Hotel Poseidon’
“Like any work of surrealism, one is likely to get more out of ‘Hotel Poseidon’ based on how much one puts into it.”
Cinema Rediscovered: ‘No Place Like Home’
“For a film completed in fits and starts over so many years, there’s a remarkable intellectual coherence to ‘No Place Like Home.'”
Review: Craig Singer’s ‘6:45’
“There’s a strong message at the heart of ‘6:45,’ in terms of accountability and psychological trauma, but the film seems derivative of genre predecessors and unfocused as a whole.”
Fantasia Fest Review: Sôshi Masumoto’s ‘It’s a Summer Film!’
“‘It’s a Summer Film!’ has a genuine emotional core, which layers each wild twist into another heartrending moment.”
Review: Leos Carax’s ‘Annette’
“Though ‘Annette’ has moments of visual splendor and transcendence, the underutilization of its stars and irritating music make the movie a disappointing return for Carax.”
Review: David Lowery’s ‘The Green Knight’
“The Green Knight’s impactful imagery and intensity outweigh its sometimes overly cryptic metaphors, allowing for quality entertainment.”
Cinema Rediscovered: ‘The Story of a Three-Day Pass’
“The cultural energy of the French New Wave is all over ‘The Story of a Three-Day Pass,’ not least because Van Peebles moved to Paris with his young family and published four novels in French as he was learning the language.”
The Sensual Delights of Michael Cristofer’s ‘Original Sin’
“‘Original Sin’ is an unabashedly horny movie, and Cristofer isn’t shy about showing off either of his gorgeous stars.”
Review: Vivian Kleiman’s ‘No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics’
“One of the most enjoyable aspects of ‘No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics’ is evident again and again in the close-knit support shared among the ‘elder statespeople.'”
Review: Tom McCarthy’s ‘Stillwater’
“By wrestling with questions of identity, politics and home in a bewitching fashion, ‘Stillwater’ refuses to belittle and judge its characters, and challenges viewers to do the same.”
A Quest for Happiness: On Neil Jordan’s ‘Mona Lisa’
“‘Mona Lisa’ was ahead of its time, a precursor of urban fairy tales in late 90s British cinema.”
Collecting Movies with Conor Holt
Greg Carlson Interviews Conor Holt About Movie Collecting
The Endless Yearning in Mani Kaul’s ‘Ashad Ka Ek Din’
“Fifty years since its release, ‘Ashad Ka Ek Din’ holds on to its Bressonian and austere power.”
Review: Carlos López Estrada’s ‘Summertime’
“‘Summertime’ feels wrong-headed, even if its heart is in the right place.”
Review: M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Old’
“While ‘Old’ never quite fully connects emotionally, the themes inherent in the story help lend the movie the depth it doesn’t get from the performances”
The Rediscovered: Bertrand Bonello’s ‘Ingrid Caven: Music and Voice’
“In Paris on a night in 2012, or from a screen in 2021, one may see in Ingrid Caven’s ecstatic performance something that touches the raptures.”
Review: Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s ‘Kandisha’
“Bustillo and Maury are masters of the slow build, and so it goes in ‘Kandisha,’ which becomes incrementally nastier and gorier with each new victim the vengeful spirit eliminates…”
‘That Sinking Feeling’ and a Very Scottish Heist
“At a time when on-screen Scotland was mostly shown to be either Ken Loach or ‘Brigadoon,’ ‘That Sinking Feeling’ manages to be its own thing…”
Review: Michael Sarnoski’s ‘Pig’
“A soulful lead performance and assured direction showcases Cage’s indelible ability to make the silly into the poignant.”
Emma Seligman’s ‘Shiva Baby’ and the Art of Comic Discomfort
“‘Shiva Baby’ is most certainly not a movie for those who get clammy and start to sweat at secondhand embarrassment.”