At the Cinémathèque: Jean-Luc Godard Finds Pleasure In Estrangement with ‘Passion’
“Centered on a made-for-television film, ‘Passion’ blends the far reaches of Western art with the birth of new mediums.”
SANFIC 12 Review: Paul Schrader’s ‘Dog Eat Dog’
“I think that Schrader is just reaching out, trying to stretch his directorial arms, trying to show everything that he’s got.”
Of Love and Other Demons: ‘American Gigolo’ (Paul Schrader, 1980)
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
SANFIC 12 Review: Alejandro Jodorowsky’s ‘Poesía sin fin’
“Maybe it’s his own nostalgia or the naturalistic approach, but I haven’t felt someone film my city with that much love in a long time.”
Why Criticism: Mark Cousins’ 50 Week Film Course
A Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith
Two Drink Minimum: ‘David Cross: Making America Great Again!’ (Netflix)
“Similar to the audience polarization of other onenote comics (like Ricky Gervais), Cross’ locked, angry views overwhelm his substantial wit.”
At the Cinémathèque: ‘In the Realm of the Senses’ (Nagisa Ôshima, 1976)
“In the forbidden, Oshima reveals the fear of our own meaninglessness and our inability to face death as a certainty.”
Of Love and Other Demons: ‘Hardcore’ (Paul Schrader, 1979)
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
The Style, Sins and Sympathies of Robert Bresson’s ‘Au hasard Balthazar’
Jeremy R. Carr on the 50th Anniversary of Robert Bresson’s ‘Au hasard Balthazar’
More Serious Than Love: Éric Rohmer’s ‘A Summer’s Tale’
“The film identifies the dark heart of summer, the humid stagnation and sense of dread that is the season’s essence.”
Review: Werner Herzog’s ‘Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World’
“It is Herzog’s simultaneous exhibition of curiosity, awe, and irreverence in the face of the digitally connected world that makes ‘Lo and Behold’ a unique treatment of its subject that is not to be missed.”
Mood and Character in Brady Corbet’s ‘The Childhood of a Leader’
“‘The Childhood of a Leader’ may not behold a traditional narrative, yet Corbet’s auterist style creates a memorable visceral effect.”
Why Criticism: Richard Dyer’s ‘White’ and Writing About Race
A Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith
Two Drink Minimum: Amazon Pilot Reviews
Jacob Oller on ‘The Tick,’ ‘I Love Dick’ and ‘Jean-Claude Van Johnson’
Blindspots: The Night Of ‘The Call of the Wild’ (Recap)
“For supposed ‘prestige TV,’ ‘The Night Of’ is simply lazy.”
At the Cinémathèque: L’ange et la femme (Gilles Carle, 1977)
“A deeply affecting and personal vision, it’s an essential entry in the history of eroticism in Canadian cinema.”
Of Love and Other Demons: ‘The Devil Is a Woman’ (Josef von Sternberg, 1935)
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
Why Criticism: Thom Andersen and the Critic as a Worker
A Weekly Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith
Review: Ira Sachs’ ‘Little Men’
“At its best, ‘Little Men’ swings the viewer from the small, important signs of young friendship to the uncomfortable and conflicting economic interests of adults.”
Two Drink Minimum: Humor and the Influences of ‘Kubo and the Two Strings’
“As reference humor and pop song needle drops become ironic jokes in and of themselves, stories like Kubo will outlive them all by having just a bit of substance behind the gags.”