Studio Ghibli Forever: An Initiation – ‘Princess Mononoke’
“‘Princess Mononoke’ explores this gaping chasm between nature’s gentle acceptance of circumstance and humanity’s steadfast refusal to quietly accept death.”
EIFF 2016: Agnieszka Smoczynska’s ‘The Lure’
“It may sound like an odd compliment to praise a film for coming across like an ambien trip.”
Icon Is My Last Name: Andreas Horvath’s ‘Helmut Berger, Actor’
“We don’t who Helmut Berger is. Neither does he. Once a star, he will always be a star.”
Two Drink Minimum: Jake Szymanski’s ‘Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates’
“It’s not a dumb movie pretending to be smart, it’s a dumb movie worried about (yet still embracing) its own base stupidity.”
Why Criticism: James Agee’s Vision of the American Cinema
A Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith
Two Drink Minimum: ‘What’s Manzai?!!’
“It looks like a ‘Bill Nye the Science Guy’ episode was produced about manzai after they lost Bill, their writers and about ninety percent of their budget.”
American Crime Story: ‘Marcia, Marcia, Marcia’ Is the Missing Chapter of ‘O.J.: Made in America’
“‘Marcia, Marcia, Marcia’ exposes the intersection between the powerful forms of marginalization which shape the O.J. trial, as well as, more broadly, contemporary American life.”
We Failed This Film: Jesse Moss’ ‘The Overnighters’ (2014)
A Series by Dylan Moses Griffin
Of Love and Other Demons: ‘Top of the Lake’ (Jane Campion & Garth Davis, 2013)
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
Studio Ghibli Forever: An Initiation – ‘Only Yesterday’
“An enchanting film that surreally embraces the child within, ‘Only Yesterday’ feels like the first Studio Ghibli film to be firmly aimed at an adult crowd.”
EIFF 2016 Review: Zach Clark’s ‘Little Sister’
“‘Little Sister’ has a uniformly strong cast, but Addison Timlin gives one of those star-making turns that, if the universe is at all just, will be but the first prominent stepping stone for an extraordinary career.”
Why Criticism: James Agee’s Voice
A Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith
The Witchy Women of ‘The Fits’: Sexuality in Anna Rose Holmer’s Debut
“One of many elements ‘the fits’ represent is this notion of burgeoning sexuality and how young women respond to the loss of virginity.”
Long May She Reign: Game of Thrones ‘The Winds of Winter’ (Recap)
“Where ‘Battle of the Bastards’ stumbled by offering simplistic resolutions to complicated problems, ‘The Winds of Winter’ soars by reveling in the dark ambiguities of Westeros’ violent brutality.”
Piecing Together the Fragments of Jean-Luc Godard’s ‘A Married Woman’
“With ‘A Married Woman,’ Godard appears fully devoted to topical bullet points through an essayistic structure, forgoing conventional narrative, character development or expedient pacing.”
Review: Johnnie To’s ‘Three’
“To missteps when ‘Three’ hews too close to action clichés.”
Preacher Recap: ‘South Will Rise Again’
“The episode provides plenty of darkness, but what it also provides is a sense of understanding.”
Of Love and Other Demons: ‘An Angel at My Table’ (Jane Campion, 1990)
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith
Studio Ghibli Forever: An Initiation – ‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’
“Hoping not to hinder the inevitable forward progress of society, this Studio Ghibli gem only asks of us that with each step forward, we reflect on the past, and only take that step with the confidence and hope it deserves.”
Why Criticism: Interview with Josh Spiegel, Co-Host of ‘Mousterpiece Cinema Podcast’
A Column on Film Criticism by Justine A. Smith