Album Review: Neil Hamburger ‘Still Dwelling’
“Yes, Turkington does sing in the same grating timber as his alter ego, but — thanks to a top-notch back-up band — the effect is quite charming.”
‘Les diaboliques’ and the Beginnings of the Erotic Thriller
“One of the most compelling things about ‘Les Diaboliques’ and its cinematic offspring is that viewers are always left with the sense that there are secrets untold, questions unanswered.”
Interview With Grindflicks’ Randal Black About Fargo’s Turkish Movie Showcase
Greg Carlson Interviews Grindflicks Founder Randal Black About ‘Turkish Movie Showcase: A Mega Mix of Turkish Flix’
Growing Pains: Asian Cinema and the Coming-of-Age Film
“The success of ‘The Crossing’ and ‘The Third Wife’ should speak to the unique ability of female filmmakers and female characters in filling in the narrative gaps in Vietnamese and Chinese cinema, in which male directors wield dominant creative control.”
Vague Visages Short Stories: Beaming by D.M. Palmer
Vague Visages Short Stories #11: Beaming by D.M. Palmer (Sheffield, UK)
Review: Paul Hyett’s ‘Peripheral’
“Even when too much stuff is being thrown at the screen, it’s hard not to admire ‘Peripheral’ for trying.”
Review: Patrick Wang’s ‘A Bread Factory’
“If there’s a risk involved with watching ‘A Bread Factory’ — an honest and untarnished ode to the arts — it’s in thinking that its length could be a bad thing.”
Cinemania Film Festival Review: Pawel Pawlikowski’s ‘Cold War’
“As in ‘Ida,’ Pawlikowski offers little exposition, which leaves the audience to gather any and all clues.”
Photo Essay by Andy Witchger: Maggie Rogers at Minneapolis’ First Avenue
“Her music remains permeated by the natural world, both lyrically and sonically. Field recordings form the backbone of multi-layered samples, and loops of falling trees and rattlesnakes complement subtle drum machines. The effect is a distinct sense of place.”
Jonah Hill Looks Back at the ‘Mid90s’
“‘Mid90s’ has drawn some comparisons to Harmony Korine (who makes a cameo in Hill’s film) and Larry Clark’s ‘Kids,’ but Hill’s worldview is far less toxic and dangerous than the grimmest territory explored in the 1995 movie.”
Hommes Fatales: Fritz Lang’s ‘The Blue Gardenia’
“‘The Blue Gardenia’ occupies a curious space inside noir. In many ways, it acts as an indirect response to many of the films that preceded it, with their icy femmes fatales…”
Seeing Double: Richard Quine’s ‘Pushover’
“As a largely disregarded noir B-side, ‘Pushover’ deliberately recalls its more famous predecessor, playing upon audience expectations of MacMurray’s screen persona to create an experience of déjà vu.”
Sex or the Saw: Impotency and Masculine Posturing in ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2’
“By filtering male anxieties through Stretch’s perspective, Hooper is able to posit an astute observation on the nature of male aggression when they just cannot get it up.”
Interview With Director Don Coscarelli, Author of ‘True Indie: Life and Death in Filmmaking’
Zach Vasquez Interviews Filmmaker Don Coscarelli
Survivor’s Guilt: The Continuity of ‘Halloween H20: 20 Years Later’
“Regardless of how one chooses to view it, H20’s legacy will always have Laurie/Keri’s character and Curtis’ performance in its favor.”
Lights, Dance, Death: Body Movements and Color in Dario Argento’s ‘Suspiria’
“Dario Argento’s ‘Suspiria’ contorts the abjection of horror through a kaleidoscope of popping color.”
Pod Nation: The Endurance of ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’
“Ultimately, the endurance of Finney’s story and the concept of ‘pod people’ can be attributed to the fact that it’s not a metaphor for any one fear, but rather dozens.”
In Real Life: ‘Slender Man’ and the Clash of Media
“Just as the internet unleashed the Slenderman, it is culpable in bringing forth another seductive monster who uses this technology to warp minds and sow division…”
In Kubrick’s Shadow: Tony Zierra’s ‘Filmworker’
“‘Filmworker’ will be sought by Kubrick completists, but the movie also appeals to anyone who has been seduced by the process of motion picture making.”
Album Review: Street Sects ‘The Kicking Mule’
“Street Sects is the kind of band that a lot of people would call ‘problematic,’ but they’re a much-needed smack in the face in a world that seems less compassionate with each passing day.”