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.”
Album Review: Ty Segall ‘Fudge Sandwich’
“‘Fudge Sandwich’ is the kind of album that provides listeners with a new favorite track every day, no small feat for a collection of cover tunes.”
Vague Visages Is FilmStruck: Steve James’ ‘Hoop Dreams’
“As much as ‘Hoop Dreams’ concerns the sports-centric plight of William and Arthur, it is perhaps even more significantly an illustrative case study of what perpetually imperils men (and women) of a certain social, economic and racial constitution.”
London Film Festival 2018 Review: Carlos Vermut’s ‘Quién te cantará’
“‘Quién te cantará’ is a cold, mournful study of mothers and daughters living despite each other, filtered through a mystery with a popstar shaped hole at its centre.”
London Film Festival 2018 Review: Ben Wheatley’s ‘Happy New Year, Colin Burstead’
“This film will undoubtedly become a key text for critical essays and university studies on post-referendum British cinema…”
Review: Bradley Cooper’s ‘A Star Is Born’
“Gaga’s mere presence in ‘A Star Is Born’ allows Cooper a wide berth to go big with scenes and moments that play with and embrace camp.”
Review: David Gordon Green’s ‘Halloween’
“‘Halloween’ might be funny, but it’s also the nastiest, most violent entry in the series yet.”
Brooklyn Horror Film Festival Review: Daniel Goldhaber and Isa Mazzei’s ‘Cam’
“‘Cam’ is an uncomfortable watch, despite its absolutely dazzling visuals and outstanding production design.”
Keep On Keepin’ On: Review — David Lowery’s ‘The Old Man & the Gun’
“Few actors are truly cross-generational in the manner media outlets make them out to be. Robert Redford, however, has earned this distinction.”
London Film Festival 2018 Review: Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Suspiria’
“A swirling, tumbling vision of Cold War paranoia and coven politics, ‘Suspiria’ will both astound and baffle; the conflict that defines its muted streets, full of uneasy dreams and restless feet, will come to bear on its audience and their nightmares.”
In the Shadow of ‘The Hairy Bird’
“Given what we now know about Weinstein’s welding of harassment, assault and power to control the women in his professional orbit, it’s uncanny that a seemingly frivolous film about a girls boarding school could share such parallels with the #MeToo movement.”