Review: Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘Phantom Thread’
“If indeed this is Day-Lewis’ swan song, ‘Phantom Thread’ is the crowning achievement of a monumental career.”
The Various Representations of Dogs in the Horror Genre
“Dogs are a huge asset to the horror genre, as menaces and as loyal comrades.”
‘Call Me by Your Name’: On Obsession, Growing Up and Falling in Love
An Essay by Ella Kemp
Vague Visages Is FilmStruck: Michael Haneke’s ‘Benny’s Video’
“‘Benny’s Video’ implicates us, the audience, for watching. Haneke chides the spectators, removed from the action by a screen, for their inability — or perhaps their unwillingness — to stop the violence.”
Vague Visages Writers’ Room: Favorite Films, Albums and Books of 2017
Vague Visages Writers on Their Favorite 2017 Releases
Critics in Conversation: The Critic and the Actor
In the second part of a three-chapter conversation conducted over months via a large Google Doc, Manuela Lazic and Adam Nayman discuss acting and how film critics interpret performances.
A Retreat into the Self: Introspection and Egoism in Ingmar Bergman’s ‘Wild Strawberries’
“Bergman’s penchant for giving physical form to the conscious and subconscious mind is rarely more apparent than in his 1957 masterpiece ‘Wild Strawberries.’”
Review: Ridley Scott’s ‘All the Money in the World’
“It’s ultimately Scarpa’s bizarre scripting decisions that make the film just a fun crime thriller, and not a Ridley Scott classic.”
An Ode to Alice Lowe’s Performance in Her Feature Directorial Debut ‘Prevenge’
“As any great piece of cinema should evoke in the viewer, Alice Lowe’s electric performance in ‘Prevenge’ makes one laugh, cry and shriek in terror.”
Jack Ascending: Nicholson’s 1980s
“There has always been a conflict at play in Nicholson’s screen presence: between ‘Nicholson’ and ‘Jack.’ The desire to be taken seriously and the lure of the riotous Jack persona have always done battle across his decades of stardom.”
Review: Valérie Massadian’s ‘Milla’
“Although the well worn label of ‘humanist’ may have lost its meaning by now, ‘Milla’ truly lives up to the mantle, as it is ultimately concerned with the fortitude and ability of a young woman to create a space of her own in the world.”
Review: Aaron Sorkin’s ‘Molly’s Game’
“For a film that prides itself on being ‘based on a true story,’ ‘Molly’s Game’ often relies on moments that are too coincidental, too easy. Yet, there’s nothing here to suggest that Sorkin won’t eventually figure things out behind the camera.”
Review: Fatih Akin’s ‘In the Fade’
“Writer/director Akin presents everything through a stilted lens which mistakes prosaic framing and editing for a matter of fact tone.”
Critics in Conversation: Manuela Lazic and Adam Nayman – First Cinematic Loves, Current Inspirations and Finding Your Voice
In the first part of a three-chapter conversation conducted over months via a large Google Doc, film critics Manuela Lazic and Adam Nayman discuss what makes a writer’s voice, colleagues that keep inspiring them and how, a generation apart, they became interested in movies and writing.
Vague Visages Is FilmStruck: Jeremy Carr on Costa-Gavras’ ‘Z’
“‘Z’ is thoughtful, provocative, impassioned entertainment, stylish and teeming with conviction.”
Review: Nora Twomey’s ‘The Breadwinner’
“‘The Breadwinner’ is a beautifully-constructed yet grueling story of female bravery that feels both timeless and timely.”
Review: Scott Cooper’s ‘Hostiles’
“For all its attempts at dissecting human cruelty, there’s no human core to this story, which makes its 135-minute runtime feel twice as long.”
The Ideology of Kinko’s: A Conversation with ‘Lady Bird’ Cinematographer Sam Levy
Devika Girish Interviews Sam Levy
Devious Dialogues: Mike Thorn and Anya Stanley on the ‘Psycho’ Franchise
“I’ll even go so far as to say that the sequel is just as satisfying as the original, in my eyes.”
The Birds and the Beats: How ‘Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai’ Achieved Ultimate Serenity
“Ghost Dog glides through the story with the swiftness of an avian being in a film that never fails to be cathartic.”