Canned Memories: The Presentation of Time in ‘Chungking Express’
“By dissecting and re-representing time through the cinematic apparatus, ‘Chungking Express’ demonstrates that modern life is not unequivocally devoid of romanticism.”
Review: Harmony Korine’s ‘The Beach Bum’
“‘The Beach Bum’ is undoubtedly Harmony Korine’s friendliest movie, as the filmmaker tones down his Jean-Luc Godard meets John Waters envelope-pushing tendencies and alienating techniques, yet there’s still a lot of edge to be found in the film.”
A Waning Arcadia: Early 80s Punk Cinema
“The characters in ‘Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains,’ ‘Smithereens’ and ‘Suburbia’ find in punk rock a convenient shorthand for authenticity, a posture which presages its eventual absorption into the very mechanisms it sets out to oppose.”
Review: Dava Whisenant’s ‘Bathtubs Over Broadway’
“Whisenant emphasizes the ways in which Young’s quest have led him to meaningful interpersonal relationships and a sense of avocation that transcend his work as a writer of television comedy.”
‘Napoleon Dynamite’ Turns 15: An Interview with Actor Efren Ramirez
Greg Carlson Interviews ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ Actor Efren Ramirez
Clermont-Ferrand 2019 Short Film Review: Carlos Abascal Peiro’s ‘Jupiter!’
“Oftentimes, shorts will hammer home their endings, but Peiro executes his conclusion quickly, and with full confidence.”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Radu Jude’s ‘I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History as Barbarians’
“‘I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History’ provides historical context of a brutal period not known to many, and facilitates a discussion of Romania’s pro-Nazi involvement in the Second World War. But narratively, Jade’s film achieves little.”
Clermont-Ferrand 2019 Short Film Review: Kitao Sakurai’s ‘The Passage’
“With a gorgeous vintage sheen across its 4:3 aspect ratio, Sakurai’s short establishes a magical realist land that magnifies the burgeoning diversity of America today – along with all the confusion, preposterousness and sudden violence that comes with it.”
Attack the Headlines: How Joe Cornish’s Films Subvert Gloomy British News Stories
“That Cornish has managed to make two films that can easily be viewed as thoughtful ruminations on the state of Britain in the centre of two national crises should be applauded.”
‘Happy Death Day 2U’ Drops the Scares, Doubles Down on Sci-Fi
“‘Happy Death Day 2U’ is a light sci-fi movie with the thinnest veneer of horror, and your enjoyment of the film will depend on your willingness to accept its geeky premise and nonexistent scare factor.”