Why ‘The Ballad of Buster Scruggs’ Is More Than the Sum of Its Parts
โIn a way, the Coens complete the arc of the film, tying it together cohesively, by suggesting that the arc is random, sometimes cruel, and sometimes meaningless.โ
โIn a way, the Coens complete the arc of the film, tying it together cohesively, by suggesting that the arc is random, sometimes cruel, and sometimes meaningless.โ
โBy being so lazy and aggressive with his judgment of pop culture, Corbet ends up making a film that is bland in its anger, annoying in its attacks and ridiculous in its contempt for its characters and audience.โ
โโGood Mannersโ isnโt without its share of redeeming factors, to be sure, but Dutra and Rojas are simply hamstrung by their chosen medium, which pits an overabundance of ideas to a constricting runtime.โ
โIโve always had a soft spot for โSummer Stockโ —ย it may not be the most innovative or exciting of Kellyโs films, but itโs an unpretentious movie that delights in the pure pleasure of musical entertainment, from the outright silly to the romantically sincere.โ
โIn its thorough research and extensive reconstructing of the artistโs life, โSonar Baran Pakhiโ is a document of celebration. Of the artist, the daughter, the mother. And the effortless rebel.”
“Fifty-three years after initial release, ‘The Umbrellas of Cherbourg’ continues to be a formally and contextually innovative French New Wave production; a film that has influenced contemporary directors such as Barry Jenkins, Damien Chazelle and Joachim Trier.”
“Might I put it out into the ether that a ‘weak link’ doesnโt exist in ‘La La Land’.”
Mike Postalakis on the 1978 Fiasco ‘The Star Wars Holiday Special’
“Through all of these corny musical numbers, the rom-com scenarios, and the outrageous ‘I Love Lucy’ levels of scheming, I find myself relating to Rebecca against the odds.”
“So, what is it about these two figureheads of cult film that makes them so iconically and definitively camp?”
A Weekly Column on Love and Erotica in Cinema by Justine A. Smith