By Thomas Gladysz. Released by Undercrank Productions, The Bat stands as a high point in the ‘old dark house’ genre / sub-genre.” In the first decades of the 20th century, film was finding its way. Then, the various genres were being defined — and redefined, with the release of just […]
Redefining Modernist Acting and Feminist Resistance: Isabelle Huppert, Modernist Performance
A Book Review by Jenny Paola Ortega Castillo. Author Florence Jacobowitz argues that Huppert’s artistic career represents a form of cultural resistance, using her art to challenge social norms and redefine what it means to be an actress in contemporary modernist cinema.” Isabelle Huppert, Modernist Performance by Florence Jacobowitz (Wayne […]
On the Brink of Obliteration: Black Dog (Gou Zhen, 2024)
By Yun-hua Chen. A portrait of a town on the brink of obliteration and a meditation on lives rendered powerless by political and socioeconomic currents….” A man and a dog in a small northwestern town in China’s Gobi Desert—this premise might sound like a minimalist bore, but not when the […]
Pandemic Dreams: A Trip Elsewhere
By William Blick. A zany yet suspenseful cinematic experience.” I saw the phrase, “after the plague, came the renaissance,” scribbled on a subway station wall and thought it was perhaps somewhat applicable to the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. It seems that there has been a huge surge of creativity […]
Slow-Paced Stakes: The Vourdalak
By Andrew Montiveo. A hauntingly unique addition to the vampire canon, much like the story that inspired it.” When discussing vampiric cinema, Robert Eggers’s Nosferatu inevitably comes to mind. Ironically, the “original” Nosferatu was truly original – a German knockoff of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Stoker’s 1897 novel remains the definitive […]
“Nobody Knows the Trouble I See”: Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths
By Jeremy Carr. Why do some people behave as they do?… It’s the psychosocial terrain explored in Mike Leigh’s latest engaging slice of life….” All somebody has to do is spend about five minutes on social media to see that people are angry. Sometimes, the causes are obvious, widespread, and […]
Both Sides Now: Arrival by David Roche
A Book Review by Thomas M. Puhr. Entertaining to everyday audiences without sacrificing philosophical complexity or skimping on actual research.” For nearly a decade now, Denis Villeneuve has worked exclusively within the science fiction genre. Thanks to his popular Dune saga and the cultural legacy attached to his sequel Blade […]
“Night Wanderings” with Nosferatu (2024)
By Gary D. Rhodes. Few filmmakers are as capable of waking the dead, and of transporting us to them, than Robert Eggers, the Charon of American cinema.” “He is coming,” we learn of Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) during Robert Eggers’ new film, just as we have heard for many years […]
In with the Old, in with the New: The Sword (1980)
By Jeremy Carr. An excellent primer for those new to the genre and a satisfyingly novel entry for its more seasoned fans.” To anyone even somewhat familiar with the martial arts films that came out of Hong Kong prior to and following 1980, critic Andrew Heskins’ observation that The Sword […]
With No Future, All That’s Left is the Past: Paul Schrader’s Oh, Canada
By Jonathan Monovich. An enthralling existential piece by one of cinema’s greatest talents.” Oh, Canada, Paul Schrader’s latest film, continues his ongoing exploration of the transcendental style. Schrader’s monumental book, Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer, recognized that cinema and spirituality were interconnected via style, time, and movement. It’s an […]