By Matthew Fullerton. Though a commercial failure on its release in March 1982, Burst City has, in recent years, reached cult status, primarily for its elements of Japanese cyberpunk, which make it a “landmark” for this genre of cinema, and for its blending of styles.” Give the punk a camera […]
Duality of an Exile: Anton Walbrook, A Life of Masks and Mirrors
A Book Review by Bibi Berki. Author James Downs asserts that Walbrook (above in Der Kurier des Zaren, 1936) was always drawn to parts that contained some degree of duality and wonders if this might have been related to the fact that the exile lives a ‘destabilised’ kind of life, […]
From Prankster to Politician: Jasmine Stodel’s Kid Candidate
By Thomas Puhr. What is surprising is how the lifelong Amarillo resident leveraged his fifteen minutes of fame to start a legitimate campaign, one which Jasmine Stodel chronicles in the documentary Kid Candidate.” Hayden Pedigo – a twenty-something musician residing in Amarillo, Texas – became an online sensation when his […]
Ladies in Rescue: Black Widow
By Elias Savada. The scenery, as in any big Marvel or James Bond movie (many shot at Pinewood Studios, like this was) moves about the globe…. Plenty of races, car chases, collateral damage….” There’s a lot to like in the latest chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Plenty of action, […]
F9: The Fast Saga – A Mega Dose of Sound and Fury
Vin Diesel faces the newest addition to the franchise, John Cena
The Good Life – Happiness by Design: Modernism and Media in the Eames Era
A Book Review by Thomas Puhr. Film scholars don’t seem to be the primary audience here; as such, they may find the text more confounding than captivating. However, adventurous readers as well as film enthusiasts wishing to understand the medium in a much-wider context will find a veritable treasure trove […]
Out of Hollywood’s Darkness – Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It
By Elias Savada. A heartfelt, warts (just a few) and all look at one heck of a lady whose career has spanned cinema, television, theatre, and recorded sound…steered decidedly by Moreno as she takes to the screen in interviews, asides, clips, etc….” It seems fitting, if just for a brief […]
Community Building through Art: No Straight Lines: the Rise of Queer Comics
By Edward Avery-Natale. Ostensibly about the rise, influence, and growth of queer comic(s)…. In practice, though, it is far more: it is a movie about marginalized and minoritized people finding community and relationships….” No Straight Lines, a film by Vivian Kleinman now screening at TriBeca 2021 and based on the […]
More than Music – Trances (Criterion Collection)
By Thomas Puhr. The film eschews many of the conventions associated with concert documentaries; it’s a celebration of a culture – its history, religion, land, and people – without which such music never would have existed.” Even the most devout of audiophiles must admit that nothing quite compares to the […]
Gloriously Leaping Into the New Normal: In the Heights
By Elias Savada. One big, ambitious Latina love letter that anyone can enjoy.” So, after having just been scared back into the movie theater with A Quiet Place Part II, it’s time to head into the darkness again, this time joyously soaring in your socially-distanced seat (if necessary/required) to the […]