By Elias Savada. All the things that made the original so great are lacking in its new CGI-heavy follow-up. Its heart is still pumping with adrenaline, though” You know the saying. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. The problem with South Korean fillmmaker Yeon Sang-ho’s new zombie […]
When Man Becomes Animal: Jimmy Henderson’s The Prey
By Thomas Puhr. Henderson version of Connell’s ‘The Most Dangerous Game’ quickly ditches visual fluidity once the hunt begins and instead settles for a series of repetitive shootouts and sequences of aimless wandering” With its brisk pacing, memorable characters (Count Zaroff is a blueprint for countless villains), and tailored-for-classroom-discussion themes […]
In Search of the “Sonic Novum”: The Sound of Things to Come: An Audible History of the Science Fiction Film by Trace Reddell
Decoder (1984) By Tony Williams. Much of value appears in this book, and the hard read required is often worth it to discover some unique insights.” Emerging from the prestigious University of Minnesota Press, The Sound of Things to Come is a weighty tome in more than one sense. As […]
9000 Miles from Home and 30 Miles from Nowhere: An Interview with Caitlin Koller
By Alexandra Heller-Nicholas. If more work was done to showcase and embrace (the Australian) horror film past it could really help to foster awareness and hunger for local horror films.” How did emerging Australian filmmaker Caitlin Koller find herself in rural Illinois directing one of the most fun horror comedies […]
Something Ominous, Indeed: The Unfamiliar
By Ali Moosavi. Ever since the success and huge profit margin of films such as Halloween, Friday the 13th, etc., there has been a deluge of horror films, producing more franchises than McDonalds. They tend to follow one of a number of well-established templates; a mad, seemingly indestructible killer on […]
Not for Publication (1984): Paul Bartel’s Misspent Misprint
By Rod Lott. Nancy Allen is always engaging to watch but is left to tread water since her screen partner lacks the comic spark the role requires” In part due to her five-year marriage to Brian De Palma, actress Nancy Allen has had to do lots of humiliating and vulnerable […]
Period of Self Discovery: Jonás Trueba’s August Virgin
By Gary M. Kramer. Director Jonás Trueba’s enchanting, leisurely drama, The August Virgin, follows Eva (Itsaso Arana, who co-wrote the screenplay with Trueba) as she wanders around Madrid during the first two weeks of August. Everything and nothing happens to Eva as the hot, languid days go by. (Trueba charts […]
Aliens and Raging Hormones Meet in Egor Abramenko’s Sputnik
By Elias Savada. Be warned – Sputnik‘s creature most likely did not come in peace.” When I was a child, I was fascinated by those first artificial satellites launched into orbit around our planet. For those caught up on world history, the Russians were the trailblazers, in October 1957, with […]
Saving Man’s (and Woman’s) Best Friends: Jesse Alk’s Pariah Dog
By Elias Savada. Pariah Dog highlights Alk’s ability as an extremely gifted, poetic, and even counter-culture filmmaker who has fashioned a labor of love for his debut feature.” A hazy dusk is arriving in Kolkata in West Bengal, India (the most far eastern part of the country, on the border […]
A Comfortable Troublemaker – Michael Haneke: Interviews, edited by Roy Grundmann, Fatima Naqvi, and Colin Root
Code Unknown (2000) I try to rouse the viewer from his status as a victim in order to give him a more flexible position in relation to the film.” By Jeremy Carr. There’s a penetrating coldness that commonly characterizes the films of Michael Haneke. Rightly or wrongly, similar notions of […]