La Belle Endormie Directed by Catherine Breillat Written by Catherine Breillat France – 2010 Defying all expectations and conventions, Catherine Breillat creates a fairy tale that can only be attributed to her sensibilities with her newest film, La Belle Endormie. A loose adaptation of Sleeping Beauty, the film is about a young princess’ journey in …
“Black Swan is an elegant, impeccably designed film in both form and content that should delicately pirouette into many cineastes’ films-of-the-year list.” Black Swan Directed by Darren Aronofsky Written by Mark Heyman Starring Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassell & Barbara Hershey USA, 2010 In his new psychological musical Black Swan, director Darren Aronofsky has delivered …
“A cinematic rarity, this will be a film to be discussed for years to come with a special warmth reserved for films that touch and change all those willing to open up their heart and soul to its influence.” Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul Though often difficult to …
Ever since runaway horror sensation Saw twisted its way onto our cinema screens and inadvertently sullied the subsequent decade of horror by urging on an unseemly wave of torture porn, we’ve been inundated with a barrage of ‘people-wake-up-in-a-room’ horror films, most of which have crept out straight to DVD. Sure, it’s a genre that’s been …
It’s easy to make some wrong assumptions about Henry McGee, president of HBO Home Entertainment. Soft-spoken, low-key, well-tailored, he has none of the bombast or flamboyance of an entertainment industry “creative.” He does not reel off movie history trivia, nor go off on a loving endorsement of the latest overlooked art house treasure. But then …
Catfish Directors by Henry Joost, Ariel Shulman 2010, USA Mild spoilers follow. Catfish has had a lot of hype over the past few months, with a tantalizing trailer that managed to give nothing away but hinted at a dark twist and a finale that would possibly dip its toes into full-on horror. Now it’s been …
Ok, so that may be slightly misleading, but I had to get your attention. The truth is that remakes and sequels, horror or otherwise, tend towards merely being insipidly contrived shadows of their predecessors; retreading formulas with less impact or merely upping the genre staples whilst degrading the narrative, acting, and soul. But every once …
A new segment from Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s multi-platform Primitive project, A Letter to Uncle Boonmee is a film in search of a subject, in search of itself. In A Letter to Uncle Boonmee, the Thai filmmaker’s graceful camera searches for spectral presences in a part of northeastern Thailand whose natural wonders belie a violent history.
Everybody who listens to Sound On Sight Radio knows that I am a huge fans of movies scores and try my best to praise my favourite film composers while also promoting great movie soundtracks. In fact Sound On Sight has a column dedicated to soundtracks and another (Undertones) specifically to movie scores and composers. Well …
“You really can’t have a campier time at the movies then with Blood Feast.” Blood Feast Director: Herschell Gordon Lewis Writer: Allison Louise Downe Starring: William Kerwin, Mal Arnold, Connie Mason 1963 United States | Not Rated | 67 mins Blood! Guts! Grue! Gore! All these wonderfully gooey, splattery, and deep red markings of violence …
Neds Directed by Peter Mullan Written by Peter Mullan 2010 – UK, France, Italy Peter Mullan’s last film, the award-winning The Magdalene Sisters, was about vulnerable young women suffering oppression and brutality at the hands of some over-zealous nuns. Here he presents sarcasm, cynicism and the oft-wielded strap as the chief weapons of Scottish educators …
George Clarke believes he has caught a time traveler in a piece of video footage found by him in Charlie Chaplin’s 1928 film The Circus. Attending the premiere at Manns Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, CA – the scene shows a large woman /man dressed in black with a hat hiding most of his/her face, with …
Howl Directed by Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman Written by Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman 2010, USA There couldn’t be a more perfect time to make a movie about Allen Ginsberg and his most celebrated work, “Howl.” The beat generation has enjoyed a revival as of late, as the hipster and alternative culture has adopted …
“Unlike a good rock concert, Terror on Tour might have you leaving well before the encore.” Terror on Tour Director: Don Edmonds Writer: Dell Lekus Starring: Rick Styles, Chip Greenman, Larry Thomas 1980 United States | R | 87 mins Shock Rock was big in the 70’s. Acts like Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, and KISS …
“Rambock still delivers some brutally effective shocks” Rambock Directed by Marvin Kren Written by Benjamin Hessler Germany, 2010 Our unfortunate protagonist Michael travels across the country to Berlin to visit his ex-girlfriend in hopes to rekindle their relationship. He arrives at her apartment only to be greeted by hordes of zombies and a young maintenance …
“John Sayles latest film is a humanistic, suspenseful historical drama with a modern resonance, an essential addition to fans of mature, adult cinema.” Amigo Directed by John Sayles Written by John Sayles USA, 2010 Hands up if you’ve heard of the US invasion of the Philippines in 1900? No? Me neither. This obscured historical conflict …
“The Devil in Miss Jones is an unexpected cinematic masterpiece that is as haunting and thought provoking as it is titillating.” The Devil in Miss Jones Director: Gerard Damiano Writer: Gerard Damiano Starring: Georgina Spelvin, Harry Reems, John Clemens 1973 United States | X | 62 mins The history of cinema is an ever evolving …
What Hollywood Has Left to Learn from Studio Ghibli? Everything: 5 Ghibli Films Hollywood Filmmakers Need to Watch Hayao Miyazaki can’t quit. Meaning that in both the ways it can be taken. First off, the man has seriously tried, having basically given a KISS-level amount of farewell tours, starting all the way back in 1997 …
The second outing for directer Xavier Dolan has proved to not only dispel the neurotic and vapid curse of the sophomore jinx, but has once again melded all aspects plot, character, music and wit into a divine and humourous journey through the escapades and absurdities of naive love. The complexities of emotion, sex and self …
“When a Stranger Calls doesn’t fully deserve its classic status it has in most circles but still works as an effective cautionary tale.” When a Stranger Calls Director: Fred Walton Writers: Steve Feke, Fred Walton Starring: Charles Dunning, Carol Kane, Tony Beckley 1979 United States | R | 97 mins Prank phone calls, heavy breathers, …
Very recently, Peter Jackson just released his casting for ‘The Hobbit,’ the film that has wavered in and out of production Hell. Currently, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Rob Kazinsky, Aidan Turner, Graham McTavish, John Callen, Stephen Hunter, Mark Hadlow and Peter Hambleton will all be galavanting through Middle Earth on one of the greatest adventures …
I’ve been an avid collector of Blu-rays right since the start. In fact, I was foolish enough (or brave enough) to support HD-DVD for at least a year or two before I fully switched over to Blu-Ray. I now have a spiralling collection of well over 1,200 Blu-rays with a smattering of HD titles still …
“Quite entertaining, just unfortunately shallow given the potential of the script and the strength of some of the performances.” Confessions Directed by Testsuya Nakashima Written by Testsuya Nakashima Based on the novel by Kanae Minato Marketers have been quick to compare Confessions with Battle Royale, Love Exposure and other similarly popular genre films to be …