Camille Claudel 1915 is a 3-day portrait of great sculptress Camille Claudel and her life in an institution. A rarity in art history, Claudel found success during her lifetime and was often exhibited alongside male contemporaries.
Deconstructing Harry Written by Woody Allen Directed by Woody Allen USA, 1997 Like many Woody Allen protagonists, Harry Block is neurotic, damaged, and unhappy. Plagued with writer’s block and haunted by a string of failed relationships, Harry is searching for inspiration and meaning in his life. As he faces the fact that his ex-girlfriend is …
So, this is a bit of old news at this point, but the debate or discussion around Spike Lee’s Essential Film list seems to be as relevant as the legitimacy of his Kickstarter campaign. Much has been made of the fact that the list is fairly standard and canonical, in particular how it almost completely …
The Killing of America is an impassioned and emotional showcase of violence in America from the period of the early 1960s into the early 1980s. Resting on the thesis that the society quickly devolved into increasingly acts of senseless violence, the film utilizes rare and disturbing footage of both familiar and unfamiliar events. Rift with a somewhat confused ideology, the film nonetheless packs a punch and suggests where many others haven’t that access to guns are part of the problem, an issue that continues to be debated within American society to this day. Is this little more than a parade of greatest hits for snuff fans or does it reaches deeper, revealing darker truths and realities that we are unwilling or unable to face.
Antisocial is the feature length debut for directing and writing team Cody Calahan and Chad Archibald. In spite of their youthful appearances, they are not new to the Canadian film industry or Fantasia, having produced over ten short and feature length films – including Fantasia fan favourite Monster Brawl which screened at the fest in …
Lucio Fulci’s Massacre Time is playing at Fantasia in conjunction with the Festival du Nouveau Cinema as part of the The Django Project. The series takes a look at the western genre, as appropriated by other cultures, as it blends with irony, excess and pop-art. Though best known for his giallo thrillers, Fulci’s Massacre Time is an exuberant and exciting spaghetti western. Starring Franco Nero in a role obviously evocative of his work in Django, he plays a prospector who must return to his home and reclaim his family’s ranch from a man named Scott and his sadistic son Junior.
The Bling Ring Written and Directed by Sofia Coppola USA, 2013 Her career was born in the excesses of the 1990s and Sofia Coppola’s career trajectory has brought her through one of the worst economic crisis’ in recent history and a period of social seriousness that she seems quite frankly out of step with. In …
What value does fiction have in the interpretation of a historical event? This question can become central to the reception and understanding of historical films and has taken on important resonance in past years in regards to films like Ben Affleck’s Argo or Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty. These films are not documentaries; however they …
Produced by MGM in 1932, Freaks (dir. Tod Browning) was withdrawn upon its initial theatrical release and is one of the few films from the era that remains truly shocking to contemporary audiences. The film features real circus “freaks” and their apparent monstrosity was one of the driving forces of the numerous controversies that plagued …
This week’s UK release of the critically roasted Blood – a new thriller starring Paul Bettany and Stephen Graham (filmed, incidentally, in my home town) and the significantly more well-received Stone Roses documentary Made of Stone directed by Shane Meadows – who is usually known for his rough and realistic portrayals of working-class misery – …
The Kings of Summer is a coming of age film born from the spirit of the American sitcom. Built on the public’s enduring obsession with what it means to be a man, the film undercuts the self-seriousness of this notion through its use of sitcom-branded comedy. The film depicts the story of three teenage boys who are tired of their oppressive parents, so they find an isolated pocket in the forest to build themselves a house where they plan to live off the land.
Post Tenebras Lux (Carlos Reygadas, 2012) The new film from Mexican filmmaker, Carlos Reygadas, Post Tenebras Lux- a latin phrase meaning Light After Darkness, is an experimental family drama, which adopts a narrative flow that does moves between different levels of consciousness, fragmented chronologies and alternating points of view. Perhaps a bit too dense to …
Antiviral Written by Brandon Cronenberg Directed by Brandon Cronenberg Canada, 2012 Whether it is on the level of style, theme or pedigree, Brandon Cronenberg’s new film Antiviral is sure to divide critical and popular reception. Audiences will almost universally fit into two categories: those who walk away inspired and those who will walk away alienated, …
The Possession (2012) Directed by Ole Bornedal Written by Juliet Snowden and Stiles White USA, 2012 The Possession is the newest film in a dominant sub-genre of horror family dramas that seem to be invading our theatres with increasing persistence. Very much on par with recent horror trends, at the center of the film is …
Unsung Gems is a look back and reflection on great motion pictures that often slip under the radar of public consciousness , whether as ignored relics of a previous era, standout efforts overshadowed by competition or circumstance, or simply unseen classics damned by a lack of time in the spotlight. – Road to Perdition Directed …
How do you measure the value of art? Influence, innovation, inspiration… Every ten years since 1952, the London based magazine Sight & Sound has compiled the lists of the best critics and filmmakers in order to compile the ten best “greatest” films of all time. The 2012 edition marks the first time since 1962 that …
Resolution Directed by Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson USA, 2012 An exploration of urban legends, examining our eternal relationship with storytelling, Resolution begins as the story of two friends. Michael, whose life is on the right path, receives a disturbing video of his friend Chris, and decides to go to the backwoods in order to …
Possession (1981) Written and Directed by Andrzej Zulawski France/West Germany, 127 minutes Zulawski’s work can be described as being a part of the cinema of hysteria. His characters exist on the edge of sanity, often in an alternative universe that resembles our own but is fuelled by different rules of conduct. Unreal is a way …
Since Sound on Sight was founded, we have always been one of the biggest fans of the Fantasia International Film Festival. With every year we provide even more coverage, updating daily with new articles, reviews and as many podcasts as humanly possible. This year in collaboration with CUTV, we will also be including video coverage of the …
Since Sound on Sight was founded, we have always been one of the biggest fans of the Fantasia International Film Festival. With every year we provide even more coverage, updating daily with new articles, reviews and as many podcasts as humanly possible. This year in collaboration with CUTV, we will also be including video coverage …
For even the most seasoned festival goer, the Fantasia Film Festival presents a daunting challenge. With over 160 films playing, it is impossible to see everything and compromise is not an option but a necessity. For the cinematic adventurer, however, Fantasia is a gold-mine: bringing to the forefront some of the strangest, smallest and craziest …
Throughout January, SOS writers will be biting the bullet and finally sitting down with a film they feel like bad film buffs for not having seen already. Au Hasard Balthazar Directed by Robert Bresson France, 1966 I would like to begin by apologizing to all of you who I promised that I would watch Chinatown …
Inspired by the recent Sound on Sight radio show on Preston Sturges, I have decided to supplement the work of one of the great comic directors by providing a list of under seen and generally under appreciated comedies from Preston Sturges’ era. Whereas most connoisseurs will be familiar with his work, as well as films …