One of the favorite parlor games of movie devotees is trying to discern which films and filmmakers have the greatest impact and influence in any given era. For example, at different times, I’ve heard it argued that the most significant … Continue reading Secretly I been tailing you like a fox that preys on a rabbit
The Tree of Life couldn’t have come from anyone other than Terrence Malick. The primacy of directorial authorship is touted for all sorts of filmmakers, but Malick moves with such a distinct creative rhythm that it’s difficult to imagine anyone … Continue reading Burn bright through the night, two pockets lead the way
Sometimes I secretly wish Werner Herzog narrated all movies. Hell, I’d go see that new Transformers assault if it had running commentary from Herzog. (“And then the being that began as a motorcar undergoes a metamorphosis. He is now a … Continue reading Horses in my dreams, like waves, like the sea
The flattery is sincere, all right. For his first two outings as a feature film director, J.J. Abrams handled established franchise properties: the unwatchable Mission: Impossible III followed by the amazingly engaging reimagining of Star Trek. For his third film, … Continue reading He piloted this song in a plane like that one
Portions of Woody Allen’s 1996 film Everyone Says I Love You take place in Paris, including the scene in the closing moments that finds Allen’s character dancing with his ex-wife, played by Goldie Hawn, along the Seine. What starts as … Continue reading The home of Piaf and Chevalier must have done something right to get passion this way
Kelly Reichardt’s new film Meek’s Cutoff stands in direct opposition to almost every trend and tendency in American film. It is slow where most other films are fast, emotionally contained where other films are effusive and showy, deliberately serious where … Continue reading Your grass it is turning black, there’s no water in your well
The mighty Marvel movie machine marches on with the one with the unveiling of Thor. Based on a comic book character that’s been around for just about as long as the Marvel imprint has, the film toggles back and forth … Continue reading I’m just looking for a faith waiting to be followed
Paul is a road movie, indulging on the tried and true methodology of making the journey taken by characters into something very literal. Two friends played by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are living out one of their longtime dreams … Continue reading It’s been rough and rocky travelin’ but I’m finally standin’ upright on the ground
A dead owl half-buried in snow and squalid apartments and scarily lifeless strip clubs and forbidden, secret love and a beach littered with corpses and smokestacks billowing poison into the sky and bipolar disorder and melted ice cream and a … Continue reading They think the future’s bright as halogen, we know it’s pretty bleak
Take any minute or two of Lesley Manville’s performance in Another Year and strip it of all context. Even in total isolation, it would be immediately recognizable as a character from a Mike Leigh film. She exhibits a haggardness so … Continue reading All this, but no surprises for this year’s girl
Coffee for Two 