Holy shit. How have I missed out on this?
Scorsese’s After Hours hinges on the very idea of filmmaking. It doesn’t give the slightest crap about teaching the audience a lesson or sending them off with some arbitrary moral plight — it just is. Paraphrasing Scorsese’s own words; the film is an exercise in style. A series of coincidences that all happen upon a single man in one night. These coincidences - in almost perfect synchronicity - are what drive…
The Grand Budapest Hotel is an illusion, but not a lie. It conjures poignancy and tragedy in a fabricated realm that is equally as grounded as it is removed from reality. The film is packed with spectacle, yet it carries a unique stillness that makes the viewing experience akin to that of staring into a zoetrope image of a snow globe. Every incident that shakes this aforementioned stillness serves to subject this conjured world to tensions that exist purely outside…
Roy Scheider as Joe Gideon is THAT guy
A rich, two-hour plunge into a choreographer's hectic life, All That Jazz showcases a power show with no sign of slowing down. I’m not the biggest fan of musicals or music-centered films so I admit to being a bit hesitant going into this. But its portrayal of show business's inner workings -- dance rehearsals, film editing, business dealings -- is totally absorbing. An oh-so-young John Lithgow's appearance as a director who might…
11 against 1
Oh what a brilliant idea for a film! 12 guys with differing perspectives, backgrounds and understanding try to piece together a court case and decide on a final verdict. The audience has not heard any previous accounts of what was presented as evidence or what any of the witnesses had to say. We’re told bits and pieces as they argue their way to a unanimous decision. Excellent performances all around with each player providing a necessary piece to the puzzle. Short and sweet, but oh so powerful. An absolute all-timer and one of the best.
I’ve never felt as immersed as when I stood in the bathroom stall at my local cinema and released the real Way of Water after 3 hours of holding it in
“Because you let me.”
That line has ingrained itself into my mind. We, as well as the characters, stick around and try to politely accept the increasingly banal and unhinged behaviors of these hosts. Despite witnessing red flag after red flag, the irrational, human need to not blow things out of proportion or come across as rude, makes us suffer through this progressively unruly hellscape of a vacation. Director Christian Tafdrup doesn’t reward our patience. Instead, he snuffs out the…
