Of all the films I've logged on Letterboxd since registering, the acclaimed film I've been most cold on has been Agnes Varda's Vagabond. Yeah, I know, boo hiss. A degree of imposter syndrome necessitates that I consider the possibility I am simply wrong, a dumb rube who didn't get it. After some self-reflection, though, I feel a little more able to say what it is that bothered me, because Wanda tells what I'd argue is a very similar story about…

I have seen this probably 10 or 15 times in my life and always thought Orson Welles was the narrator. Oddly, it looks like Welles did do The Tell-Tale Heart on radio, but not in film. Still, it's a banger. Very creative and dark imagery, the first-person camera stuff is quite inventive. The terrifying facial designs really give you a sense that the protagonist is neurotic or schizoid, just, someone who sees evil and danger everywhere in the world and…

I don't know if I've ever seen a whodunnit murder mystery that I don't enjoy, and the absolute worst that can happen is if you don't enjoy this one, turn it off and move on with your long day of watching a full season of Dr. Seuss Baking Challenge. Brushing past the need to declare whether something is "good" or not, we can kick the tires a little more.

Some of the more critical takes I've seen on the film…

The core romance of the film is quite compelling on its own, but I think it is elevated by the choice to set the film as an epistolary from lead character Laura to her husband Fred. If Laura didn't have a love for Fred as well, she wouldn't feel the need to share with him what had occurred to her. If he was a jerk or a poor father there'd be no tension, we'd just encourage the affair -- Before…