Category: quickies
-
Quickies, Vol. XXXI
The Double Life of Véronique (1991, dir. Krzysztof Kieslowski) – A film that continues to challenge and provoke. Struck this time around by the very immanent nature of Kieslowski’s transcendence. Zizek thinks Kieslowski finds “God” a cosmic sadist (to use C.S. Lewis’ term), a rather mean child who toys with his creation for his own…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXX
The Stranger (1946, dir. Orson Welles) – Deserves more space, obviously. Suffice it to say, Welles’ camera rewards the viewer’s careful attention. Every movement is so deliberate, and the long takes don’t draw attention to themselves as a result of competence in front of and behind the lens. This would be great for a study…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXIX: Fantasies
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (dir. Steven Spielberg, 1977) – At this point, Spielberg hadn’t quite mastered his balance between grand scope and human interest; it’s overly big with not enough emphasis on the small. It’s good and well to offer a regular joe as your main protagonist, but don’t dwarf him too much.…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXVII: Bromances, sort of
Pirate Radio (dir. Richard Curtis, 2009) – As movies go, bad. But, it’s another example of the mythologizing of the 60s, as seen in other rock ‘n roll period films like Almost Famous and Taking Woodstock. Like those, this one centers on a male youth who’s a fish-out-of-water, an audience stand-in that helps us relate…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXVI
The Red Shoes (dir. Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1948) – This was awhile ago, but it begs mentioning. A beautiful, nearly sublime film that only early Technicolor could produce. Films about art that still maintain a concern for the inner political machinations and ramifications of art demand attention. They don’t pretend to transcend, and…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXIV
The War Wagon (dir. Burt Kennedy, 1967) – This is really all formula, all textbook Western – for its era, anyway. John Wayne is a slightly less upstanding character this time around (but there were hints of that even in The Searchers, weren’t there? Wayne and Kirk Douglas certainly make a fine pair, although one…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXIII: In which Tony Curtis goes downhill
Sex and the Single Girl (dir. Richard Quine, 1964) – A Tony Curtis marathon was obviously in order, following the old fella’s death recently at the ripe old age of 85. (Held off on Some Like It Hot for now on account of a relatively recent viewing.) This one is, well, very sexy indeed. One…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXII
Duplicity (dir. Tony Gilroy, 2009) – Refreshing and helpful to see this one for the first time since the big screen. What stands out now is how it turns on its head the traditional caper movie, something that Gilroy was probably only too glad to do after penning the Bourne stuff. So what this amounts…
-
Quickies, Vol. XXI
Une Femme Mariée (dir. Jean-Luc Godard, 1964) – Have read it said that this one empowers women, but that’s about the most superficial, narrative-prejudicial sort of reading one can imagine. Do not the first umpteen shots in the film so fracture the female body that the rest of the film can only be seen through…
-
Quickies, Vol. XIX
Bonnie and Clyde (dir. Arthur Penn, 1967) – It’s got New Hollywood written all over it, and it’s affected so much that’s come after it. Still, it contains plenty of echoes to all that is old and non-Hollywood, like Battleship Potemkin, e.g. Hard not to think of Eisenstein’s peasant woman on the steps getting shot…
Precious Bodily Fluids 