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CERTIFIED WEIRD: Silent Night is an unbalanced black comedy with little laughs

December 7, 2021

The concept behind Camille Griffin’s holiday black comedy Silent Night had potential, but the tonal balance of the film betrays the comedy elements, melodrama, and warped sentimentality. It sets out to make a Hallmark moment Holiday extravaganza while looking directly into the eye of impending doom. The ensemble piece takes center stage at the end of the world slash Christmas get-together, as the script slowly but surely reveals more damning plot details.  … More CERTIFIED WEIRD: Silent Night is an unbalanced black comedy with little laughs

Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” a fiercely complex character piece

December 7, 2021

Character driven, methodically paced storytelling from Jane Campion. The Power of the Dog can be an empowering journey of inner discovery, but most of the film is spent in a cesspool of toxic masculinity, reaffirming machismo. It’s a muddled and complex rendering of Thomas Savage’s novel, showing these characters as brutish and consciously flawed.
… More Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” a fiercely complex character piece

The 26th Annual Satellite Award Nominations – Belfast, Dune and The Power of the Dog show Strength

December 2, 2021

The 26th annual Satellite Award nominations are here. The internationally based awards body has a decent to obtuse track record of matching up with the Oscars. Chloe Zhao walked away with director and picture last year, but in 2019, Ford V. Ferrari won best Drama. It’s a mixed bag. … More The 26th Annual Satellite Award Nominations – Belfast, Dune and The Power of the Dog show Strength

The Hidden Facade of Joan Crawford’s Private Life in her daughter’s Memoirs, Mommie Dearest

December 2, 2021

Hollywood starlet, raised to believe that success is earned and handled. She was never naive and her business acumen made her a threat to the structure of society. Not only that, she was a powerhouse of an actress and delivered a number of my favorite performances (What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Mildred Pierce, Johnny Guitar) ever. She’s an icon, but her public persona hides a dark, personal secret.
… More The Hidden Facade of Joan Crawford’s Private Life in her daughter’s Memoirs, Mommie Dearest

The Desperation Felt in William Wyler’s The Desperate Hours (1955) is Palpable

December 2, 2021

The frighteningly real experience of William Wyler’s noir-thriller, The Desperate Hours, pins a family with everything to lose against a trio of runaway felons with nothing to lose. The elongated hostage situation is a boiler of nervous energy and the longer the situation gets extended, the less nerve the characters get, making for a volatile situation. It’s an extremely tight narrative structure, a streamline of intensity from the opening moments to the tragic conclusion.
… More The Desperation Felt in William Wyler’s The Desperate Hours (1955) is Palpable

C’mon C’mon, Man. C’mon, C’mon, Man — a beautiful depiction of what adults can mean to a child

December 1, 2021

C’mon C’mon, a film from Mike Mills, presents an empathetic portrayal of a healthy child-adult relationship. It’s a film that thematically and structurally, shows the importance of perspective and seeing through the eyes of others. The Mills screenplay is framed through the profession of Joaquin Phoenix’s character (Johnny), a traveling radio journalist creating a project on the many different perspectives of kids throughout the United States. 
… More C’mon C’mon, Man. C’mon, C’mon, Man — a beautiful depiction of what adults can mean to a child

CERTIFIED WEIRD: The Humans is a self-involved look at the holidays

November 30, 2021

The Humans is supposed to be a multifaceted look at families during the holidays, but transforms into an deeply interpersonal look at individual’s uninvolved in each other’s lives with their own fucked up set of problems. Adapted from a stage play written by director Stephen Karam, the stagey elements of the film allow the narrative to jump from micro story to the next, focusing on characters in different parts of this dilapidated Manhattan apartment. It splashes in some surreal with the Lol Crowley cinematography, mainly the blocking and framing – capturing these characters in bizarre states that aren’t normal. The sprinkled on horror elements give the direction an edge, and the performances lean into the entropy … More CERTIFIED WEIRD: The Humans is a self-involved look at the holidays

Duck You, Sucker (1971) or A Fistful of Dynamite, the Overlooked Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western

November 29, 2021

Duck You, Sucker! (Or A Fistful of Dynamite) means get your head down, a stick of dynamite is about to explode in Sergio Leone’s not as famous spaghetti western classic. In a more traditionally structured and serious narrative, John H. Mallory (James Coburn) plays the
… More Duck You, Sucker (1971) or A Fistful of Dynamite, the Overlooked Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western

The Gotham Awards 2021 and Where to Watch

November 29, 2021

The Gotham Film and Media Awards is the start of the Awards season. The proverbial kick-off event and an excellent way to get festivities started with the best of the independent film movement. Any film with a budget exceeding $35 million is automatically disqualified from contention, meaning many of the front runners in the early Oscar conversation don’t make the cut … More The Gotham Awards 2021 and Where to Watch