Wings of Desire starts with a man jotting down the story of a universal child who didn’t know it was a child. Titles come up as if they were scratched up on a blackboard. An eye looks up into the sky and the camera fades into a slowly moving aerial shot from above the tenements of Berlin. An angel with fading wings…
There are a few constants in Guillermo del Toro films: beautiful set and costume designs, stunning cinematography and colorful characters. There is no denying that the set and costume design in Crimson Peak is breath-taking but unfortunately those are the high points that come from this film. Good news for those that love a good costume drama, bad…
The second and only other animated feature that screened in Cannes in an out-of-competition slot besides Inside Out was the first ever animated adaptation of one of the most beloved children’s books directed by Mark Osborne: The Little Prince. The timeless story by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry about an aviator who meets a small prince and learns about his…
I’m going to go out a limb here and say that most of us don’t know a thing about Viking culture. Our understanding of the Vikings, at least pre-History’s Vikings, consisted of bearded guys with horned helmets. They like boats and violence, or something like that. Vikings are a…
Ryan Gosling’s debut feature Lost River shows promise, ambition, and a set of keen ideas which the potential is not fully realized on screen. Though the film has been critically dismissed as a failed attempt at art-house cinema, there is much to be admired in Lost River, particularly Gosling’s adept stylistic impulses. The atmosphere in which he captures sadness, loneliness and emptiness is both fascinating and haunting, sure to leave you hypnotized long after the film’s …
The internet is a great thing for movies. It provides this avenue for a multitude of voices to not only proclaim their love for film but to also dig into its deeper meanings and implications. But with the good comes the bad and the age of the cinematic surprise is waning. Not…
It has been several days since I saw Der Samurai. While this time of reflection has allowed me to grow to appreciate just what the film tries to do and actually accomplishes, one fact remains patently unchanged. I have no idea what was real, nightmare, or ultimately what this movie…
A few years back on a trip to Disney World I remember sitting down for the Michael Jackson 3D film Captain EO. The strange mixture of space opera, muppets, and music all under the confused direction of Francis Ford Coppola reminded me of Jackson’s penchant for lengthy music…
Everything Ghibli takes the form of a traditional Japanese fairytale in Isao Takahata’s new feature. Dazzling audiences with sumptuous visuals and enchanting fantasy, it’s all Studio Ghibli has owed as its global success to in a nutshell. Viewers of all ages will be drawn in by the stunning animation styles and unique way of storytelling, but as always there’s plenty more under the surface for those more discerning …
There’s something about The Wachowski’s films that I’ve never liked. After coming home after a late screening of their most recent bloated sci-fi epic Jupiter Ascending, I put on The Matrix just to try and remind myself what I don’t like about their pictures. I’ve never been a huge fan of The Matrix or its sequels (at …