Politics, cinema, and literature can lie, not sport. —Jean-Luc Godard When one considers the history and scope of cinema, rarely do “how-to” instruction videos come to mind. But there they are, hours upon hours of step-by-step techniques recorded for posterity: … Continue reading JOHN MCENROE: IN THE REALM OF PERFECTION (L’EMPIRE DE LA PERFECTION)
Men, the latest from writer/director Alex Garland, opens with unfathomable horror: As a husband falls to his death, he passes by the window of his apartment and momentarily locks eyes with his wife. This is the crucial moment Garland anchors … Continue reading MEN
Famed Polish writer/director Krzysztof Kieślowski already had a handful of feature films and documentaries under his belt when his writing partner, Krzysztof Piesiewicz, gave him the idea: “Someone should make a film about the Ten Commandments. You should do it.” … Continue reading DEKALOG
Billi (Awkwafina) has come home to China. Specifically, Changchun—a city she left at the age of 6 when her father relocated his wife and daughter to the U.S. in search of a better life and more opportunity. That was 25 … Continue reading THE FAREWELL
These days, more and more Americans divide themselves across party lines and political predilections. Yet, few see these divisions as dividing—they see them as unifying: this is my identity, and these are the people who feel the same. Individual identity … Continue reading ORIENTED
In 2012, Missy Franklin—a swimmer from Centennial, Colorado—caught the attention of the Olympic world. The fresh-faced phenom became the first female to qualify for seven Olympic events and ended up collecting one bronze and four gold medals while setting two … Continue reading TOUCH THE WALL
English actor Dirk Bogarde may have lived in the closet, but Italian filmmaker Luchino Visconti did not. Visconti also had the luxury of being born into an aristocratic family. So did German novelist Thomas Mann, but he struggled with his … Continue reading DEATH IN VENICE
Working from Hans Anderson’s The Little Mermaid, the Polish musical The Lure (Córki dancingu—literally, “daughters of the dance club”) tells the tale of two seductive mermaid sisters: Silver (Marta Mazurek) and Golden (Michalina Olszanska), who beckon men to their watery graves with both … Continue reading THE LURE (CÓRKI DANCINGU)
Megan Bloomfield (Natasha Lyonne) is the all-American girl next door. She’s bubbly and perky, lives in the suburbs with her parents, and is dating Jared (Brandt Wille), the high school football star. He’s a John Travolta look-a-like with the hair … Continue reading BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER
Michael J. Cinema 
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