Has decency become a sin?” Ibrahima Dieng cries. On his knees, Ibrahima holds out his empty hands in mock offering. The world has stripped him bare, and now, in an ending fitting of Kafka, Ibrahima offers up the scraps. So … Continue reading MANDABI
There’s reality, and then there’s everything else. Cinema exists firmly in the latter: Cameras don’t capture reality; they capture a perspective of it with a defined beginning, middle, and end. Add editing into the mix, and you’ve got something new … Continue reading SYMBIOPSYCHOTAXIPLASM: TAKE ONE
Tall, skinny, blond, and lonely, Connie wants to meet someone and go somewhere. Where really doesn’t matter, and who she doesn’t know yet—maybe someone who looks like James Dean and sings like James Taylor. She’s only 15, so there’s a … Continue reading SMOOTH TALK
Great movies don’t require a signature shot, but it helps when they have one. What would Vertigo be without that dizzying dolly zoom? The Godfather without the door closing on Kay? The Graduate without Benjamin Braddock trapped in the crook of Mrs. Robinson’s leg? They are … Continue reading THE ASCENT
When Girlfriends opened in New York City on Aug. 11, 1978, a newspaper strike kept the movie’s release from a public announcement. So, director Claudia Weill and actors Melanie Mayron and Eli Wallach photocopied handbills and stood on street corners to get … Continue reading GIRLFRIENDS
On this week’s edition of After Image, I chat with Metro Arts’ producer Veronica Straight-Lingo about two World War II dramas: Dara of Jasenovic (now playing in select theaters) and The Ascent (available now on Blu-ray and DVD from The … Continue reading
Not every great movie needs a signature shot, but it helps when you have one: In The Ascent, a 1977 Russian World War II drama newly restored and released from The Criterion Collection, director Larisa Shepitko gives us her signature shot … Continue reading This week in Film — THE ASCENT
On this week’s edition of After Image, I chat with Metro Arts’ producer Veronica Straight-Lingo about One Night in Miami…, now playing on Amazon Prime, Rolling Thunder Revue, available now on Blu-ray and DVD from The Criterion Collection, and about … Continue reading
Martin Scorsese loves movies. That’s evident from his various foundations’ commitment to restoring and preserving the cinematic image. It’s also apparent from the movies he directs, each one loaded with references to masterworks that came before. One of his more … Continue reading This week in Film — ROLLING THUNDER REVUE
