“Paranoia’s the garlic in life’s kitchen, right: you can never have too much” This humorous but ominous sentiment appears in Thomas Pynchon’s novel, Bleeding Edge. Considering how defiant Pynchon’s work is to the screen (to date, only having a single official adaptation, the brilliant Inherent Vice in 2014, although some may argue that Alex Ross…
Author: The Postmodern Pelican
Anguish (1987)
I feel like horror may be the most underappreciated genre – not that it isn’t popular (other than comedy and the occasional action blockbuster, there are few genres that are as enduring as horror), but rather that it is too often written off as merely being “scary movies”, and nothing more than just the folly…
Where Is Kyra? (2018)
I appreciate fearlessness in the arts. I genuinely admire those who can take daring, bold moves in creating something uncomfortable, polarizing but ultimately important, as it takes a lot of courage to make something that doesn’t always fit what is normally presented as great, popular art. Two artists I have been appreciating today are filmmaker…
Flower (2018)
On first glance, there is nothing particularly original about Flower – it just seems to be another independent comedy-drama with a quirky teenager as the lead, making her way through a hostile world, encountering challenges and overcoming them with a blend of plucky courage high-spirited humor. Flower doesn’t contribute anything innovative to the landscape of…
Polyester (1981)
I love cinematic iconoclasts, and there have been few filmmakers that I admirer more in this regard than John Waters, whose unhinged audacity has made him a controversial figure, as well as someone I am deeply in admiration of. From the sheer unhinged insanity of Pink Flamingos to the enduring brilliance of Hairspray, Waters has…
Jungle Fever (1991)
I first came into contact with Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever a few years ago, when a course I was doing used a famous scene from the film as an example of contemporary discourses surrounding identity, and I was immediately transfixed, even by only this one moment from the film. I have never hidden the fact…
The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011)
Before he made one of the year’s most terrifying films, Hereditary, Ari Aster was honing his craft in short-form filmmaking, crafting smaller films that may not have much in terms of duration, but certainly do have some interesting ideas. I decided to explore some of Aster’s short films in an attempt to decipher the complex…
Game Night (2018)
Here’s something I’ve learned: never have exceedingly high expectations for a film, but also don’t underestimate the effectiveness of a well-made film either. This lesson has been learned through countless disappointments and pleasant surprises, and I can say that recently, I have added another film to one of these categories. I was not expecting too…
Madame Hyde (2018)
I remember once discussing with a friend the fact that there is virtually no way to make an original adaptation of Hamlet that hasn’t been done before, as it seems the core of the story has pervaded the artistic landscape in a way that is almost indelible, inspiring countless works that derive something from the…
Drowning by Numbers (1988)
That was…something. I cannot recall ever having seen a film quite like Drowning by Numbers, a subversive, sometimes perverse comedy from only the most unconventionally brilliant of auteurs, Peter Greenaway, one of the true cinematic anarchists, who possesses almost chaotically towering talents, as evident by this very odd film that is wholly unapologetic in its…
