For about as long as we’ve been exploring social and cultural dynamics on screen, there have been instances where someone has an idea to subvert expectations and look at a subject from a very different perspective. One of the most common areas in which we find this happening is in works that propose alternative realities,…
Category: comedy
If I Was Honest (1942)
While his name may be somewhat obscure to some, Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia is a vitally important figure in the history of Italian cinema, specifically if we are looking at a specific era in the nation’s artistic output. One of its most cherished figures in terms of comedy, Bragaglia was a fascinating individual, since his career…
The Meddler (2016)
Parenthood is the greatest gift any of us could be afforded – whether we look at it from the perspective of the parent or the child, the relationship that is formed from birth is always worth exploring, especially when it comes to understanding the iron-clad bond that develops over time. However, there comes a time…
The Wackness (2008)
There was a time when Jonathan Levine was one of the most exciting young directors working in the business – his ability to take on any project across multiple genres and infuse them with a signature style proved that he was one of the most intriguing artists at the time, being the perfect combination of…
My Favorite Brunette (1947)
Film noir is a genre in which the precise parameters are often difficult to discern, but which we can generally agree consists of a few key components that persist throughout, particularly when it comes to the earlier works that defined the genre and essentially laid its foundation. This has allowed many tributes and imitations, with…
Magic in the Moonlight (2014)
Falling in love with someone unexpectedly can already be quite a challenge, and it only becomes more excruciatingly difficult when the person who grows into the object of your affections proves to have manufactured the entire situation as part of some scheme to bamboozle and bewilder. This is the core narrative foundation of Magic in…
I’ll Do Anything (1994)
By the time it reached the mid-1990s, James L. Brooks was in a good place in Hollywood – he had directed some of the most notable films of the 1980s in the form of Terms of Endearment and Broadcast News, had radical successes with shows such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Simpsons…
Let’s Get Lost (2022)
Who of us haven’t had the fantasy of just standing up, abandoning whatever work or scholarly pursuit we have been forced into following in order to feel like a valuable member of society, and simply walking away into the distance, escaping the everyday hassle that comes with modern life? For the main character in Let’s…
Preschool (2026)
As any parent will say, there is no limit on how far they will go to give their child a good future, even if it means putting themselves in considerable emotional, physical or financial strain. Every parent wants their offspring to have a better life than them, which is one of those rare universal experiences…
53 Sundays (2026)
There are a few universal themes that propel the majority of art, and very few are quite as resonant as that of family, for the sole reason that we can often find other very common themes (such as love, death and companionship) reflected in these stories, but very rarely the inverse. No matter the configuration…
The Postmodern Pelican 