I recently read James Joyce’s wonderful, semi-autobiographical debut novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, perhaps the finest example of a bildungsroman published in the twentieth century. It is a coming-of-age story, and because it is about the evolution of a young man into an artist, tracking him throughout his childhood as…
Category: comedy
Win It All (2017)
Independent cinema rules modern filmmaking, let’s be perfectly honest. The very definition of independent cinema just won Best Picture, and we are living in a world where independent cinema is the trendiest and most sought-after movement. American indie films, more than anything else, have forged a special place in modern cinema, to the point where…
Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)
I have to say that Mike Leigh is quite possibly the best filmmaker Britain has ever produced – he is responsible for some of the most incredible films ever made, including Naked, one of my all-time favorite movies. I have yet to encounter a Mike Leigh film I didn’t absolutely adore, because each and every…
The Birdcage (1996)
Confession time – The Birdcage is my favourite film or at least one of them. I know for a cinephile, it is preferable to say something like The Godfather, Citizen Kane or Star Wars is your favourite film, yet The Birdcage is ranked along with The Blues Brothers, Harold and Maude and Naked as my ultimate favourite films –…
Freebie and the Bean (1974)
There is a little obscure film that was released in 1974 known as Freebie and the Bean. Stanley Kubrick named it his favorite film of 1974. Peter O’Toole was so fond of the film he instantly accepted the offer to star in director Richard Rush’s next film, The Stunt Man. It isn’t difficult to see…
It Happened One Night (1934)
I have to make a confession – despite being quite an aficionado of comedy films, I had never seen It Happened One Night, arguably one of the greatest comedy films ever made. Now that I finally took the plunge and watched it, not only did I think it was wonderful and absolutely adored it, but…
20th Century Women (2016)
Mike Mills is one of the more fascinating independent filmmakers working today, and I base this on only three films, which are also the only three narrative films he has made. Many know him from his 2011 comedy-drama, Beginners, that brought out an absolutely exquisite performance from the legendary Christopher Plummer. However, I first took…
Toni Erdmann (2016)
Let me be blunt and straightforward – Toni Erdmann is a masterpiece. It is arguably one of the best films of the year (and perhaps even the very best). Not only is it one of the most wonderful films of 2016, it is one of the most brilliant comedy films ever made. I was taken…
The Edge of Seventeen (2016)
The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles. These films have a few things in common – they are all directed by John Hughes, they were all nostalgic classics of 1980s cinema, and they are all centered around high school. They also have something else in common – they…
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
In 2014, Taika Waititi, a New Zealand comedian and filmmaker, made a film that I consider one of the very best of the twenty-first century, the soon-to-be iconic cult classic horror comedy What We Do in the Shadows. The success of that film led to him being selected as the director of the upcoming Thor:…
The Postmodern Pelican 