While his career had its origins and conclusion outside of the decade, the 1970s were the period in which Hal Ashby did his greatest work, with nearly every film he produced during this era being masterpieces in some way, and where nothing he made after 1979 being worth much, residing in relative obscurity that is…

When the decision was made to adapt Modesty Blaise, the critically acclaimed and extremely popular comic series by Peter O’Donnell, which focuses on a career criminal employed by the government to help bring other criminals to justice, Joseph Losey was neither the obvious pick to direct, nor was he the first choice. However, through a…

If you take any random assortment of around a dozen films, it’s more than likely that at least of them will look at the process of filmmaking itself, whether taking a positive or critical stance on Hollywood and its theoretical surroundings. By this point, it’s almost impossible to keep track of such projects, since it…

In the canon of upbeat films about dreadful subjects, Arsenic and Old Lace reigns supreme as one of the very best. A hilariously irreverent dark comedy that centres on the concept of cold-blooded murder, it has stood as one of the most fascinating examples of subversive cinema produced during the Golden Age of Hollywood. The…

It only seems logical that, when exploring the comedies of the past, that we’d naturally be more inclined to start with the classics, the films that have been established as the masterpieces, especially since they tend to represent the absolute best the genre has to offer. However, there are some occasions when the best comedies…

Literature has the power to not only transport readers to entirely different periods and settings, but also to capture history in a way that few other kinds of art can. There is something about putting words on the page and telling a story that can be both incredibly entertaining and profoundly moving. As far as…

At some point, a social issue becomes too large to ignore, and begins to infiltrate into all areas of our daily lives. The race problem in America has reached a fever pitch, with the needless police brutality and sentiment that there is a direct correlation between race and criminal activity leading to a stigma that…

We all remember the story of the bear that accidentally came into contact with a large amount of cocaine that had fallen from an aeroplane – even though this took place in 1985, many of us tend to be aware of it, mostly due to the periodic reminders of this event that proves that reality…

There is a considerably solid canon of filmmakers that were driven by the desire to shock and provoke – some of them did it to push boundaries, others to expose the darker side of humanity, which they perceived as being concealed under layers of socially-mandated conventions that hide certain issues from public views. Perhaps the…

Vampire’s Kiss is a film that is so outrageous and satirical, that merely trying to describe it without resorting to hyperbole seems almost impossible. The film, which was written and directed by Robert Bierman, is the kind of story that both repels and intrigues the viewer, often doing so at the exact same time. The…