While I have never claimed to be experienced enough to consider myself desensitized to brutal cinema, once you have seen some of the more controversial works that have been produced over the years (referring specifically to those films that are still made with some artistic integrity and refuse to cross a line), it takes quite…

One of the most common tropes we find in much of contemporary media is the odd couple scenario, in which two individuals who are diametrically opposed find themselves in a situation where they have to find some way to get along, and in the process forge an unlikely friendship that neither of them imagined was…

They say that history is written by the victors and that those who lose usually fade into obscurity. J. Robert Oppenheimer is one of the rare historical figures that can be considered both a hero and a villain, a victor and loser in equal measure, and as evidenced by his famous statement “I am become…

“While we may not have had the life we thought we would have had when we arrived, we loved it here” Life is full of surprises – it is not a linear journey, but rather one with several twists and turns, most of which take us to places (whether physically or emotionally) that we never…

Before he was one of the most celebrated comedians of his generation (before facing controversy, the details of which we will not be discussing here by basis of looking at the art above the artist himself – but kindly don’t equate this positive review with any kind of support or sympathy for his actions), Louis…

As the classic adage goes, imitation is the greatest form of flattery, and we’ve seen numerous filmmakers build their careers by mimicking the style of their artistic heroes, some of which have gone on to be highly influential in their own right, and for good reason. One such example is Olivier Assayas, who is objectively…

If there was ever an artist who embodied everything about the counterculture movement, it would undeniably be the great Salvador Dalí, who essentially helped define what it meant to be a revolutionary artist, choosing to stand out decades before we started to see the virtue of refusing to fit into society’s pre-ordained categories. Many have…

Paul Schrader doesn’t merely make films, he pushes boundaries. Very few screenwriters and film directors have been able to build such solid careers from controversy than him, with his work in the industry, which extends back over half a century, defining him as one of the most interesting voices, in an era where New Hollywood…

Dominik Moll may have only made a small handful of films over the course of his three-decade career (having directed just over half a dozen films over the past thirty years), but it seems entirely appropriate, considering he is one of the most intense filmmakers working at the present moment. His films are rough, harrowing…

There have rarely been any artists whose work is simultaneously so distinctive yet entirely impossible to define than Pedro Almodóvar, which is perhaps why he is unquestionably one of the finest filmmakers of his generation. He tells stories that are rich and vibrant in their humanity, but navigate challenging socio-cultural concepts that draw on both…