It is impossible to deny that the Japanese culture is one that is very much built on artistic expression, which has made it a country that has been the subject of an enormous amount of discussion with those interested in exploring the extent to which art can permeate everyday life. Whether the visual or literary…
Elemental (2023)
It is a disappointing experience to discover that a studio once known for its impeccable, flawless run of films has started to produce work that is far beneath their usual standards – however, when it comes to Pixar, this has been something that has been happening for the better part of a decade. Not every…
Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989)
One of the great ironies we find in the history of cinema is that the film that encapsulates two of the most quintessentially American concepts – the road movie and rock ‘n’ roll – was made by a Finnish director. Naturally, we aren’t just discussing just any film, or any director for that matter, but…
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
If there is one lesson that we have learned through Hollywood’s obsession with sequels, remakes and reboots, it is that if you want something done right, hire the original team to make it, rather than going for whatever burgeoning young talent was popular at that specific moment, since track record will usually trump ambition in…
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
When the subject of “The Lubitsch Touch” is discussed, there are a few elements that immediately spring to mind. Primarily, it is the image of a well-crafted, meaningful film that combines romance and drama, produced during the Golden Age of Hollywood, but feels profoundly modern, perhaps not in its setting, but rather in its refreshing…
Asteroid City (2023)
Based on his output over the past decade, it would appear as if Wes Anderson is officially in the stage of his career where he is given free rein to do whatever takes his fancy, which has resulted in his already polarizing style becoming more obvious and pronounced, which has divided audiences and caused him…
Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)
I’d like to start our discussion with two conflicting opinions. The first is that Dracula: Dead and Loving It (the vampiric spoof by Mel Brooks) is far from the comedic icon’s greatest work, and quite possibly towards the bottom of his formidable career. The second is that this is far better than many have made…
Only the Animals (2019)
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…
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
When it comes to sequels, taking risks doesn’t always have the best results. There are some sequels that improve on the previous film, particularly when following one that wasn’t particularly good to start with. There are those that remain at more or less the same level, and are usually viewed as being part and parcel…
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
John Huston was a director whose career lasted so long and stretched across multiple different generations that even suggesting that he was at some point a newcomer seems quite absurd, since he is undeniably an institution on his own, someone whose work stretched from the classical era to the period of New Hollywood and beyond….
The Postmodern Pelican 