Memory is a tricky concept – the events of the past tend to take on more grotesque shapes when it comes to being relayed, especially as time has gone on and we start to subconsciously fashion them to be reminiscent of our own idealistic agenda. For a film that spends roughly half of its already…
The Music Man (1962)
The Music Man was made at a time when we still had films that felt like genuine events. Not to disparage the modern state of the industry (which is still producing films of an exceptional quality regularly), but we’ve gone past the point where standalone films could be considered major moments in cultural history. Much…
Spiderhead (2022)
Any film that prominently uses Thomas Dolby’s new wave masterpiece “She Blinded Me with Science” is automatically going to be considered worthwhile, even if the general consensus behind it is that it represents the kind of misguided attempt at an intelligent blockbuster that we often see coming in the wake of major franchises and their…
The Red House (1947)
Nothing is quite what it seems in the world of The Red House, the fascinating film by Delmer Daves that combines many different genres in its pursuit of some deeper meaning. Whether or not it finds it is another matter entirely, especially when it becomes increasingly clear that something is amiss with the world in…
A Love Song (2022)
When it comes to the concept of love, has there ever been something so universally acknowledged, but yet singularly impossible to define in clear terms? Everyone from existential philosophers to those in the arts has dedicated a large portion of their time to unpacking the phenomenon that is love, particularly the act of falling for…
The Eagle with Two Heads (1948)
Jean Cocteau was an artist whose name immediately brings one of two projects to mind – we immediately associate him with either the gorgeous 1945 version of Beauty and the Beast (the finest version of that story told until Angela Carter reconfigured it many decades later), or his Orphic Trilogy (consisting of Orpheus, The Blood…
Uptown Saturday Night (1974)
It is necessary to start this review with a disclaimer. Unfortunately, one of the reasons behind Uptown Saturday Night being relatively under-discussed in recent years has to do with the fact that this is a buddy comedy, in which one half of the central duo is played by someone who has deservedly fallen out of…
Dead for a Dollar (2022)
One simply cannot discuss New Hollywood without talking about Walter Hill. A filmmaker whose career as a director and writer stretches back to the very beginning of the movement that helped the industry develop into the ambitious cultural utopia it is seen as today, his legacy is undeniable, even if his films tend to vary…
Leap of Faith (1992)
Faith is a fascinating concept – few ideas have divided the population for centuries more than religious belief, especially the kind of blind faith that many religions are impelled to portray, which has led to many cynical conversations about how one can believe in something that is not tangible. However, it has also created a…
Blonde (2022)
It is an unimpeachable fact that Marilyn Monroe remains one of the most recognizable, iconic figures of 20th-century culture, a face that has adorned every conceivable kind of media across nearly every country around the world. Yet, did we ever truly know who she was? Her legacy is one that is unfortunately defined by the…
The Postmodern Pelican 