Breaking from tradition was not always Alfred Hitchcock’s speciality, particularly in the subversive little quirks that defined his films. Regardless of how strange and bewildering his stories were, all of his films were distinctly his own. This required director himself to appear before the start of The Wrong Man, speaking directly to the audience as…
In the Heights (2021)
It’s difficult to imagine a time before Lin-Manuel Miranda. In the last decade, he has soared to worldwide acclaim, mainly due to the astronomical success of Hamilton, his biographical account of the life and times (and eventual death) of founding father Alexander Hamilton, all told through an urban kind of musicality that became a worldwide…
The Women (1939)
“There’s a name for you ladies, but it isn’t used in high society…outside of a kennel.” The sheer amount of individuals I’ve encountered over the years that claim to have been radicalized by George Cukor’s The Women is absolutely staggering, but far from surprising. In his capacity as one of Hollywood’s most lovable eccentrics, Cukor…
Hidden Away (2021)
If you have never heard the name Antonio Ligabue, you are not alone. Despite being an incredibly gifted artist whose talents seemingly knew no bounds, his life was notoriously plagued with personal problems, with his physical ailments preventing him from leading a functional life in pre-war Italy, and his mental disorders being the cause of…
This Gun for Hire (1942)
This Gun for Hire isn’t a particularly great film, but it certainly knows exactly what it needs to be. As a film noir, it is relatively conventional – a solid thriller with an abundance of twists and turns, and a bunch of charismatic individuals peppered throughout it. Frank Tuttle did well in adapting the novel…
French Exit (2021)
There is something so peculiar about French Exit, a quality that entices the viewer as much as it repulses us. Perhaps it’s the grotesque portrayal of these characters, who we should thoroughly abhor, but simply can’t bring ourselves to even vaguely hate, since simmering beneath their hedonist bourgeois existence are very real individuals with genuine…
The Last Days of Disco (1998)
1998 was a surprisingly solid year for Studio 54, the notorious New York City nightclub known for its exclusive clientele, and for being a shining beacon of the disco era before its initial closure in 1980. Nearly two decades later, two films were produced that were intent on capturing the spirit and energy of the…
Bo Burnham: Inside (2021)
Like most of the world, my first encounter with Bo Burnham was through his comedy specials, where he was essentially just a charming young comedian in his early twenties, playing the keyboard and reciting a variety of peculiar songs, interspersed with hilarious anecdotes that fit his particular brand of humour. These very very funny, and…
The Rocket from Calabuch (1956)
Professor George Hamilton (Edmund Gwenn) is a profoundly gifted scientist who has been working tirelessly with the American government to produce new technological innovations that will help push them further on the global scale. However, he is upset and chagrined to realize that his work is being used to develop weapons of mass destruction. Not…
Beasts Clawing at Straws (2020)
A faux-Gucci bag filled with money, half a dozen eccentric characters, an abundance of violence and the good sense to weave it all together are the essential components of Beasts Clawing at Straws (Korean: 지푸라기라도 잡고 싶은 짐승들), the deliriously funny and perverted dark comedy by South Korean filmmaker Kim Yong-hoon, who crafted one of…
The Postmodern Pelican 