I sometimes wonder if Gordon Parks knew he was making film history with Shaft. From the very first moments of the film, where Isaac Hayes’ soothingly seductive voice regales the legend of John Shaft, as we see the titular character walk through Time’s Square, it is clear that something very special is happening. This is…
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
The Walt Disney Company found itself in quite a predicament around the time Bedknobs and Broomsticks went into production – they had seen the overwhelming success of Mary Poppins, and how this brand of heartfelt storytelling that blended the real world with live-action was captivating to all viewers, young and old alike. In many ways,…
Willard (1971)
Willard Stiles (Bruce Davison) is a reserved young man who works as a clerk for the company his now-deceased father founded, which has been taken over by Martin (Ernest Borgnine), a barbaric businessman who constantly taunts Willard and forces him into submission regularly, as a way of reminding him that he’s nothing more than a…
Death in Venice (1971)
Death in Venice is an anomaly of a film. It is amongst the most beautiful films ever made, as well as one of the most profoundly difficult I’ve ever experienced. Luchino Visconti, to his credit, always made films that were visually sumptuous and narratively complex, and while they could sometimes be extravagant, they were rarely…
The Laundromat (2019)
There are many words that you can use to describe The Laundromat. You could call it a disaster, a misguided attempt at intelligent satire or just a trainwreck in general. You could write extensive essays on how this film tries so hard with nothing less than diminishing returns. However, the best way to describe this…
My Name Is Julia Ross (1945)
If someone were to make a film that occurs at the precise intersection between film noir and gothic horror, it would probably look very much like Joseph H. Lewis’ masterful mystery, My Name Is Julia Ross. A tight and economical thriller that features a bevy of remarkable performances, a very simple story that is executed…
Wounds (2019)
Will (Armie Hammer) is a bartender at a dive bar somewhere in New Orleans. His job is simple but he enjoys the work – serving the same set of regulars that become like a family always seemed to appeal to him, and he seemed to lack broader ambitions, with the opposite being true for his…
Don’t Think Twice (2016)
Independent comedies normally tend to be very much hit-and-miss, but they normally err towards being relatively entertaining, even when they aren’t all that original. As someone who rarely encounters a quirky comedy I didn’t like, it takes a lot for me to be disappointed with a film that tries to deviate from mainstream comedy –…
The Art of Self-Defense (2019)
Every now and then, someone manages to capture the zeitgeist just long enough in a cinematic form to create something unique and entirely original, yet still very reflective of not only the society we live in but also the ideals that define it. Riley Stearns, in his sophomore feature film, takes on a very strange…
Minnie and Moskowitz (1971)
Minnie Moore (Gena Rowlands) is a mild-mannered museum curator who suffers from intense social anxiety and constantly refuses to put herself out in the world (especially after her lover decided to end their relationship), seeing life as something that has been sold to everyone as being far more easy than it actually is. Seymour Moskowitz…
The Postmodern Pelican 