There is one statement I try to avoid making too often, because somehow, it corrupts my status as a serious cinephile – I don’t really like Steven Spielberg. I think he has made some wonderful films, such as Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. However, I do…
Anomalisa (2015)
When most people think of an animated film, they usually think of children’s movies. The terms “animation” and “children” have been somewhat synonymous. Honestly, it isn’t wrong to believe that entirely – the vast majority of animated films are aimed at younger audiences, because children enjoy the colourful characters and quirky designs. However, in a…
Steve Jobs (2015)
Biopics – either you love them or you hate them. I seem to be somewhere in the middle of those two extremes. There is nothing I adore more than a riveting, exciting biographical film about an interesting figure, but there is also very few things I absolutely despise more than a saccharine, meandering biopic about…
Carol (2015)
I recently watched Brooklyn, and I was somewhat disappointed in it. I was hesitant about Carol, a film that shares a lot of themes with Brooklyn, such as the 1950s setting, the story of a girl out of water, finding unexpected love and a job that allows her to grow as a person. The two…
Jodorowsky’s Dune (2013)
I’d discuss my admiration for Alejandro Jodorowsky here, but is there anything really left to say? It seems that there may not be a bigger lover of all things related to Jodorowsky than me. From his energetic passion to his surreal films to his absolutely mesmerizing graphic novels. I have expressed my adoration for him…
Secrets & Lies (1996)
There are very few words that can describe how much I adore Mike Leigh. Not only do I consider him one of the greatest filmmakers working today, I consider him one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, one that matches the likes of Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick. The only other filmmaker that is…
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2015)
Something I love about foreign-language cinema (meaning films from countries other than the USA or United Kingdom) is the fact that it can be so brilliantly strange, bizarre and wonderful, and that it doesn’t need to stick to any conventions to be seen, which is something that keeps many original ideas from being made in…
Mistress America (2015)
In 2013, Noah Baumbach, quite arguably the greatest director of independent comedies working today, teamed up with his girlfriend and fellow independent film veteran Greta Gerwig for Frances Ha, a film that reminded us that independent cinema is a truly unique art form, and one of the most tricky but rewards sub-genres of cinema to…
A Very Murray Christmas (2015)
It’s a tradition at this time of year to watch a different Christmas special. I considered The Star Wars Holiday Season, but I made a grand total of seven minutes into it before considering jumping off a tall building. Instead, I chose to watch the Christmas special that puts one of my favorite performers front…
Best of Enemies (2015)
This year saw a documentary appear in cinemas that told the story of one of the greatest television events of the twentieth century, and the performers who made it such a historical television event. The documentary I am talking about is not Live from New York, the flawed documentary that tried to chronicle the history…
The Postmodern Pelican 