7.5
MUBI
Was initially unsure about this one- the pace genuinely is glacial- but by the end I found myself completely engrossed by this world and these characters. What at first appears to be little more than an exercise in minimalism slowly unfurls into a deeply moving story of sadness and devotion, scored through with an acerbic, deadpan wit and even an edge of social critique (in this case relating to the Norwegian welfare and immigration system). There is more…
8
Amazon Prime Video (Rental)
Schrader's directorial debut is a superb dissection of class and racial divides in America, its social critique cut through with a distinct edge of paranoia thriller. It focuses on three working class friends in Detroit who inadvertently come into possession of a notebook which exposes corruption and illegal activities within their union. The spiraling fall-out threatens to ruin the lives of all three. Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto are superb, however the real revelation is…
8
Curzon Home Cinema
Reminded me strongly of two similar recent documentaries covering on-the-ground war reporting: THE WHITE HELMETS and FOR SAMA (both covering the war in Syria). Together, these films (and others like them) form an essential text covering the bewildered, terrified experience of civilians caught in warzones- the deaths of children and babies, the bombing of hospitals, the indiscriminate destruction of homes, and more besides; the similarities between these films say a lot for the depressing universality of…
7
Blu Ray
The ambition here is staggering: a blistering stadium-rock opera featuring monsters and spirits, set in ancient Japan, and which in its first few minutes reverse time-lapses hundreds of years of history into a single shot. The animation is sensational too, bold primary colours, imaginative character designs and graceful, flowing movement. What holds it back for me is the feeling that to get the most out INU-OH, to really understand its themes and significance, one needs to have…
9.5
Blu Ray
Rewatch (2nd viewing)
What does it mean to be human? David Cronenberg's Frankenstein-esque cautionary tale stars Jeff Goldblum as a nerdy scientist who accidentally fuses his DNA with a fly, gradually becoming more and more insectile in nature until he literally falls apart.
My personal favourite Cronenberg film, this has everything: the purest expression of his obsession with the malleability and spongy, liquidy grossness, but also the beauty, of the human body; a brilliant lead performance from…
9.5
Amazon Prime Video (Rental)
* SPOILERS *
A knowing deconstruction of the revenge thriller, as typified in recent years by the John Wick and Taken franchises (amongst many others), Pig tees up a classic genre scenario: the mysterious loner who has something precious taken from him (in this case, an adorable truffle pig named Apple) and goes on a mission to get it back. The filmmakers then go even further into this territory by casting Nicholas Cage (who as…
