The scars of colonialism and continued imperialism are all over The Forgiven, a film with lofty thematic ambitions. Between examining the gap between the westerners who vacation in Morocco and the locals who sell fossils to wealthy visitors and critiquing the frivolity with which these visitors live their lives, The Forgiven has a lot on its mind. This is not uncommon for writer and director John Michael McDonagh, often making challenging yet entertaining films that raise thoughts…
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Watcher 2022
From the outset of director Chloe Okuno‘s Watcher, there is a barrier. Julia (Maika Monroe) is sitting in a taxi, looking out the window as the city of Bucharest reflects on the glass. We are watching her and she is watching us, but there is more than voyeurism at play. Even once the camera moves into the car, the barrier is still there. Instead of being between the audience and Julia, it is between her and the…
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Caged 1950
The 1950s, Pt. III: 5/100
1950 RankedCaged has earned a reputation as the definitive women-in-prison film of the era, a hardened and honest look at life behind bars and the corruption of the prison industry. For modern times, Caged has little revelation to offer, after all it is largely about how the inmates are treated as human scum, the guards are corrupt, a few leaders at the prison are alright, the parole board is on the take, and there…
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Johnny Angel 1945
The 1940s, Pt. II: 37/100
1945 RankedJohnny Angel sparked a revival of George Raft’s acting career, owing to the film being a surprise hit, with this dark noir focusing on Raft’s Captain Angel, a boat captain who just discovered his father’s boat empty. His father had been on a job for Gusty (Marvin Miller), his employer, in Casablanca and was returning to New Orleans when something happened. As Eddie Muller explained on TCM’s Noir Alley, the story’s foundation comes…
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Once Upon a Time in America 1984
Checking in at just under four hours, Once Upon a Time in America takes a long time to say absolutely nothing unique. A gangster film, the film does nothing for the gangster genre that could not be accomplished in a far shorter runtime because oh my God is this thing long. It just takes forever to end and even then, I still had no idea why it took so long. I love gangster films with The Godfather Parts I and…
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