27, he/him. Spectacularly awkward gay pop culture nerd with Asperger's. Would be writer/filmmaker but too lazy and/or self-conscious.
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Blue Hawaii 1961
One of my most anticipated Elvis films for a couple reasons. One, it features probably my favourite of his songs, 'Can't Help Falling In Love'. A simple choice I know but I find it so swoony and lovely. Two, it's the forerunner of the 60s beach party movies, a delightfully stupid and homoerotic genre. Three, look at the poster. Those are some short shorts y'all.
Naturally, it's a disappointment. Elvis' character is a massive dick. The first thing we see…
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Cloak and Dagger 1946
The second anti-Nazi feature of the Cinematheque's Fritz Lang double was this, an unexpected gem of a film. I haven't seen much Gary Cooper but there's something about him I find really charming. But it's the film's second half that I really loved. Lili Palmer's Gina is such a great character. She's initially seen as tough, almost callous. But it hides a world of inner pain. Life during wartime is hard and we get hints that it was especially hard…
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Coded Bias 2020
Coded Bias might be the most timely and relevant film I see at MIFF2020 but I found the execution hamfisted and uncinematic. Makes sweeping generalisations with little evidence to back it up and it's moments of visual invention are cringeworthy (the female HAL riff is especially awful). Charismatic interview subjects, especially Buolamwini, but they deserve better than this film. I think my big problem is it eventually becomes about more than bias in software and algorithms (which is incredibly interesting,…
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What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? 2021
Gonna be honest, I kept nodding off during What Do We See When We Look At The Sky. It's not a boring film, but one filled with gentle humanity and calm, very soothing. Rugged up in blankets, it was too easy to let sleep overtake me, waking up somehow made this even more fragmentary and beautiful. Early on, we are told to close our eyes and a simple magic trick occurs. The rest feels like a dream. That cake sequence is gorgeous. Also, film grain!!
