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"Finally, a [Guy] Maddin film that fully incorporates the homely comic-pathos of his essays and movie reviews," writes Max Goldberg in the San Francisco Bay Guardian. "In My Winnipeg, the Canuck filmmaker's punch-drunk dissolves and superimpositions aren't just cinematographic cake-frosting; they're visual portents and analogues of his seasick crawl through the past." With Brand Upon the Brain! out on DVD today (from Criterion, no less) and My Winnipeg still winding its way through US theaters, Brian Darr talks with Maddin about his hometown, aural landscapes, his library of 16mm prints, George Kuchar and that marvelous "dupey look." Read Full Article >> |
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In This Dispatch:
- What's New: The Wire 5, John Gissing, and more.
- What We're Watching: Joy House, Trapped Ashes, Punk's Not Dead.
- Explore: Olivia Thirlby; Lee Kang-Sheng.
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HBO's terrific, sprawling crime drama played like a great novel and that novel came to an end with its fifth and final season. Here the show turned its attention to the media, and, noted Newsday, ""despite occasionally expressing [creator David] Simon's concerns about journalism too pedantically, The Wire continues to deserve its accolades as the most remarkable drama series in television history." Adds TV Guide's Matt Roush: " HBO's brilliant and bleak The Wire may have saved the best for last." |
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A real sleeper, is this Mike Binder farce, which deserved a wider release but was buried in the wake of 9/11." Unlike Binder's more recent, mature works, Gissing revels in the humor of the uncomfortable, setting its comic tone high and going for slapstick and crudities whenever possible," wrote Jeffrey Anderson. "However, in the midst of all this running around Binder finds a lulling tone, thanks mainly to the quality of the performances." That cast includes Binder, Alan Rickman and Janeane Garofalo. "A very funny film, sometimes uproariously so, but it's also low-key and measured," adds Variety. |
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History has a lot to do with the special appeal of Joy House (titled "Les Felins" in France): the history of its director Réne Clément, of filmmaking at this particular time (1964), and even the history of one of its stars ( Lola Albright). Clément will probably always--and rightly--be remembered for two of his films: the quiet, elegant and moving WWII drama about children, Forbidden Games (from 1952; nominated for Best Foreign Film, winner of the NY Film Critics Circle award, as well as the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival) and Purple Noon, a huge international hit that helped put Alain Delon on the movie star map. Clément made other notable films, but... read the review >> |
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After several recent, failed attempts (like American Hardcore), filmmaker Susan Dynner finally turns in the punk music documentary we all deserve, and one that punks can finally relate to. Rather than dwelling on the history of punk and choosing a list of bands to highlight, in Punk's Not Dead Dynner packs in an astonishing amount of material; she covers the movement's history in the film's first 30 minutes... read review >> |
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"When Juno exploded into the pop culture in 2007, it catapulted a young actress named Olivia Thirlby from the indie world's best kept secret into an overnight success," notes Sean Axmaker, introducing his interview with Thirlby. "Her performances in the ensemble drama Snow Angels and the coming-of-age dramedy The Wackness are enlivened by the same spunk and warm glow that made Juno crackle, but the dimensions are shaded in ways that dramatically differentiate these characters from the happy-go-lucky Leah." Thirlby's first feature, The Secret, is now out on DVD. Read article >>
Also:
Michael Guillén asks Lee Kang-sheng, primarily know for his work in front of Tsai Ming-liang's camera, about how much his film Help Me Eros (now out on DVD) is based on his own life. Read article >> |
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Olympic Fever
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