THE UNKNOWN KNOWN
Corporate Corruption, Documentary, FOUR STARS, Politics, Propaganda, Reviews Blog, True Crime, Video Essay, War
“The Unknown Known” is a valuable window inside the warped mind of an irrational sociopath who, like those around him…
War
GERMANY YEAR ZERO — THE CRITERION COLLECTION
Capsules Blog, Classic Cinema, Criterion Collection, FIVE STARS, Italian Neo-Realism, Video Essay, War
Hailed by François Truffaut as “the father of the French New Wave,” Roberto Rossellini’s cinematic influence grew out of the…
LONE SURVIVOR
“Lone Survivor” is a grueling movie that tips its pro-war hand in the liberties it takes with the facts surrounding…
COME AND SEE — THE CRITERION COLLECTION
One of the most emotionally challenging and brilliant films of all time, Stalingrad-born Elem Klimov’s “Come and See” (1985) is…
WHITE HOUSE DOWN
Action/Drama, Agitprop, Dystopia, ONE STAR, Political Thriller, Propaganda, Reviews Blog, War, War Fantasy
Copycat redundancies to the recent “Olympus Has Fallen” aside, “White House Down” is an unintentionally laughable action movie that wallows…
WORLD WAR Z
The “Z” is for zombie, but “World War Z” has little in common with the loaded social satire that the…
THE DEER HUNTER — CLASSIC FILM PICK
Michael Cimino is better remembered for bankrupting United Artists Studios with “Heaven’s Gate” (1980) than he is for making the…
BLOODY SUNDAY — CLASSIC FILM PICK
Agitprop, Capsules Blog, Classic Cinema, Docudrama, FIVE STARS, Irish Cinema, True Crime, Video Essay, War
Although originally produced for British television in 2002, Paul Greengrass’s vivid depiction of a violent turning point in the so-called…
STRAP-ON
Agitprop, Comedy, Fantasy, Film, Film Review, Political Satire, Reviews Blog, Satire, sex, Sexploitation, THREE STARS, War
Trashmeister writer/director John Waters takes ironic comedy and social commentary to an all-time sleazy low in his new movie “Strap-On.”…
LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL — CLASSIC FILM PICK
Capsules Blog, Classic Cinema, FIVE STARS, Italian Cinema, Political Satire, Social Satire, Video Essay, War, War Fantasy
Roberto Benigni’s finest hour arrived in 1997 when the triple-threat writer/director/actor delved deep into Charlie Chaplin territory — see “The…
EMPEROR
However turgid the storytelling, “Emperor” makes its historic points about a widely unknown 1945 wartime episode that played out in…
PHANTOM
Even you happen to be huge fan of submarine movies, “Phantom” is not worth your time. Cole Smithey.
PHANTOM
The poorly constructed story goes through plenty of obfuscating gyrations before spinning out of control in a melodramatic puddle that…
LORE
Capsules Blog, FIVE STARS, German Cinema, Literary Adaptation, Video Essay, War, Women Filmmakers, Women's Cinema
Co-writer/director Cate Shortland’s brilliant adaptation of a story from Rachel Seiffert’s debut novel, set during Germany’s 1945 downfall, is an…
THE GATEKEEPERS
A brief but surprisingly thorough analysis of the Israeli-Palestine war — post the Six-Day War of 1967 — as reported…
BARBARA
‘80s era Iron Curtain Germany is the setting for co-writer/director Christian Petzold’s pedestrian tale of attempted escape into Western Germany…
DJANGO UNCHAINED — CLASSIC FILM PICK
African American Cinema, Black Comedy, Capsules Blog, Classic Cinema, Cult Film, Exploitation, FIVE STARS, Horror, Video Essay, War, Western
You know from Tarantino’s audacious choice of intro music — the haunting theme song from Sergio Corbucci’s iconic 1966 Spaghetti…
Les Misérables
All of the ensemble performances are solid, even if Russell Crowe’s effort is forced and stiff. You won’t leave the…
HYDE PARK ON HUDSON
Some of the film’s humor borders on slapstick situational comedy that might work on the stage, but arrives at odds…
ZERO DARK THIRTY
The film takes for granted that Osama bin Laden was responsible for 9/11 despite the fact that no proof to…
COLE SMITHEY’S CLASSIC CINEMA
