According to the press notes for Call for Dreams, Israeli director Ran Slavin started the project in pursuit of a “new cinematic form.” Slavin began with the idea to collect dreams from strangers that he could use as inspiration for… Read More ›
crime drama
Two features and five shorts to keep an eye out for. [SXSW Film Festival]
SXSW 2021 has come and gone, offering accredited press a dizzying array of opportunities in which to indulge. While the Elements of Madness coverage team wrote a hearty portion of reviews, there were far more films worth seeing than we… Read More ›
“In The Land of Lost Angels” is an indisputable debut for writer/director Bishrel Mashbat.
When one looks back on a director’s early works, you can usually see the beginnings of whatever will become their signature POV or narrative approach. In The Land of Lost Angels is the first feature film from writer/director Bishrel Mashbat,… Read More ›
Akira Kurosawa Series: A Look Back on “Stray Dog.”
By the end of Akira Kurosawa’s 1949 detective drama, Stray Dog, there is not a character that escapes the fray without rolling around in the mud, figuratively and literally. Every decision has consequences, and every action has a reaction. Some, more… Read More ›
Be careful out there. If you “Flinch,” you’ll catch a bullet.
If you’re familiar with Cameron Van Hoy, it may be because of his work as Eddie Alvarez in STARZ’s Crash or as Deputy Duke in the hilarious slasher-comedy Tragedy Girls (2017). With luck, thanks to his feature-length directorial debut Flinch,… Read More ›
“All Roads to Pearla” is a strong feature-debut from writer/director Van Ditthavong.
Some argue that a town only truly comes to life once the sun has set. That’s when the things hiding from sunlight feel more comfortable to come out, stretch their legs, and roam the streets freely; when those who strive… Read More ›
Bring home Jim Jarmusch’s philosophical warrior tale “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai,” now available from Criterion.
Originally released in 1999, writer/director Jim Jarmusch’s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is the latest film to receive the Criterion treatment. The film is a rare oddity in that is very much of its period, yet is absolutely… Read More ›
Indie drama “Take Out Girl” delivers a thoughtful meal, not a dissatisfying snack. [Indie Memphis Film Festival]
There are many paths to success. Even one generation ago, that meant going to school, getting a job, and working there until retirement. On that path at that time, a single income was typically enough to provide for an average… Read More ›
RZA continues to up his directorial game with crime drama “Cut Throat City.”
There’s a brief line said by T.I.’s Lorenzo “Cousin” Bass that contains more than just a slight meaning to the context of the moment in which it’s said. Cousin is speaking to the four leads — Blink (Shameik Moore), Miracle… Read More ›
Crime drama “Invincible Dragon” proves to be vulnerable after all.
With turns in Ip Man 3 (2015), Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018), and Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018), Max Zhang is slowly becoming recognizable in the stateside martial arts community. His movements are fast, his skill precise, and his presence… Read More ›
The whole world is watching events like “The Trial of the Chicago 7” play out again and again.
Inequities of man are met with protests. Some agree and the voices get louder, some disagree and tell them how to protest. Then lives are lost unnecessarily and protesters get angry, taking to the streets to confront their government. To… Read More ›
Observe the birth of the modern police procedural in Jules Dassin’s “The Naked City,” restored via the Criterion Collection.
From modern programs like Lucifer, The Flash, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Blue Bloods to more classic ones like Law and Order, The Mod Squad, and Hill Street Blues, each of these procedural variants owe their existence in large part to the… Read More ›
Now available via the Criterion Collection, director Jules Dassin’s “Brute Force” remains as explosive an indictment of prison reform today as in 1947.
Released June 30th, 1947, Jules Dassin’s (Rififi) Brute Force opened and took audiences and critics by storm. The film, a prison break picture, would startle and terrify as it depicted life inside prisons as one of moral decay, not because… Read More ›
“The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum” explores the price of turning a blind eye to yellow journalism and government surveillance
How often do you read or see something that excites you, titillates you, and perhaps even angers you? As we grow ever closer to a presidential election, it seems almost daily that such an occurrence happens. Articles, photos, and videos… Read More ›
Nothing marks “First Love” like drugs, gangs, and absolute mayhem.
There’s something about first love that can be hard to quantify, even when looking back on it. The simultaneous excitement of being attracted to someone else, the endless internal questions trying to figure out what it means, the unyielding terror… Read More ›
Edward Norton’s passion project “Motherless Brooklyn” is now available on home video.
According to actor/writer/director Edward Norton, his relationship with Jonathan Lethem’s 1999 novel Motherless Brooklyn began before the book hit shelves. As he explains in the featurette “Making-Of: Edward Norton’s Methodical Process,” he was tipped off by a friend about the… Read More ›
Crime thriller “The Irishman” is Martin Scorsese at his most self-assured.
In his recent years, and more specifically in recent months, Martin Scorsese has really stepped away from the spotlight…oh my god, could you imagine if I was serious with that? The argument has been made that Scorsese made the controversial… Read More ›
Despite the trappings of a thoughtful noir, Edward Norton’s “Motherless Brooklyn” adaptation doesn’t seem to coalesce.
The cinematic adaptation of Jonathan Lethem’s book Motherless Brooklyn by Edward Norton (Keeping the Faith) possesses all the hallmarks of a great noir: mystery, a dame in trouble, and a gumshoe in over his head. When you add in a… Read More ›
“Motherless Brooklyn” possesses a strong statement on gentrification, which is mired by cliché noir tropes and bland filmmaking. [Film Fest 919]
Being from Durham, North Carolina, I have seen a lot of changes happen in my city over the last few years. Durham kept a large, mostly black, working-class population due to the employment of so many citizens at the tobacco… Read More ›
Sony Classics crime thriller “The Fall of the American Empire” is an emotionally captivating experience.
Oscar-winning director Denys Arcand offers The Fall of the American Empire, an eclectic genre mash-up combining crime drama, a thrilling heist adventure, and a social commentary. This French-Canadian film spoken almost entirely in the beautiful language of French (and subtitled… Read More ›