Names mean something. They hold power. Names withheld can create mystery and names known can open doors. They are the things that can be passed down from generation to generation — be it a surname, a given name, a middle… Read More ›
foreign film
Martial arts dramedy “Ghost Killer,” Kensuke Sonomura’s third film, is ready to join up with your home collection.
Those keeping track of modern martial arts action know the name Kensuke Sonomura between his work as a stunt director and as a director. If it hits hard, looks badass, and helps move the narrative forward, you can almost guarantee… Read More ›
Make it weird, make it big, make it bloody – make it “Deathstalker.” [Fantastic Fest]
Photosensitivity Warning: There is a brief flashback sequence near the start of the film and a longer sequence during the climax wherein lights flash quite frequently. There’s no strobing and it’s somewhat predictable, but may still be triggering for photosensitive… Read More ›
Akira Kurosawa’s “High and Low” gets a 4K UHD added to its formats released by The Criterion Collection.
Everyone says that they want original stories to watch at the movies, but what they really mean is that they want good stories, engaging stories, stories that they can’t stop talking about or thinking about when they leave the theater…. Read More ›
“The Man in My Basement” walks a delicate moral and ethical line. [TIFF]
Co-writer/director Nadia Latif takes on double duty in their first feature while adapting Walter Mosley’s novel The Man in My Basement. While Mosley’s material has yielded something interesting in an adaptation before (Devil in a Blue Dress) and this adaptation… Read More ›
Filmmaker Ken’ichi Ugana’s onryō tale “The Curse (咒死你)” blends cultural customs with modern conveniences in order to craft maximum carnage. [Fantastic Fest]
It’s not an uncommon practice for a filmmaker to release two films in a year. John Huston released The Treasure of the Sierra Madre the same year as Key Largo (1948), Akira Kurosawa released Scandal in the same year as… Read More ›
Realities collide in Lucile Hadžihalilović’s fantastical drama “The Ice Tower.” [Fantastic Fest]
Danish author Hans Christian Andersen is known for many a tale from The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Princess and the Pea, The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina, and, of course, The Little Mermaid. One title that’s well-known in the U.S. is his… Read More ›
Tokuzō Tanaka’s 1966 jidaigeki tale “The Betrayal (大殺陣 雄呂血)” receives a first-time Blu-ray edition from Radiance Films worthy of its influence.
Photosensitivity Warning: Occasionally black and white films will possess a flicker and its continuous presence within The Betrayal may prove disorienting to photosensitive viewers. One of the greatest mistakes in humanity is incuriosity, this notion that all you know is… Read More ›
“Sentimental Value (Affeksjonsverdi)” drops audiences into the middle of a complex daughters/father relationship complete with Hollywood drama. [TIFF]
Audiences connected with the last outing by Joachim Trier and Eskil Vogt as writers and Renate Reinsve (The Worst Person in the World) in a lead role in a meaningful way. Back again in the same roles, the trio brings… Read More ›
Manga Breathing First Form — “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” reaches the first part of its three-part cinematic finale in the blood-soaked “Infinity Castle.”
Manga author Koyoharu Gotouge’s fantasy adventure shonen Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (鬼滅の刃) first published in February 2016, introducing audiences to Tanjiro Kamado, a young boy living in Taishō era Japan with his mother and siblings, making their living as… Read More ›
Confidence crime thriller “Yadang: The Snitch” comes to home video, inspiring you to question who you trust the whole way.
Photosensitivity Warning: There are several party sequences and instances involving the press wherein lights either flash or strobe. Be advised. Everyone has a favorite type of story. For some, it’s romances; others, comedies; and, others still, horror. In my top… Read More ›
Psychological sports thriller “The Cut” takes the legs out from under otherwise well-executed mental and physical breakdowns.
Much like the horror or fantasy genres, sports films are often filled with metaphors. In most cases, the competition is about more than the event itself, it’s about something larger for the character(s) or the idea it represents. In modern… Read More ›
Mystery thriller “It Was Just an Accident” engages audiences to explore their own morality. [TIFF]
Sometimes a title is crucial to the integrity of the movie, giving audiences an idea or an exploratory idea of what they’re about to get themselves into, and sometimes the title is something that feels like it could mean more… Read More ›
“Exit 8” utilizes the video game adaptation genre to dive deep into humanity and individual choices. [TIFF]
To go into a movie without knowing anything about it is a rare experience, but sometimes something drops into your inbox and you decide to jump head first into it knowing nothing other than that it is a festival screening…. Read More ›
Horror thriller “Burning” utilizes multiple perspectives to showcase how little we know about the people around us. [Fantasia]
In storytelling, the most obvious thing is that the narrative is based on perception, but it’s also the thing that we most take for granted as an audience. We presume that what we see, what we hear, is what happens;… Read More ›
Filmmaker Youssef Chahine is welcomed into the Criterion Collection with a 4K HD restoration of his 1958 crime thriller “Cairo Station.”
Film scholar Joseph Fahim describes director Youssef Chahine’s 1958 crime thriller Cairo Station (باب الحديد) as a film that failed to connect with audiences and was viewed as a failure upon its initial release. He also states that the film… Read More ›
You may not know you’re “Transcending Dimensions,” but you’ll certainly feel it. [Fantasia]
Photosensitivity Warning: There are three instances of powerful strobing/flashing lights that may trigger a painful response in audiences: two shortly after the title card appears and one in the climatic sequence of the film. Japanese filmmaker Toshiaki Toyoda has built… Read More ›
Vittorio De Sica’s first masterpiece “Shoeshine,” a devastating tale of innocence lost in postwar Italy, comes home in excellent restoration, courtesy of The Criterion Collection.
Before he directed one of the greatest films of all time, 1948’s Bicycle Thieves, Vittorio De Sica became the face of Italian Neorealism in 1946 with his first masterpiece Shoeshine. Italian Neorealism was a post-World War II film movement which… Read More ›
Polish filmmaker Grzegorz Królikiewicz’s 1973 feature debut “Through and Through” gets a 2K restoration from Radiance Films.
What would you do for love? Would you fight? Would you protect? What would you build? What would you sacrifice? Polish filmmaker Grzegorz Królikiewicz (The Dancing Hawk), having previously made a series of short films, released his feature debut, Through… Read More ›
“Crown of Shadows” DVD Giveaway
On August 12th, High Flier Films released Richard Campbell’s fantasy actioner Crown of Shadows on DVD. Now, courtesy of Alliance Entertainment, EoM is giving away one (1) DVD edition of the film to one lucky winner. No battling with a dragon or… Read More ›