Movies. Watching movies. Thinking about movies. Talking about movies. Writing about movies. Movies.
Winter Kills (1979) resides somewhere in a narrow spectrum of genre space between comedy and conspiracy thriller. For this reason, it often gets called a “dark comedy” or “political satire.” Written & directed by William Richert (from a 1974 novel by Richard Condon), the film is a hyper-paranoiac romp through a maddening maze of political conspiracy, organized crime, and family betrayal. The cast is…
Owning property has its risks. The torture of escrow is not always the end of the horror. Plumbing and electrical problems can drive a home owner to bankruptcy. Structural issues can make an erstwhile home into a house of death. Then there are the utility and maintenance costs. The average homeowner often seems to occupy one of the middle rungs of Hell. But owning…
Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, The Big Lebowski is most notably a delightful sendup of film noir tropes, a particular twist on the “man who knew too much.” Drawn into a series of strange events due to a case of mistaken identity, Jeff Lebowski is a man who knows far too little about anything other than bowling. By the end of…
My friend MacGilleathain, art critic and budo master, had never seen Citizen Kane. So we bought two big cans of Scottish ale and staked out the front row of the underground repertory theater. The cinema was literally underground, converted from an old subterranean experimental theater stage, so the front row was not too close to the screen. It was in fact an ideal position…
The movie ended. We were speechless for several minutes. “That was some messed up shit,” Dennis said. “That part with the shotgun?” I ejected the DVD and slipped it into the protective sleeve. Back to Netflix for you, you beastly little film! “Oh, no. That was killer. I’m talking about the whole thing with the woman. He came all the way back, damn near…
Wag the Dog is a brilliantly conceived and executed satire of the relationship between media and politics. The film skewers the “politics as spectacle” that has come to dominate national politics. Conrad Brean doesn’t simply manipulate the truth – he manipulates reality itself. Though he does not create an actual war in Albania, it is easy to see that his skills could be used…
The opening sequence of Primary Colors telegraphs the central theme and concern of the film: character. Democratic Presidential candidate Jack Stanton moves slowly through a crowd, shaking hands with the people. In a medium shot that isolates his body and keeps his head and shoulders out of frame, Stanton goes through a variety of handshakes as he stops to meet each individual. One of…
Lurking in the shadows throughout America are citizens who voted for Ralph Nader in 2000. I’m one of those people, proud to have voted for Nader (with the rationalization that I lived in a “safe state” – Washington – where Al Gore won by a substantial margin).[1] Many other Nader sympathizers resist answering the question, relying on that hoary old American notion that your…