It goes without saying that the science fiction genre and the term “thought-provoking” go hand in (spacesuit) glove, simply because science fiction deals with concepts and themes that are by and large removed from our normal everyday experience; they grapple with the technology of the future, they play with the space-time continuum, they fiddle with the supernatural, they wrestle with… Read more »
The Sixties, particularly the latter part of that decade, saw morality and standards change dramatically in regards to film content and film making. After a string of costly musicals such as “Star!”, “Hello Dolly” and “Doctor Doolitle”, all of which flopped horrendously at the box office, one thing became clear. The powers that be in Hollywood were experiencing something of… Read more »
Considered by many to be one of the greatest comedic actors of all time, the enigmatic personality, Peter Sellers, created a body of work that spanned three decades and within that time (also) created some of the most memorable performances in the history of film. Most notably Inspector Clouseau and Dr. Strangelove. He was so committed to the characters he… Read more »
Soundtracks are created by mixing together noise and speech (as well as music). Good filmmakers will devote a lot of their energy to the soundtrack of their film in post-production, making such that it sounds rich and interesting, and also making sure that key moments are audible. Bad sound design can make a film seem clunky and boring. Good sound… Read more »
Released in 1984, “Once Upon A Time In America” proved to be director Sergio Leone’s final cinematic statement. Most famous for films like “The Good, The Bad & The Ugly” and “Once Upon A Time In The West”, he spent over ten years planning “America”. Loosely based on a novel called “The Hoods” by Harry Grey, which was purported to… Read more »
Richard Linklater truly is a gem of modern cinema. Not only are his films adroit illustrations of the magic that lurks within filmmaking; they are also imaginatively fresh alternatives to the Hollywood blockbuster material that often dominates the box office. His distinguishing style and attitude have established him as an underground director working with those above; bridging the gap between… Read more »
The Hong Kong film industry is responsible for some of the most influential films and filmmakers of the last 50 years. It’s an industry most renowned for the epic level of martial arts cinema that captured the world’s imagination back in the 70s and 80s, but it’s also been a source of great films in other genres such as gangster… Read more »
In the cinema industry, decline can start for several reasons, such as financial failure, bad reviews from international critics and/or audiences, technological change, end of artistic era, political context, bad luck and controversial subject in film. These difficult times can be overcome, but once decline has started; success is hardly likely to ever be the same. Even though praised as… Read more »
The term Postmodern is quite an oxymoron. It talks about a period which transcends the present. Notions of time, space, reality and existence are all skewed. This ideology became a part of various art forms. We all live in a world where the concept of time and space has become extremely complicated and disorienting because the way technology has affected… Read more »
Of Silent Films’ “Big Three” ( Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd) Buster Keaton is more famous and critically acclaimed today, than he was in the 1920′s (the guy is Box Office Gold, believe me, I’ve seen it!) and the reason is simple: his films still seem awfully relevant and modern, maybe even more so than when they were first shown. Unlike most… Read more »
John Carpenter is arguably one of the most important and influential genre directors of the last forty years. He quickly established a cult following with many of his 1970s and 1980s efforts that have since become classics, but a string of critical and commercial flops in the 1990s led to the director becoming disillusioned with filmmaking and the Hollywood system…. Read more »
“Some movies aren’t just movies. They’re closer to voodoo; they channel currents larger and more powerful than themselves.” – EW Film Critic Owen Gleiberman What makes a horror movie transcend its often ill-respected genre and become a lasting part of the cultural zeitgeist? The answer is the same thing that makes a horror movie not just incredibly scary, but disturbing… Read more »
You can pretty much say that Latin American documentaries were born in the midst of the political effervesce of the late sixties and seventies. With the advances in technology, film directors only needed, as Glauber Rocha said, “a camera in their hands and an idea in their heads” to make politically committed movies that showed Latin American reality much like… Read more »
Let’s face it: even thirty titles isn’t really enough as the war movie genre has no shortage of great entries and obviously this list should not be taken as the be-all and end-all compendium of best war movies ever. There’s no Come and See, MASH, The Big Red One, The Hurt Locker or Platoon even though all those titles and… Read more »
The Caribbean has always been known for its music, food, political conflicts (Cuba’s blockade and Puerto Rico still being the only colony in the world) and its beaches, but it has never been known for its movie industry. In recent years there has been a huge growth in local productions, thus attracting big studios to come to the area to… Read more »
You know their type. Mockingly referred to as “Oscar bait,” these are the films that, from the first trailer (and sometimes even earlier), look like they were made for one reason and one reason only: to win golden, naked man-shaped statues. Featuring inspirational orchestral music, A-list talent, and the promise of tackling important hot-button issues, these are the kinds of… Read more »
Black Comedy is a revealing and subtle genre strand of comedy. A good dark comedy movie manages the difficult task of blending the dark and twisted with the hilarious, often delivering both at the same time. If you’re watching a black comedy and laughing your head off – but feeling horribly guilty about it – or laughing out of panic… Read more »
From the 1960s to the 1980s, Italy became known for its exploitation cinema, which ranged from gialli and “Mondo” films to Spaghetti Westerns and Nazisploitation. The Italian film market churned out dozens of exploitation films in order to capitalize on the latest cinematic crazes (in some instances, filmmakers even ripped off other Italian exploitation films). The films below represent the… Read more »
Part-time actor and full-time awesome person Bill Murray was one of the many performers of television sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live to jump to the big screen. He turned out to be one of the most successful people to do it, building an iconic career with roles that have ranged from average sweet guy to chaotic yet hilarious to… Read more »
