From the Soviet era and after, eastern Europe has provided countless narratives about possible futures, from the political to the comical, to the downright horrifying. While the communist project faltered and ultimately failed, a sense of excitement or fear about change (revolution) has always been intrinsic to the ideological landscape. Below is just a small […]
Author: Ciaran Lawless
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The 20 Darkest European Films of The 21st Century
Economically at least, Europe has been going through something of a dark period lately. It is arguable whether this economic gloom has caused European cinema in turn to produce increasingly bleak and hopeless films. Throughout its long history, European cinema has never shied away from despair. The German Expressionists used every technique at their disposal […]
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The 18 Best Films Set in Berlin
It’s one of cinema’s greatest ironies that Hollywood benefited greatly from Germany’s arguably self-inflicted tragedies. Many great German directors who had made their names in Berlin fled to America during the nazi period, and ended up making some of Hollywood’s most memorable films. Billy Wilder and Fritz Lang are the most famous examples. These directors […]
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The 15 Best Films Set in Rome
While the tourists often prefer Venice, Rome is where the real action is, at least as far as cinema is concerned. Rome is the home of Cinecittà, the studio that gave rise to the vast majority of Italian films that have lasted the test of time; and many Hollywood films have been shot there too. […]
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The 16 Best Films Set in Tokyo
The history of modern Tokyo is to some extent a history of coping with catastrophe. Many, if not all, of the most famous Tokyo films seem haunted by some huge, destructive nightmare at the edges of the action. Even the quieter films that we’ve listed below are weighted down with an unshakeable historical awareness, be it […]
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10 Federico Fellini-Like Movies Not By Federico Fellini
You know an artist has left a serious mark on the world when they have their own adjective. Kafkaesque, Shakespearian, Beckettian, Lynchian, the list is rather exclusive. “Felliniesque” is a descriptor that gets thrown around a lot, but there is no exact definition of what it means, except of course, “like something out of Fellini”. […]