I'm a fan of all things art and I've a fine eye for detail. What's your excuse?
I’ve seen enough documentaries, especially those that regularly stream on Netflix, to recognize the hallmarks of what I can only label “vanity documentaries,” in the manner that the term vanity has been applied to subsidy presses. By this I mean that the filmmaker is an amateur — often wealthy, with too much time on their…
I recently got through watching a 15 part, 900 minute long 2011 documentary on cinema titled The Story Of Film: An Odyssey, directed and narrated by Irish film critic and historian Mark Cousins, on Netflix, based upon his book of the same name. As might be expected of such a large undertaking, the film has…
A few years ago, while reviewing Turkish film director Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s 2006 great film, “Climates,” I wrote: [quote]“Climates” is a masterpiece, but it is more than that. It is also possibly an augur to even better things cinematically. It is not an overstatement to declare that Ceylan may be the best living filmmaker today….
There are many ways to learn the art of constructing a compelling narrative: One can read classic novels and plays; one can watch great films and television shows; one can read ancient Greek dramas or watch professional wrestling; and one can even watch serial fiction: From old time movie serials to modern soap operas. I…
The last completed film of Theo Angelopoulos fails to live up to his earlier greats.
There is a difference between realistic films, such as those made by John Cassavetes, and cinema verité, or films that try to approximate realism. Realistic films know they are fiction, but nonetheless mimic reality for the sake of art, whereas cinema verité attempts to fool viewers into thinking it is real. Matteo Garrone’s 2008, 137…
British film director Steve McQueen’s 2008 debut film, Hunger, is notable for many reasons: It is a great film, a great debut film, uses an innovative narrative structure, uses interesting cinematography in concert with its soundtrack, makes the best use of ambient sound to have the best non-musical soundtrack I’ve heard in a long time…
