A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Adam Curtis “The Living Dead (Episode 2: You have used Me as a Fish long enough)” (1995) Curtis sure doesn’t do things by halves and his “The…
Adam Curtis, “All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace (Episode 1: Love and Power)” (2011) A curious and challenging visual essay, the first in a…
Ignacio Cerdà, Ethan Jacobson, Francisco Stohr, “The Awakening” (1991) This 8-minute short is the first of three films forming a trilogy about death and how we…
French and French-language Films
Denis Dercourt, “The Page Turner” / “La Tourneuse de Pages” (2006) A cool, elegant psychological study of revenge, this film will certainly speak to a lot…
Stephen K Tsuchida, “A Ninja Pays Half my Rent” (2002) Hilarious student short about finding the perfect room-mate (which could be extended to include the perfect…
French and French-language Films, German and German-language Films
Orson Welles, “The Trial” / “Le Procès” (1962) This film is a visually striking adaptation of the famous Franz Kafka novel. Welles’s directorial approach tries to…
French and French-language Films, North American Films
Pierre Coffin, “Pings” (2 shorts, 1997) Ralph Eggleston, “For the Birds” (2000) Dony Permedi, “Kiwi!” (2006) All four films are about birds obviously but they’re also about…
Fyodor Khitruk, “Vinni Pukh” (1969) / “Vinni Pukh idyot v gosti” (1972) / “Vinni Pukh i den’ zabot” (1972) My favourite cartoon featuring Winnie the Pooh as…
British Films, French and French-language Films
Werner Herzog, “Cave of Forgotten Dreams” (2010) In 1994, three speleologists discovered and explored a cave in southern France and found prehistoric paintings apparently dating back…
Kenneth Anger, “Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome” (1954) A lush creation by famous underground avant-garde film-maker Kenneth Anger, this film of a celebratory religious ritual mixes…