A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
French and French-language Films
Roman Polanski, “Frantic” (1988) For a film proclaiming itself “Frantic”, this suspense thriller is surprisingly cool, calm and collected as it follows its hapless protagonist doctor…
Hayao Miyazaki, “The Wind Rises / Kaze tachinu” (2013) Miyazaki’s swansong film is a fictional biography of aeroplane designer and engineer Jiro Horikoshi, creator of the…
Alfred Hitchcock, “Topaz” (1969) Coming towards the tail-end of a long and illustrious career in film direction, this Cold War spy thriller is one of two…
Lars von Trier, “Dogville” (2003) First in a series of films on American culture from Lars von Trier’s own rather idiosyncratic viewpoint, “Dogville” is a minimalist…
Francis Ford Coppola, “Apocalypse Now (Redux)” (2001) The actual plot is very basic: sometime during the Vietnam War – a newspaper clipping on Charles Manson’s trial…
Rob Ager, “The War on Bugs” (2012) Researched, written, edited and narrated by Rob Ager, this documentary examines the themes of the science fiction film “Starship…
Multi-media Presentations, North American Films
Ray Younis, “On Meaning and Purpose: ‘Blade Runner’ Frame by Frame” (The University of Sydney / Centre for Continuing Education, Saturday 8 February 2014) Not often…
British Films, North American Films
Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave” (2013) British director Steve McQueen’s third film “12 Years a Slave” is a harrowing study of the institution of slavery…
Elísabet Ýr Atladóttir, “Memoria” (2013) A creepy psychological character study, “Memoria” is very depressing to watch. The single protagonist, Vincent, is a young alcoholic and drug…
Bo Mathorne, “The Backwater Gospel” (2011) In a total running time of just over nine minutes, this raw and stark animation is a superb comment on…