Hollywood tries to squeeze blood out of the stone that is “Kong: Skull Island”
Jordan Vogt-Roberts, “Kong: Skull Island” (2017) An example of how post-2000 Hollywood is squeezing as much juice as it can from all its past films (plus…
North American Films
Reviews of films made in Canada and United States including all films made by Hollywood.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula: a lavish and surreal film skirting over social issues in Western society now and in the 1890s
Francis Ford Coppola, “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” (1992) A visually lavish and often surreal presentation, Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of the famous vampire novel still holds up…
The Miseducation of Cameron Post: a sketchy work on psychological abuse and repression in a gay conversion centre
Desiree Akhavan, “The Miseducation of Cameron Post” (2018) Set in 1993, this coming-of-age drama follows a teenaged girl’s sudden entry into a cruel world of psychological…
British Films, North American Films
SPECTRE: behind a gritty and stylish front, old Bondian stereotypes return
Sam Mendes, “SPECTRE” (2015) As James Bond films go, “Spectre” looks gritty and stylishly in a minimal way all at once, but that’s as much as…
Renfield: camp horror comedy suffers from co-dependency on too much CGI splatter violence
Chris McKay, “Renfield” (2023) A cheerfully cheesy vehicle for Nicolas Cage to finally fulfil his life’s ambition to play Count Dracula, “Renfield” shifts the focus away…
Infinity Pool: character study satire on the decline of Western culture and values
Brandon Cronenberg, “Infinity Pool” (2023) Take away the extreme violence, the scenes of sleazy sex and the over-acting and what we end up with is a…
Blacula: cheap and campy cult classic given backbone by its monster
William Crain, “Blacula” (1972) In 1780, a noble African Prince (William Marshall), known as Mamuwalde, visits Transylvania with his wife Luva to solicit the help of…
French and French-language Films, North American Films
Clash of two codes of honour and loyalty in “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai”
Jim Jarmusch, “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” (1999) Even after twenty years, this film still holds up well as an unusual and odd pastiche…
German and German-language Films, North American Films
Tár: character study of power-crazy artist undone by a weak plot
Todd Field, “Tár” (2022) It has all the ingredients to be a great film – an excellent cast, a stunning performance from its main star Cate…
Troy: spectacle and stereotyping instead of character study and emotional drama drawn from myth
Wolfgang Petersen, “Troy” (2004) Loosely based on Homer’s epic poem “Iliad”, this blockbuster spectacle of the Trojan War plays hard and fast with the details of…