Ichthys: a caustic commentary on institutional religion
Marek Skrobecki, “Ichthys” (2005) For once I didn’t need to look up an English translation for the title of this Polish animation short which uses animated…
The Red and the Black / The Horse: two little oil paintings in continuous motion
Witold Giersz, “The Red and the Black / Czorwane i Czarne” (1963) / “The Horse / Kon” (1967) I was held spellbound by these two very…
Son (dir. Ryszard Czekala): a solid, powerful short about rural-urban and generational division
Ryszard Czekala, “Son / Syn” (1970) This short silent animation piece is one that Polish animator Ryszard Czekala is best known for and it’s easy to…
Wild Strawberries: a road trip into self-discovery and examination that leads to redemption and self-forgiveness
Ingmar Bergman, “Smultronstället / Wild Strawberries” (1957) Few movies feature 80 or 70-something actors as lead characters so to see Bergman’s “Wild Strawberries” with Viktor Sjöström in…
A Clockwork Orange: a political and social comedy satire relying too much on audiovisual shock tactics
Stanley Kubrick, “A Clockwork Orange” (2013) Not a bad film but for what it is, “A Clockwork Orange” is fussy and relies too much on shock,…
House of Wax: realism versus art and artifice in horror cult film
Andre de Toth, “House of Wax” (1953) “House of Wax” was the movie that established Vincent Price as a horror film icon and in itself is…
Repo Man: science fiction comedy satire on the beginnings of Western capitalist / consumerist culture’s downfall
Alex Cox, “Repo Man” (1984) Dare I say that with the passage of time, this little cult science fiction comedy thriller film will come to be…
The Sweet Hereafter: a fragmented film labouring under too many issues about loss and betrayal of children
Atom Egoyan, “The Sweet Hereafter” (1997) It won quite a few Best Film and Director awards and was nominated for Best Director and Screenplay Oscars but…
French and French-language Films
Hidden: a film about guilt, trust, colonial exploitation and manipulation of signs is overburdened by art and cleverness
Michael Haneke, “Caché / Hidden” (2005) An imaginative if overly layered thriller about a couple threatened by an unseen and unknown stalker, Michael Haneke’s “Hidden” is…
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: a psychedelic slapstick comedy satire on American society and its values
Terry Gilliam, “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” (1998) From that period of Johnny Depp’s acting career when the films he was making were actually quite…