Number 17: confusing comedy caper not a prime example of Hitchcock’s work
Alfred Hitchcock, “Number 17” (1932) It has many of the ingredients of a typical Hitchcock suspense thriller film but “Number 17” is merely a daft and confusing…
Australian and New Zealand Films, Eastern European Films
Penelope: film’s beauty can’t compensate for static plot and characters
Ben Ferris, “Penelopa” aka “Penelope” (2009) Lovely to look at but beautiful, almost abstract scenes of nature and long circular panning shots that lovingly savour the…
Pumzi: short film with powerful message of preserving resources, freedom and human imagination and dignity
Wanuri Kahiu, “Pumzi” (“Breath”) (2009) Just over 20 minutes long, this movie short from Kenya is set in a post-apocalyptic future where a global war has rendered the…
Rich and Strange: romantic comedy needs Hitchcock’s obsessions to make it richer and stranger
Alfred Hitchcock, “Rich and Strange” aka “East of Shanghai” (1931) One of a group of films Hitchcock made in his lean early-1930’s period – the others include…
Waltzes from Vienna: Hitchcock ill at ease with musical comedy of Johann Strauss II
Alfred Hitchcock, “Waltzes from Vienna” (1934) What’s this? – a musical comedy about Johann Strauss II and his waltz “The Blue Danube” by Alfred Hitchcock? The…
French and French-language Films
Man Bites Dog: strong satire on Western cultures’ obsession with sadistic violence
Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel, Benoît Poelvoorde, “C’est arrive près de chez vous” (“It could happen in your neighbourhood”) aka “Man Bites Dog” (1992) Made by four…
German and German-language Films
Cargo (dir. Ivan Engler): too much cargo taken on board in the plot and characters wreck a visually fine film
Ivan Engler, “Cargo” (2009) Debut full-length directorial feature for Ivan Engler, “Cargo” is a bloodless effort set in the distant future when the Earth has become…
Eraserhead: fascinating and hilarious dark horror film about social and religious pressures on struggling families
David Lynch, “Eraserhead” (1977) Five years in the making from 1971 to 1976, “Eraserhead” was David Lynch’s full-length directing debut feature. Based on his experiences in…
Blue Velvet: satirising American suburbia as cartoony more important than plot, characters and issues of exploitation
David Lynch, “Blue Velvet” (1986) A beautiful film to watch with noirish elements and a lot of symbolism yet oddly not very suspenseful or satisfying. “Blue…
Symbol (dir. Hatoshi Matsumoto): polished and slick slapstick comedy on nature of the universe
Hatoshi Matsumoto, “Symbol” (2009) A slapstick comedy about interrelationships and the impact one person can have on events around the world, “Symbol” is the second full-length…