The Life of Oharu: unsentimental historical drama of one woman’s downfall
Kenzo Mizoguchi, “The Life of Oharu”, Shintoho (1952) This is an excellent film about a depressing subject: I only wish colour film had been available to…
Mother (by Bong Joonho): force of nature that can’t be pigeon-holed
Bong Joonho, “Mother” (2008) There aren’t many good movies these days where the central character is a middle-aged woman. Of course she’s a mother – most…
The Housemaid (dir. Im Sang-soo) delivers high-gloss soap opera entertainment
Im Sang-soo “The Housemaid” (2010) How do you remake an old film regarded as a classic and made by a director who’s not only influenced you…
Rosemary’s Baby: does it reflect women’s oppression by modern life?
Roman Polanski, “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968) Who doesn’t envy young couples these days who dream of having a nice 3-bedroom house or apartment in the city close to…
Let the Right One In: first, the Swedish version is allowed in
Tomas Alfredsson, “Let the Right One In” (2008) Often when a novel is translated to the screen, the result is a superficial imitation of the printed word:…
Eyes Wide Shut: style wins over substance
Stanley Kubrick, “Eyes Wide Shut”, (1999) I saw this movie ten years ago as there’d been a lot of hype about it featuring Tom Cruise and Nicole…
Miss Mend, Part One: silent film is a real blast from the Soviet past
Boris Barnet and Fyodor Otsep, “Miss Mend, Part One”, (1926) I saw this film together with “The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari” at the Australia’s Silent…
Splice: spliced-together movie unravelling at the joins
Vincenzo Natali, “Splice”, Dark Castle Entertainment (2010) Fans of former Oscar Best Actor winner Adrien Brody must be wondering how their man came to be slumming it…
German and German-language Films
Inside the Cabinet of famous German Expressionist film
Robert Wiene, “The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari” (1920) Seeing this German Expressionist silent film classic at the Australia’s Silent Film Festival showing in Sydney recently…
The Hunger: glossy and glamorous but in need of a remake anyway
Tony Scott, “The Hunger” (1983) One of a number of 1980s-made movies in the remake production line, this glossy flick was Tony Scott’s directorial debut about…