A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Norbert A Myles, “The Daughter of Dawn” (1920) Believed to have been lost after initial screenings in 1920, until nearly 100 years late when a private…
Sanae Yamamoto, “Senga Tsubo” (1925) Said to be the first animated film commission by the Ministry of Education in Japan back in 1925, this 16-minute short…
Sanae Yamamoto, “Kyoiku senga: Ubasuteyama” (1925) A restored animation, “Ubasuteyama” is based on a traditional Japanese folk-tale as so many animated films made in Japan in…
Kim Heeyae, “Shadow Thief” (2018) Done entirely in black and white and shades of grey with no dialogue, this animated short is a brilliant critique of…
Chinese and Chinese-language Films
Wu Yonggang, “The Goddess / Shen nu” (1935) A year after this film was made, its star Ruan Lingyu took her life by overdosing on barbiturates,…
German and German-language Films
F W Murnau, “Faust” (1926) Visually powerful and stunning, with an incredible opening scene of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse riding high in the sky,…
French and French-language Films, Northern European Films
Carl Theodor Dreyer, “The Passion of Joan of Arc” (1928) In itself, this silent film is remarkable for its lead actor Maria Falconetti’s acting from the…
French and French-language Films, Japanese Films
Michaël Dudok de Wiet, “The Red Turtle” (2016) God save us all from pretty packages with lots of high gloss finish and finicky attention to detail…
Charlie Chaplin, “Modern Times” (1936) In its own way, “Modern Times” is significant as an example of how one actor / director adapted his style from…
Sergei Eisenstein, “Battleship Potemkin” (1925) Although this film was made over 90 years ago and is a silent black-and-white work, it still stands up well against…