The camera gives us, the audience, a view of the Atlantic Ocean. This scene is not particularly peaceful. The waters here don’t look beautiful. The ocean roils into muddy bubbles. An African-American father and son though play unconcerned in these not particularly calm waters. The camera then turns to a white woman named France, watching unconcerned as this happens. We don’t know it yet but … Continue reading The Films of Claire Denis: Chocolat (1988)
One of the great joys of loving art is discovering an artist for your self. One that changes your perspective or fits into your already established aesthetic. It doesn’t matter if they’re new or established. The joy is in discovering those films for yourself. Great work remains great work no matter when you find it. As a film fan though, there’s only so many films … Continue reading The Films of Claire Denis: An Introduction
It’s been a cool 10 months since I last did a Criterion Catch-up. It’s not that I haven’t been watching my collection, it’s just that…well, I was doing other things, like May’s Vinyl Challenge over at Consuming the Tangible and of course the recent Hooptober marathon right here at Cinema Dual. And in that time I regret to say the collection kind of just…grew. It’s … Continue reading Criterion Catch-Up: Devil In A Blue Dress (1995)
In the fall of 2019 and inspired by Chris, I decided I was finally going to do Hooptober. I picked my movies out. I was set. I was gonna start on 10/1 and write full essays! Then I didn’t finish. Word to the wise: watching a movie a day and writing a huge piece on a film not as easy as it sounds. Not finishing … Continue reading Dan’s Hooptober 2022: 31 Movies to Earth
Wait…it’s September 15th already?! Time files when the world’s a dumpster fire and you’re wearing 10 masks and drinking Lysol to prevent the mutant hybrid of COVID, Monkey Pox and…Christ on Toast it pains me to even write it…POLIO. How to suppress the horror of real life? With cinematic horror, of course! That’s why we’re back, doing the same thing we do every year (but … Continue reading Hail Horror! It’s Back for 2022!
A few disclaimers before I get into this. First, I am 8 days older than Steven Spielberg’s E.T. The Extra Terrestrial. Second, my first memories of seeing a movie are my dad taking me to see this probably during the 85 rerelease. Third, I am of the generation whose parents, when they needed 2 hours to themselves, would plop us in front of the tv and put this in the VCR. This is a a film that I have very vivid memories of seeing. This is a film whose scenes and beats that I know intimately. It’s a film that I feel a connection to on some level. Continue reading Revisiting E.T. The Extra Terrestrial (1982)
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