Before the films started, the owner of the Cinéma le Grand Action, an intense-looking woman with miraculous cheekbones and a stubborn, unwavering coiffure that could only have been coiffed here in Paris, took center-floor to speak. She was excited and gracious, and her energy zapped away my roly-poly wine catalepsy.
Well, enough pussyfooting. I’m going to [...]
Just heading out to watch Ella es el Matador was a bit of a challenge in itself. I have never understood the bloodshed of bullfighting nor will I ever find it entertaining. I was aware that many of the images I was about to see would probably upset me, however when I heard the title [...]
From the Saul Bass styled titles, to the Tron like chase sequences, every frame of Pivot’s entirety is expertly constructed and precisely measured, creating a stunningly original animated short.
Check out my latest pick for Short of the Week, Pivot.
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Hitchcockian, Capraesque and Kubrickian are all terms used to describe the relative filmmakers’ distinctive styles, well maybe it’s about time we add Jeunetian to the list (I thought Jeunetesque sounded better for a French filmmaker, but was a bit too close to the already existing Junoesque). It’s not that I’m comparing Jean-Pierre Jeunet to the [...]
There’s something perverse about the fact that my SotW pick of abused, sex trafficked women, happened to be posted on the universal day of love, but perhaps it’ll make you hold that special someone all the tighter. Despite the grim subject, director Rob Brown shows that compassion can be found where you least expect it.
Have [...]
The short film has taken many forms and styles through the years and with the rapid development of technologies and software over the past decade or so, we have seen the medium evolve to a whole new level. In recent years, the equipment needed to create films, whether live action or animation, has not only [...]
I begin each year with the heady intention of watching a film a day. A goal I’ve so far fallen short of (187 for ‘09 as of today), but if I ever do reach it God alone knows how much extra hair pulling and gnashing of teeth it’ll take to get down to this final [...]
Gaining a press pass for the London Film Festival this year, has almost certainly not made the task of writing an annual top ten film list any easier. After drawing up an initial list, which consisted of at least double the amount of films I needed, I’ve now completed the cull and whittled it down [...]
This is my third year of composing a top ten and it doesn’t get any easier. As I explained a couple of years ago, who’s to say that if I saw my number one film on another day when I wasn’t in quite such a good mood that it would still be my number one? [...]
It felt like another strong year as I struggled to get all my favourites down to twelve. When people say films aren’t as good as they used to be, I point to the first three here. As always, the list is based on the release dates of the films. See you in 2010.
1. Where the [...]