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Joshua Reviews Miguel Gomes’ Arabian Nights: Volume 2, The Desolate One [Theatrical Review]
9 December 2015 4:30 PM, PST
When looking at Miguel Gomes’ masterpiece, Arabian Nights, one must first decide if what they are viewing is one singular piece of cinema, or three separate segments of one much larger epic. This writer likes to assume that anyone viewing this six hour-plus meditation on a nation being undone by those in positions to lead will see it in one large block, but if you’re Portugal, Oscar hopes change that idea.
The nation’s submission for this upcoming Oscar ceremony in the Best Foreign Language Film category, Arabian Nights: Volume II – The Desolate One arrives in New York this weekend, and marks a decided shift in tone and structure from Gomes’ almost anarchic, surrealist first outing in this collection. Scheherazade returns here as narrator, as she weaves together three stories that turn their collective eye onto the austerity measures that were implemented following Portugal’s economic collapse, which »
- Joshua Brunsting
Joshua Reviews Todd Haynes’ Carol [Theatrical Review]
9 December 2015 1:34 AM, PST
It’s not shocking that, in the last couple of months of any given year, a handful of studios dump a handful of films onto the viewing masses, hoping to gain traction with both audiences and critics alike. All have the same stars in their eyes. Huge box office grosses leading to numerous critics and guild awards, all leading up to Oscar Sunday, where their names are called across the board. However, not only do many of these films come across as wooden and trite, but few ever stick with any given viewer longer than their respective runtime.
Then there are films like Carol. Actually, there aren’t films like Carol, as it’s the type of film we don’t get very often this time of year: genuinely groundbreaking.
Carol is the latest film from Safe and Far From Heaven auteur Todd Haynes. A familiar, Douglas Sirk-fueled territory for Haynes, »
- Joshua Brunsting
Criterion on Fandor: Mysteries
8 December 2015 9:30 AM, PST
Each week, the fine folks at Fandor add a number of films to their Criterion Picks area, which will then be available to subscribers for the following twelve days. This week, the Criterion Picks focus on 8 mystery films.
Secrets, lies, clues and questionable motives: follow these films as they insist on (or resist) throwing light on the dark corners of human nature.
Don’t have a Fandor subscription? They offer a free trial membership.
Confidentially Yours, the French Crime film by François Truffaut
When a real estate agent is framed for the murders of his wife and her lover, it is up to his faithful secretary to solve the mystery.
The Element of Crime, the Danish Crime film by Lars von Trier
Lars von Trier’s stunning debut film is the story of Fisher, an exiled ex-cop who returns to his old beat to catch a serial killer with a taste for young girls. »
- Ryan Gallagher
3 articles