One of the more interesting German new wave directors that emerged in the 1970s along with compatriots Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Werner Herzog, and Volker Schlondorf, Wim Wenders evidenced a fascination with place and a deep admiration for American popular culture. In Don’t Come Knocking, the principal action is set in his favorite American town, Butte, [...]
Happiness is in Inverse Relation to Your Expectations
Having read some of the user reviews before going to see Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man, I was aware that the musical performances in this tribute to the songwriter/poet were uneven. Despite the amateurish nature of this documentary (I found myself longing for a Scorsese or Demme behind the viewfinder), and a couple of truly [...]
More Film Reviews
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada : Tommy Lee Jones doesn’t like it when you beat up or accidently kill illegal Mexican immigrants. He does, however, like Sam Peckinpah and Jim Jarmusch. Old and a bit tired. (I wonder if Lou Dobbs liked this film).
Brick: Cute. As cute as a basketfull of pimply-faced, smart-assed, drug-pushing puppies.
A Scanner Darkly
I don’t remember when I first discovered Philip K. Dick, but I think it was back in the ’90s. I must have picked up a copy of Radio Free Albemuth, an alternate, more mainstream version of his visionary novel Valis, published posthumously. Not a SF fan, I must have been drawn to it for its size [...]
Night Watch
I was really looking forward to seeing Night Watch after watching a review and a clip of it on Real to Real, so I was very excited when it showed up in my local video store. The first 15 minutes of the film were extremely bloody, surreal and shocking; made all the more awkward by [...]
