Tag Archives: Filmmaking

RKO 281 (1999) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A terrific TV movie to complement “Mank”

Posted on December 14, 2020 by kaist455

To be frank with you, it took some time for me to appreciate the greatness of Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” (1941), which has been regarded as one of the greatest works in the history of cinema during last several decades. … Continue reading →

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Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles (2018) ☆☆☆(3/4): An animation film on Buñuel

Posted on March 1, 2020 by kaist455

Spanish animation film “Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles” is the interesting presentation of Luis Buñuel at an early point in his life and career. While it may not surprise you that much if you are a longtime admirer … Continue reading →

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Chained for Life (2018) ☆☆☆(3/4): Beauty and her disfigured co-star

Posted on December 15, 2019 by kaist455

“Chained for Life” is an odd, amusing comedy film which cheerfully dances around its interesting subjects as generating a number of thought-provoking moments to be appreciated. Although I was initially a bit baffled about what exactly it intends to do, … Continue reading →

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Dolemite Is My Name (2019) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Eddie Murphy back in his element

Posted on October 28, 2019 by kaist455

“Dolemite Is My Name”, which was released on Netflix on last Friday, is a lively and cheerful biographical comedy film which delighted and entertained me a lot. As a sort of cross between Tim Burton’s “Ed Wood” (1994) and Mario … Continue reading →

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The Forest of Love (2019) ☆☆(2/4): A monotonously self-indulgent work by Sion Sono

Posted on October 13, 2019 by kaist455

The works of Japanese filmmaker Sion Sono are definitely not something you can casually watch on Sunday afternoon. I still remember well how much I was chilled and disturbed by “Cold Fish” (2010), a remorselessly cold-blooded thriller about an ordinary … Continue reading →

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Knife+Heart (2018) ☆☆☆(3/4): Who’s killing her gay porn actors?

Posted on October 7, 2019 by kaist455

French film “Knife+Heart” is a cheerfully gaudy and goofy mix of cheap gay porn flicks and campy giallo horror movies of the 1970s. Although it is a bit shame that the movie does not try to be something more than … Continue reading →

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Memory: The Origins of Alien (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): The untold origin story behind “Alien”

Posted on September 27, 2019 by kaist455

Documentary film “Memory: The Origins of Alien” gives us a close look into how “Alien” (1979) was conceived and then produced step by step. If you are already quite familiar with the long production history behind this great science fiction … Continue reading →

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Their Finest (2016) ☆☆☆(3/4): Making a propaganda film during the World War II

Posted on August 12, 2019 by kaist455

In 2017, no less than three movies associated with the Battle of Dunkirk came out. While Christopher Nolan’s “Dunkirk” (2017) intensely focused on the battle itself, Joe Wright’s “Darkest Hour” (2017) observed the urgent political situation in Britain around that … Continue reading →

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Varda by Agnès (2019) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Her last words

Posted on June 9, 2019 by kaist455

I wish I had encountered the works of Agnès Varda earlier. During that wild period when I relentlessly devoured many works of various great filmmakers as your average young cinephile, I somehow missed many of her notable films except “Cléo … Continue reading →

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Filmworker (2017) ☆☆☆(3/4): Serving Kubrick

Posted on December 1, 2018 by kaist455

If you are a big fan of Stanley Kubrick’s films like me, you probably know about Leon Vitali, who was initially an actor but then came to assist Kubrick for nearly 20 years till Kubrick’s death. As a guy who … Continue reading →

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