For all the talk of Nosferatu bringing horny back to the cinema, it’s useful to remind ourselves of the pervertedly lush world of Edogawa Ranpo. Predominantly a mystery writer (say his name fast and you’re close to the writer of “The Purloined Letter”), it’s his unique brand of “Ero guro […]
Reviews
Yokohama BJ Blues (1981) Grim Satire of America’s influence on Japan
TThe 1980s was an odd era for Japanese cinema, caught between the end of one golden generation and the rise of another. That’s not to say nothing of note was produced—directors like Shōhei Imamura and Akira Kurosawa were still working, albeit sporadically, and a new generation was on the rise. […]
Demolition Man 4K (1993) Shrewder, Clever and Much More than the three Seashells
Cinematic visions of the future often lean towards the grim and dystopian. From Blade Runner to Total Recall to Equilibrium, a dark future allows for social tensions to inform character dynamics and visual design. In the case of 1993’s Demolition Man, decisions were made to create a weird movie to […]
The Story of Adele H (1977) Sacrifices the polite baggage of the Costume Drama becoming like a nightmare
There’s never been much consensus about the value of Francois Truffaut’s work after the first five or six years of his career, the most commonly accepted view being that after the his key intervention in the Cannes Festival protests of 1968, Enfant Terrible’s old principles seemed to row back and […]
The Addiction (1995) Battling a True Horror
By 1995, Abel Ferrara was on a run of high quality work that rivals any of his New York contemporaries’ best. Starting with King of New York in 1990, Ferrara had built up a body of work that plunged into the very depths of city life, disappearing down the dark […]
The Man from Majorca (1984) Buddy Cops, Scandi Style
Coming to Blu-ray this week, Radiance follows up last year’s release of Bo Widerberg’s 1976 cult classic Man on the Roof with another masculine-sounding policier from the director: 1984’s The Man from Majorca. Like the previous effort, it’s a distinctly Scandinavian take on gritty New Hollywood cop movies, such as […]
The Secret of NIMH (1982) – Don Bluth Gives Animation The Respect It Deserves
Don Bluth is one of those filmmakers who fascinates me, despite the fact that I had never seen one of his films until now. People talk about his animated efforts with even more reverence than we normally reserve for the best Disney and Pixar films. If you’re like me and […]
Horrible History: Four Films by Chang Cheh (1972-76)
It’s impossible to talk about Hong Kong cinema without mentioning Chang Cheh. From his prolific output to his genre-defining works, Chang’s films may have lacked the nuance of some of his peers—but when those peers are the legendary King Hu and the artistically refined Lau Kar Leung, it’s little wonder. […]
Godzilla Minus One (2023) Community, Camaraderie, and Godzilla at his most Terrifying
In 1954, a giant creature entered the frame of a Japanese monster movie. A name (with two forms) echoed around the world like a deafening ‘Skreeonk,’ and this name has continued to echo for 70 years. Gojira/Godzilla is one of the most iconic and recognisable figures in popular culture, perpetuated […]
The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008) – A sweeping epic so slickly directed
In regards to Korean filmmakers, Western audiences often sing the praises of Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho (especially after the latter’s Oscar wins), yet Kim Jee-woon can feel left out of the conversation. With a filmography that includes I Saw The Devil, A Tale of Two Sisters, and A Bittersweet […]