USA

  • Charles Laughton – The Night of the Hunter (1955)

    USA1951-1960Charles LaughtonClassicsFilm NoirRobert Mitchum

    Quote:
    The Night of the Hunter—incredibly, the only film the great actor Charles Laughton ever directed—is truly a stand-alone masterwork. A horror movie with qualities of a Grimm fairy tale, it stars a sublimely sinister Robert Mitchum as a traveling preacher named Harry Powell (he of the tattooed knuckles), whose nefarious motives for marrying a fragile widow, played by Shelley Winters, are uncovered by her terrified young children. Graced by images of eerie beauty and a sneaky sense of humor, this ethereal, expressionistic American classic—also featuring the contributions of actress Lillian Gish and writer James Agee—is cinema’s most eccentric rendering of the battle between good and evil.Read More »

  • Vincente Minnelli – The Clock (1945)

    1941-1950ClassicsRomanceUSAVincente Minnelli

    In 1945, during a 48-hour leave, a soldier accidentally meets a girl at Pennsylvania Station and spends his leave with her, eventually falling in love with the lovely New Yorker.Read More »

  • Travis Wilkerson – Machine Gun or Typewriter? (2015)

    2011-2020DocumentaryExperimentalTravis WilkersonUSA

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    Once again, Travis Wilkerson (take a look at the credits) has worked (almost) by himself on his last film. Using the quest for a lost love as an excuse, this extremely generous film casts a wide net over History, from Maïakovsky to a certain L. Schapiro, from Bonnie & Clyde to Ulrike Meinhof, from the 1871 Paris Commune to the here and now. Despite its stunning economy of means, this playful and ironical film with a beautiful soundtrack always remains elegant. FIDMarseille catalogue. Read More »

  • Wayne Wang – The Center of the World (2001)

    Drama2001-2010ArthouseUSAWayne Wang

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Quote:
    “Richard, an isolated programmer who made millions with his company, meets a pretty girl in a café. The pretty girl is a drummer; she is also a stripper. Richard wants to live it up and after careful negotiations, takes Florence to Las Vegas for a weekend. He pays her 10,000 dollars and promises to adhere to her conditions, which include no kissing on the mouth, no penetration, and limits their time together to the hours between 10pm and 2am. “Read More »

  • Lynne Sachs – Carolee, Barbara & Gunvor (2017)

    2011-2020ExperimentalLynne SachsShort FilmUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Synopsis
    From 2015 to 2017, Lynne visited with Carolee Schneemann, Barbara Hammer and Gunvor Nelson, three multi-faceted artists who have embraced the moving image throughout their lives. Lynne shoots film with each woman in the place where she finds grounding and spark.Read More »

  • Thomas Carr – Bobby Ware Is Missing (1955)

    Drama1951-1960CrimeThomas CarrUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    This suspense film revolves around the crime of child abduction. The parents of the missing child undertake a feverish search for their son. The police are contacted, and a ransom letter is received.
    Read More »

  • Alfred Hitchcock – Marnie (1964)

    1961-1970Alfred HitchcockClassicsDramaUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Quote:
    Marnie Edgar is a habitual liar and a thief who gets jobs as a secretary and after a few months robs the firms in question, usually of several thousand dollars. When she gets a job at Rutland’s, she also catches the eye of the handsome owner, Mark Rutland. He prevents her from stealing and running off, as is her usual pattern, but also forces her to marry him. Their honeymoon is a disaster and she cannot stand to have a man touch her and on their return home, Mark has a private detective look into her past. When he has the details of what happened in her childhood to make her what she is, he arranges a confrontation with her mother realizing that reliving the terrible events that occurred in her childhood and bringing out those repressed memories is the only way to save her.Read More »

  • Otto Preminger – Saint Joan (1957)

    Drama1951-1960Otto PremingerUSA

    Synopsis (possible spoilers):
    “Twenty-five years after having been burnt at the stake for heresy, Joan of Arc returns to King Charles VII of France as a ghost and taunts him for having betrayed her. They recall the time when Joan, driven by divine messages, persuaded Charles, then Dauphin, to allow her to lead an army to attack the English at Orleans. Did Charles show gratitude when Joan defeated the English, a victory that enabled him to be crowned king at Reims? No, he only wanted her to return to her village and resume the life of an anonymous peasant girl. When she failed in her attempt to take Paris from the English, who came to Joan’s aid when she was arrested and tried by the Catholic Church for heresy? No one…”
    – Films de FranceRead More »

  • James Benning – One Way Boogie Woogie (1977)

    1971-1980DocumentaryExperimentalJames BenningUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    From AllMovie Guide:
    “James Benning’s early films fused the “structuralist” investigations into sound-image relationships of filmmakers like Michael Snow and Hollis Frampton with an interest in narrative and a deep sensitivity to color, light, and landscape. He first grabbed the attention of the avant-garde film world with 8 1/2 x 11 and 11 x 14. Filmed in vivid color in the rural and urban landscapes of his native Midwest, these two films would provide the kernel for his further investigations into film form.
    His films’ rigorous structures — often based on numerical systems — and exquisitely composed shots reflect his training as a mathematician, and their frequently autobiographical subject matter draws upon his working-class roots (a rare subject for avant-garde film) and his longtime commitment to political activism.Read More »

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