Fred Camper, Chicago Reader, 2001, wrote:
A particularly beautiful lily seems to grow before our eyes, gradually changing shape; what sounds like breathing on the sound track gives it an almost human presence. Suddenly the sound and movement stop as a glass plate, invisible until now, cracks – and it seems we’ve been watching, in Smith’s words, ‘the forced development of a hothouse flower’.Read More »

One of the most electrifying heroes of the twentieth century receives an appropriately sweeping screen biopic, rich in both historical insight and propulsive cinematic style, courtesy of visionary director Spike Lee. Built around an extraordinary performance from Denzel Washington, Malcolm X draws on the iconic civil rights leader’s autobiography to trace his journey of empowerment, from a childhood riven by white-supremacist violence to a life of petty crime to his conversion to Islam and rebirth as a fearless fighter for Black liberation, whose courage and eloquence inspired oppressed communities the world over. Impeccably crafted by Lee and his closest creative collaborators, and buoyed by commanding performances from Angela Bassett, Delroy Lindo, Al Freeman Jr., and others, this is a passionate monument to a man whose life continues to serve as a model of principled resistance.Read More »

Quote:
Another boring evening at the Baron’s home; he sits and reads a magazine, while his wife sits across the reading table, reading a newspaper. The housemaid enters, bringing a message from Franz, who convenes the Baron to an urgent meeting at the Club. Excusing himself, and thoroughly kissing his wife good-evening, the Baron leaves – to meet some lady of the night in the club’s private room, with champagne and a sofa for two. At home, the Baroness gets bored, until she has an idea, soon put to practice. She sends a man a letter, signed Divine Lola, giving him rendez-vous at a discreet pension. The modern Eve is not taking her husband’s infidelities sitting down. She lays in her undershirt on a bed inviting her lover in, in a long embrace.Read More »

Plot : French independent director Paul Vecchiali playfully bites the hand that periodically feeds him (and many of the nation’s other creative filmmakers) in this dark comedy. Writer and director Vecchiali stars as a moviemaker named Paul Vecchiali, who is trying to complete his latest project, a dramatic love story about a young couple whose relationship is complicated by the man’s addiction to drugs. Short on funds, Vecchiali approaches the National Cinema Center, who offer loans and grants to independent filmmakers whom they believe are deserving. The NCC is less than impressed with Vecchiali’s latest script, and they turn him down, just as they have done a number of times in the past. Angry and determined that the NCC will never break the spirit of another director, Vecchiali and his crew block out a plan to assassinate the nine members of the funding board, though the press and public seem more bemused than outraged by the sudden rash of killings. Predictably enough, À Vot’ Bon Coeur received no funding from France’s National Cinema Center, though Vecchiali did have the nerve to submit the script. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie GuideRead More »

Scripted and directed by the writer of The Blood on Satan’s Claw, this eerie folklorish tale is set in 19th‑century Ireland amid an isolated rural community where poverty and superstition are rife. Maura (Mary Ryan), an introverted farm girl suspected of witchcraft, discovers a mystical world of the imagination through ‘a wild, ungodly man’ – the mysterious wanderer Scarf Michael (Mick Lally).

Billed on release as the first Irish feature film in half a century, but hardly seen in the past 40 years, this uniquely dreamlike directorial feature debut is presented in an acclaimed new 2K restoration by the Irish Film Institute.Read More »

Synopsis:
Nonaka Lock, who undertakes work for a huge fee, travels to Mexico to fulfill a promise he made to Pedro, who died in an accident in Mexico after his land was stolen and he was framed as a murderer. There, he is rescued by Miyako when he is being pickpocketed by a woman. Miyako says she has just arrived from Yokohama in search of her missing brother.Read More »

Remember that classic 1985 music video for a-ha’s “Take On Me,” the one where that girl in the diner falls into an animated charcoal drawing? Since then, its director, Steve Barron, has had an eclectic career—he helmed the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie and produced While You Were Sleeping—but with Choking Man, his first independent film, he returns to his earliest preoccupations: cartoons and girls in restaurants. Choking Man takes place at a Queens diner randomly owned by none other than Mandy Patinkin, affecting a Greek accent. Jorge (Octavio Gomez Berrios), a sullen, greasy Ecuadorian dishwasher, is a modern-day invisible man who gives himself over to extravagant animated fantasies, but speaks no more than 30 words though the course of the movie. Meanwhile, his charming coworker Amy (Eugenia Yuan) is being courted by the boorish Jerry (Aaron Paul), which pleases him not a bit. Choking Man has a tepid plotline, some stilted dialogue, and way too many pointless shots of the subway rumbling overhead. But the tender and spirited performances of its diverse cast elevate Barron’s portrait of contemporary Queens life.Read More »

Plot Synopsis by Sandra Brennan
A journalist for a popular travel magazine goes looking for interesting stories in Latin America and finds love instead in this colorful musical. The love angle comes from her fiance who lives there, and from the dashing photographer who accompanies her. Included are many South American acts including flamenco dancers Rosario and Antonio. Songs include: “Ba-Ba-Lu” (Bob Russell, Marguerita Lecuna), “Stars in Your Eyes”, “La Morine de Mi Copla” (Gabriel Ruiz, Mort Greene), “Rhumba Matumba” (Bobby Collazo, Greene), “Guadalajara” (Pepe Guizar, Greene), “Negra Leona” (A. Fernandez, Greene), and “Baramba” (Margarita Lecuona, Greene).Read More »

Synopsis:
A messy bachelor’s apartment is a paradise for the huge colony of cockroaches living there: no sprays, no traps, and plenty of food. When the homeowner’s girlfriend moves in, however, the party comes to an abrupt end, and the roaches must quickly adapt to a life of struggling for survival. Combines animation with live actors.Read More »