Brian de Palma’s work always has gigantic quotation marks about. He doesn’t tell stories; he makes “cinema.” His larger-than-life, garishly coloured style is best suited to big movies, stories of sex, violence and oversized emotions. On paper, his style seems perfectly suited to the lurid psychosexual thriller-cum-horror movie Dressed to Kill. There are some thrilling…
Let’s be honest: when you’re talking about classic movie monsters, werewolves are basically a cut-rate version of vampires. They’re an incarnation of all the same fears – loss of control, the savage nature of man, fear of sex (specifically, venereal diseases) – while being, for the most part, more ridiculous than scary. There are some…
Hey, couple reviews on websites other than this one. First is for The Spectacular Now over at The 500 Club. I really, really liked this one, and it’ll be ranked quite highly when I put my top films of the year list together. Second review is for Dallas Buyers Club which was also really good,…
Whatever failings season three of Homeland had, at least it ended well. “The Star” is an emotional, subdued finale that succeeds by remembering one of the key themes that made Homeland’s first season work. Beyond the spy hijinks and the Carrie/Brody romance, season one was motivated by a sense of powerlessness. Both Carrie and Brody…
American Hustle reminded me of a scene from another, very different 2013 movie. About halfway through Spring Breakers, gangster-rapper (emphasis on the former) Alien, played by James Franco, bursts into a memorable, consumerist rant. “Look at my shit!” he cries, roving around his expensive bedroom, festooned with gold-plated guns and a television playing Scarface on…
Yesterday was Friday the 13th, and I took the opportunity to maximise my school holidays by sitting down with a few beers to watch the entirety of the Friday the 13th slasher series. Well, the first eight films at least: I left out Jason Goes to Hell, Jason X, Freddy vs Jason and the execrable…
Early in “The Bridge” there’s a scene that tells you everything you need to know about where Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is at this point in the season. Discussing Mike (J. August Richards from the pilot), Ward complains that he’s psychotic or something equally disparaging before breaking out that old chestnut: “He’s right behind me,…
Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha is a curious blend of universality and specificity. It tells the tale of young Frances Halliday (Greta Gerwig), an aspiring dancer, as she bounces from apartment to apartment in New York City. We follow her successes and her failures, and watch her orbit through and around various friendship groups, moving away…
Nicholas Brody’s ambiguous intentions were one of Homeland’s biggest assets back in season one, where almost every episode revolved around the question – “What’s Brody actually up to?” His uncertain allegiances and malleability became the linchpin – and eventual crutch – of season two, driving his conversion to the side of the CIA in “Q&A”…
You may have noticed my blog posting slackening a little after ccpopculture’s “first birthday.” Partly this is explained by the time of year, as I’ve just finished up school for the year, which meant lots of marking and reporting and limited time to blog. It’s because I’ve posted an increasing number of Extended Cut posts…
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