All the Money in the World (2017)
As a representation of the corrupting influence of money – whether in the hands of mafioso or oil barons – All the Money in the World is successful if simplistic.
Images on a Wall: Blade Runner 2049
At its best, Blade Runner 2049 is a film about negotiating the notion of identity in the dense lattice of a technological society. Villeneuve amplifies the first film’s themes of complicity in an oppressive society.
The Perverse Pessimism of Alien Covenant: The Best Alien Movie Since Aliens
Ridley Scott uses all the black goop and snarling xenomorphs to stage an earnest, ambitious attempt to grapple with big ideas.
Lenny Abrahamson’s Room Expertly Plays On Your Heartstrings
One of the biggest surprises of this year’s Oscars’ nominations was Room, which picked up largely-unexpected nods for Best Picture and Best Director. Even Lenny Abrahamson, Room’s director, was surprised by his inclusion on the list (at the expense of Ridley Scott, if the pundits are to be believed). Abrahamson – who broke through with…
The Martian is the Anti-Alien – an Optimistic Paean to Science and Nerddom
Three-and-a-half decades ago, Alien established Ridley Scott as a director to watch. Drawing on the conventions of the increasingly-popular slasher film and rejecting the Star-Trek-esque optimism of the sci-fi films of that era, he created a chilling classic. But his potential as a director has dribbled away somewhat in the years since; while I don’t…
Canon Will Eat Itself: Alien and Other Modern Icons
District 9 director Neil Blomkamp kicked up a fuss yesterday when it was reported that his upcoming Alien sequel would break continuity from the last two films of the franchise, Alien3 and Alien: Resurrection. Blomkamp has since stepped back from that assertion – “I’m not trying to undo Alien 3 or Alien: Resurrection, I just…
Prometheus (2012)
Watching Prometheus upon release, it was hard not to sympathise with scientist Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green). Having spent years hoping to find the “Engineers” who brought about the genesis of mankind and left cryptic messages painted on cave walls, he found himself filled with existential despair, upon finding only their corpses. I walked out of…
ccpopculture 