Category Archives: Movies

Review: Three Thousand Years of Longing

Posted on February 21, 2023 by philipbrasor

George Miller may be our prime cinematic fantasist if only because his fantasies cover such a wide range of subject matter. Known mainly for the Mad Max series, he’s also responsible for the two Babe movies and the animated penguin … Continue reading →

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Review: Benedetta

Posted on February 18, 2023 by philipbrasor

Though it may seem too obvious, I’m still surprised Paul Verhoeven has never made a women’s prison movie given the potential for steamy clinches under pressure of violence. With Benedetta he does what I would assume to be the next … Continue reading →

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Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Posted on February 17, 2023 by philipbrasor

One of the saving graces of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is that neither the characters nor the filmmakers take it all that seriously. The Ant-Man series is probably the least serious of the various franchises, owing mainly to the casting … Continue reading →

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Review: Decision to Leave

Posted on February 16, 2023 by philipbrasor

Though it feels timeless, the narrative concept of the femme fatale seems peculiarly suited for the movies, and many film enthusiasts will probably locate its peak utilization during the heyday of Hollywood in the 40s and 50s in works like … Continue reading →

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Review: Mass

Posted on February 11, 2023 by philipbrasor

One of the classic challenges for filmmakers is to take a story that was written for the stage and “open it up” for the screen. There are a variety of ways to do this, but it mostly involves creating a … Continue reading →

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Review: Compartment No. 6

Posted on February 10, 2023 by philipbrasor

I’m embarrassed to admit that it wasn’t until about 30 minutes into Juho Kuosmanen’s film about a Finnish student traveling by train from Moscow to the Arctic Circle—which won the Grand Prix at Cannes in 2021—that I realized it was … Continue reading →

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Review: Egoist

Posted on February 9, 2023 by philipbrasor

Serendipity can come in various forms. Daishi Matsunaga’s new movie about a homosexual relationship arrives in theaters a week after Japan’s ruling party embarrassed itself by saying the public (read: the ruling party) isn’t ready for same sex marriage, and … Continue reading →

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Review: Babylon

Posted on February 8, 2023 by philipbrasor

In a very short time Damien Chazelle has staked his claim as Hollywood’s primary exemplar of entertainment-themed entertainment. That Neil Armstrong bio-fantasy was the exception that proved the rule, since it didn’t make as much of an impression as his … Continue reading →

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Review: Fall

Posted on February 4, 2023 by philipbrasor

High concept cinema, meaning movies premised on a single, simple, vivid idea, is really all about the setup, since the concept itself isn’t going to work unless the viewer is given some reason to care about it. In Scott Mann’s … Continue reading →

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Review: Everything Went Fine

Posted on February 2, 2023 by philipbrasor

If there’s one theme or idea that runs like a bright thread through Francois Ozon’s films is that it’s often tough to be a member of the educated upper classes in France. Occasionally, he has fun with this theme in … Continue reading →

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