John Sayles - Matewan - 1987
(rewatch)
Classic 80s film. First time I saw Chris Cooper, Will Oldham or David Strathairn. Kevin Tighe plays one of the most intense heavies ever in film history.
Arthur Penn - Night Moves - 1975
(rewatch)
Perfect film engaging in the classic Chandler/Hammitt plot confusion.
Mati Diop - Atlantique - 2019
Strangely psychedelic Senegalese crepuscular voodoo aberrations drenched in Popol Vuh inspired soundscapes by Fatima Al Qadiri and white eyed black magic subtly shifting through the night. Orbiting a comparable cosmic world to Jean Rouch's film Les maîtres fous from 1955. Beautiful film for the entire family.
Richard Donner - Inside Moves - 1980
(rewatch)
One of those great examples of early 80s or pre-80s cinema, with that 70s feel but a little more plain in style with some hidden ghost pepper chili sauce giving the film some kick. Written by Valerie Curtin and Barry Levinson, cinematography by László Kovács, music by John Barry, starring John Savage, David Morse, Diana Scarwid, Amy Wright, and the city of Oakland California. Just a fantastic film that revolves around friendships in a local dive bar. Savage shows his heavy actorshippe in some scenes that honestly leave you breathless.
12.13.2019
Quentin Tarantino - Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood - 2019
(rewatch)
Second time watching this and as equally moved as the first time, or more. The subtleties of this film contribute to a je ne sais quoi cinematic magic, like the shot of Brad Pitt driving through 1969 Hollywood which in its striking velocity reminds this viewer why he goes to the cinema. Or Leo snorting, stuttering, coughing, and later cursing himself for forgetting lines. It would be easy to dismiss the film for the Bruce Lee scene or the ending violence which was of course gratuitous and misogynistic, but don't these qualities give the film's "true grit" and character? Tarantino entwines worlds of 1960s cinematic mediocrity into a film that is in no way mediocre. I heard Amy Taubin say Tarantino's obsession with shite cinema and bad TV made the film less appealing, and pointless in a decade that was so rich with good cinema. To disagree with her slightly, the period of 1969 finds us heading quickly towards the 1970s film culture where abjection ascends to a cinema that has yet to find its equal.
12.14.2019
Safdie Brothers - Uncut Gems - 2019
Exorcist beginnings move quickly to an onanistic experience. Soundtrack more onanistic than picture, with no sound to image relationship, and I will make a "point never" to listen to the soundtrack on its own. Made for an onansitic culture quickly forming a circle jerk together to celebrate and rejoice in this mind-bending coitus interruptus. And after all that we find our hero is the victim of a nihilistic ending.
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