Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Front Runner" (2018)

 As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

A24 A-to-Z: #77. "Climax" (2019)

Scene from Climax (2019)

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for years to come.

Review: "Parasite" is a Sick and Desperate Masterpiece

Scene from Parasite (2019)

As its title would suggest, Parasite is a film that has infected the public consciousness for most of 2019. After winning the Palme d'Or at Cannes, it has slowly gained more acclaim for being one of the weirdest, most twisted films of the year. No amount of advertising could truly take away its mystique. Even the fact that it's dominating at the American box office in ways that few Korean films have should say how special this film is. But what is Parasite, and why is director Bong Joon-ho suddenly being labeled as the Oscar front-runner? To put it simply, the film is just that good. This isn't just a story that appeals to Korean ideals. It's a story that feels like a universal problem finally distilled in one entertaining, horrific package that is impossible to ignore. Not only is this Joon-ho's best work (which is really saying something), but it's one of the most essential narratives of the decade.

A24 A-to-Z: #66. "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" (2018)

Scene from How to Talk to Girls at Parties

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for years to come.

A24 A-to-Z: #57. "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" (2017)

Scene from The Killing of a Sacred Deer

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

A24 A-to-Z: #41. "American Honey" (2016)

Scene from American Honey

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

A24 A-to-Z: #40. "The Sea of Trees" (2016)

Scene from The Sea of Trees

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

The First "BlacKkKlansman" Trailer Shows Spike Lee at His Most Urgent

Scene from BlacKkKlansman

There's a lot that's currently going on over at the Cannes Film Festival. Among the most noteworthy is the praise around director Spike Lee's latest BlacKkKlansman. He's a director whose praise has ebbed and flowed over the years, hitting a recent standstill with movies that haven't quite captured the zeitgeist. However, there's a good chance that his latest will in which two police officers go under cover to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). It's a film that promises to capture the heated race relations of modern America and possibly bring out a side of Lee that has made him a cinematic icon for over 30 years. The first trailer definitely helps to suggest that it's got a lot to say, and it's going to do so very angrily. 

Theory Thursday: "Wild At Heart" is Overrated

Laura Dern

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Palme d'Or Winner "The Square" is High on Concept in First Trailer

Scene from The Square

If you want one big difference between world cinema and the more distilled American brand, one need not look further than Cannes and the Palme d'Or. Every year, the festival honors the best in world cinema. This year was a pretty big deal, as Sofia Coppola won Best Director for The Beguiled, and Force Majeure director Ruben Ostlund won the top prize with The Square. What should be a sign of overall quality isn't often the case universally, as the last Palme d'Or winner nominated for Best Picture was Amour in 2012. However, it's still worth checking out what is considered the best in world cinema, and odds are that The Square at least looks to be tons of fun, even if The Academy doesn't think so.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Carol" (2015)

Scene from Carol

As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

Review: "The Neon Demon" Confrims Refn's Transition From Vulgar Auteur Into An Endurance Test

Scene from The Neon Demon

In 2011, director Nicolas Winding Refn saw himself in a lawsuit over his film Drive. It was claimed that it was misrepresented as a conventional action movie. To general audiences, it was a travesty of boredom. Five years and two movies later, it's hard to imagine what the audience appalled by atmospheric driving sequences would have to say about The Neon Demon: a film that's rich with provocative, sometimes disturbing, imagery that earned a healthy dose of boos at Cannes and for some reason is seen this past weekend in wide release. While a beautiful example of postmodern art, it's a film whose fans will be greatly isolated from the general consensus due to Refn's cryptic style that turns him from an auteur of masculine aggression simply into an endurance test. There's a lot to like about The Neon Demon. One just has to accept that it's buried underneath Refn's clear and distinct vision that is sometimes unpleasant or pretentious. 

A Look at Woody Allen and Separating the Art and the Artist

Woody Allen

While my main goal on this blog is to not get too political, it's hard sometimes to avoid discussing certain things. If you're anyone who follows the media circuit, you'll know that this was a big day for Woody Allen. For starters, his new film Cafe Society opened Cannes. However, it was overshadowed by a variety of events including Ronan Farrow's excellent piece regarding the media's handling of Allen's own molestation charges. This has raised the obvious statement, and one when pieced together with a recent interview that suggested that he saved his wife and adopted daughter (the same person) Soon-Yi from misery, is that he's a creepy pervert. Here's my opinion: I acknowledge that all of this really does it make more conflicting for me to like his work, but it's also harder to not admit that I still like his work. It's time that I discuss the unfortunate deed of separating the artist from the artist.

Theory Thursday: "Dancer in the Dark" is the Best (Non-American) Palme d'Or Winner

Scene from Dancer in the Dark

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

The First Trailer for Cannes Favorite "The Lobster" is Strangely Funny

Continuing the release of trailers for movies that played at Cannes is the latest from director Giorgos Lanthimos called The Lobster. The Greek director has made a career out of making films that are challenging studies of identity, most prevalent in the films Dogtooth and Alps. With his English debut, he gets a lot of high profile actors to tell what is probably one of the strangest stories yet. If a man doesn't marry, he will turn into a lobster. To most of you, you likely checked out, baffled by that plot description. However, I do think that the first trailer at very least looks to be an entertaining romp.

The First Trailer for "Youth" Explores the Speculative Beauty of Life

Scene from Youth

In 2013, director Paolo Sorrentino won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film with The Great Beauty. It was a film that swept awards season with its moving portrait of artists in Italy and the study of its significance. Two years later, he returns to cinema with a film that received rave reviews from Cannes and has already followed in similar reputation to that of its predecessor. Youth is a film that, as its title suggests, plans to explore the mesmerizing qualities of youth. While it is unsure if the film will be as acclaimed or as successful as its predecessor, the first trailer has hit the web, and it at least looks to be a very powerful study of aging.

The First "Louder Than Bombs" Footage Promises Intense Drama

Scene from Louder than Bombs

A little while ago, I mentioned quite a few films that premiered at Cannes that I was going to keep an eye out for. While we have seen a few already garner some buzz, there have been few to have trailers and much public attention. Today marks quite a special day for those, like myself, who have been looking forward to the latest from director Joachim Trier called Louder Than Bombs, which stars Jesse Eisenberg in the director's English debut. Today marks the release of a trailer and a few clips, which would suggest that we are still in great hands.

Lesbian Drama "Carol" Receives New Release Date

Cate Blanchett

If you're already marking up your calendar for Oscars season, there's plenty of chance that director Todd Haynes' Carol has been on there since its stellar debut at the Cannes Film Festival. With its initial release date planned for December 18, it was looking to open among a heady group that included The Hateful Eight and even blockbusters like Star Wars: Episode 7 - The Force Awakens. Even if Carol is almost a surefire Oscar contender, it made a move recently that saved it from falling into obscurity. It has a release date that gives it more of a significant notice to the casual audiences.

The First Trailer for "Love" is Explicit and Explicitly Noe in Every Way

If you read my post about films to check out from Cannes, there's a chance that you are at least vaguely familiar with director Gaspar Noe's Love. While I do not have high hopes of it making the Oscars shortlist, or even a longer list for that matter, I do think that there's something interesting about Noe's work in general. He is an aggressive filmmaker who is very explicit yet stylish in how he portrays everyday life. For those with a strong stomach, there's a chance that you might find his work appealing. With his latest film Love already getting mixed reviews, it is interesting to see the first trailer for the film which yes, is a little NSFW as predicted by the subject matter. However, it does seem to promise something as surreal and bizarre as we'd come to expect from him.

Films to Watch Out For From This Year's Cannes Festival

As the case with every year, the Cannes Film Festival remains the peak of international cinema. More than Sundance or Toronto International Film Festival, the award embodies a prestige that few other awards can get. In a long and storied run, the festival has awarded some of the finest in world cinema including last year's winner Winters Sleep and the previous year's more successful Blue is the Warmest Color. With the festival now wrapped up, it feels like as good of a time as any to look back on the few films that may likely be worth checking out when they finally arrive stateside.