Posts Tagged ‘An Appreciation’
An Appreciation – Blade Runner: The Final Cut
My admiration for Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982) did not come immediately. It came about slowly, in bits and pieces, over a long stretch of time. When I first saw it, I knew that it was important, but also felt there was something holding me…
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An Appreciation – Pinocchio
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) may have proven that Walt Disney could make a feature length animated film, but it was Pinocchio (1940) that showed the medium reaching high art. In just the second outing from his studio, Disney shaped a flat out…
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An Appreciation – The Phantom Carriage
It is said that every New Year’s Eve the last person to pass away – if they were a sinner – will become the driver of Death’s carriage. For the next full year, this poor soul will travel the world collecting the souls of the…
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An Appreciation – Heat
Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) is the culmination of a career long obsession for its creator. For as long as Mann has been a filmmaker, he’s constantly returned to the same subject: the intricacies and nuances of characters operating on both sides of the law. Cops…
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An Appreciation – Ugetsu
We’ve all wanted more for ourselves. We grew up with ambitions beyond our grasp, waiting for us to one day reach out and take them. While some achieved their dreams, an equal amount fell well short. But the desire for something more has always remained…
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An Appreciation – Alien
In space no one can hear you scream It continues to amaze me how the first act of Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) is so…quiet. Very little happens in the opening scenes, and yet even now, they induce an unsettling feeling. Maybe because we know what…
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An Appreciation – One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
One of the most famous scenes in Milos Forman’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) also foreshadows its oncoming tragedy. The hellraiser R.P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), desperate to throw some variety into the repetitive, mundane life of a mental institution, asks head nurse Ratched…
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An Appreciation – Talk to Her
There are some filmmakers whose work is so recognizable that you can tell that a project is theirs without even having to read the credits. Whether it is in the camera work, choice of actors, or the themes that they delve into, many will leave…
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