| Film Inquiry

Film Reviews October 6, 2016 April 13, 2017

THE HOMESTRETCH: Admirable Intentions, Sadly Lacking

The sincerity of The Homestretch is certainly never in doubt. Depicting the plight of three homeless teens in Chicago, Anne de Mare and Kirsten Kelly’s documentary interweaves the personal stories with various facts and statistics highlighting the widespread nature of the issue. Unfortunately, despite its pure intentions, The Homestretch never really manages to succeed to be truly engaging, regardless of the clear warmth of the three featured youths.

Film Reviews October 3, 2016 April 13, 2017

Revisiting Baz Luhrmann’s Cinematic Style In THE GREAT GATSBY

Baz Luhrmann is a divisive director. His unique blend of pop culture references coupled with highly choreographed, hyperbolic sequences can, for some, prove distracting. Certainly, these criticisms are understandable, if not valid.

Features September 14, 2016 April 13, 2017

John Hughes’ Women: Monsters & Angels

There’s a strange dichotomy surrounding the films of John Hughes, both written and directed. In one sense, there have been few directors that have so understood the angst of the teenage experience. Yet, conversely, Hughes’ depiction of both race and gender are entirely at odds with his apparent insight into the teen condition.

Features August 29, 2016 April 13, 2017

Writers On-Screen: The Idealisation Of The Creative Process

Watching Frank recently, it occurred to me how often the creative process is shown on-screen, and how frequently this process is shown in a hackneyed, unsubtle way. Too often directors attempt to over-romanticise the writing process, and feature endless montages of their artists receiving some form of divine inspiration, as if writing was truly that exciting and easy. Admittedly, showing such a process on-screen is problematic.

Sofia Coppola on the set of The Bling Ring, photographed by Andrew Durham, 2012

Beginner's Guide, Resources August 25, 2016 April 13, 2017

The Beginner’s Guide: Sofia Coppola, Director

It seems strange that a body of work which has largely focused on the female experience without pontificating, should prove to be so contentious. And yet, Sofia Coppola’s viewers seem to fall largely within two extremes: the devoted and the apathetic.

Film Theory, Resources August 12, 2016 April 13, 2017

Book Adaptations And The Fidelity Argument

Last month it was announced that Kirsten Dunst, in her directorial debut, will be directing Dakota Fanning in an adaptation of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. In an interview, Dunst has noted that her approach in adapting the seminal text has been to avoid the ‘didactic’ and instead ‘make a life of something … you really need to make your own scenes up’. Such an approach, while entirely refreshing for me, is one that regularly receives criticism from those that view the source text as somehow sacred, and thus static and intractable.