humanity

Beauty: The Path Through The End Of The World
Beauty: The Path Through The End Of The World

Mad Max: Fury Road and Kipo and the Age of the Wonderbeasts are thematically tied together with their messages of hope and rebirth.

STRAY: A Heartfelt Examination Of Cohabitation
STRAY: A Heartfelt Examination Of Cohabitation

A deeply philosophical film, it loses much of its impact when the cameras stop rolling.

DEVS (S1 E1, E2) "Episode 1 & Episode 2": An Intriguing Start to What Could be a Fascinating Series
Alex Garland & The Human Heart Of Dystopia

We go through the career of Alex Garland, and how his films often follow a similar theme of focusing on dystopian worlds.

SÁTÁNTANGÓ: Restored & Relived
SÁTÁNTANGÓ: Restored & Relived

Sátántangó is the kind of film that so few filmmakers have the opportunity to make, and even fewer are given the chance to have them shown and cared for so widely.

SÁTÁNTANGÓ: State Of Decay
SÁTÁNTANGÓ: State Of Decay

I came to the conclusion that I like watching paint dry because not only did…

Anarchic Cinema: Jean Vigo's ZERO FOR CONDUCT
Anarchic Cinema: Jean Vigo’s ZERO FOR CONDUCT

On numerous conscious and subconscious levels, Jean Vigo’s Zero for Conduct is one of the most honest examinations of humanity and human society yet made in cinematic form. That is Anarchic Cinema.

BLADE RUNNER & The Violence Of Civilization

In discussing the role of replicants within the context of the two Blade Runner films, we discover just what is horrifying about a sentient creation that is not allowed their humanity.

THE PENGUIN COUNTERS: A Persnickety Penguin Story
THE PENGUIN COUNTERS: A Persnickety Penguin Story

Although The Penguin Counters showcases a sense of wonderment for its central research expedition, it fails to fully capture the importance of this mission to the Arctic.

FANTASSUT: The Human Face of War
FANTASSÚT: The Human Face Of War

Fantassút, a short documentary about the largest refugee camp in Europe, is a surprisingly beautiful depiction of real people who lived through hellish conditions.

HOMO SAPIENS: A Portrait Of Humanity In Absentia
HOMO SAPIENS: A Portrait Of Humanity In Absentia

How can an unconventional documentary lasting 134 minutes and consisting entirely of the juxtaposition of naturalistic scenes be a compelling and rewarding cinematic journey capable of matching the most innovative 3D IMAX movie for sheer scale, awe and engagement?

The Divine Sacrifice Of Humanity In THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC & THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST
The Divine Sacrifice Of Humanity In THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC & THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST

Religious figures and various saints have been on film since the birth of the medium. It can be tricky for a director to present the story of a venerated character, as they can mean many things to different people. In both Carl Theodor Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc and the Martin Scorsese picture The Last Temptation of Christ, the directors brought their own religious visions to screen, although not without controversy.

Entertainment
ENTERTAINMENT: Existential Desert Stand-Up and The Struggle For Connection

Comedy is a tricky thing; it’s hyper-subjective and typically draws from dark elements to create laughter. The search for one’s own comedy is thus, in a sense, the result of grappling some of the least desirable aspects of the human experience and wrangling it into something with a punchline. This is why the cliché of the “sad clown” is so prevalent and continues to be perpetuated to this day, such as with Marc Maron’s self-loathing diatribes and the tag posthumously attributed to Robin Williams.

A NAZI LEGACY: Intriguing But No Revelation

In What Our Fathers Did: A Nazi Legacy two sons are brought together by a shared legacy, the legacy mentioned in the title. Both are the sons of high-ranking Nazi officers.

Crumb documentary
25 Greatest Documentaries of All time: Part 2

There is a common misconception that documentaries are somehow easier than traditional narrative film making, that all it constitutes is finding something interesting and pointing your camera in that direction. But that is precisely because that is how they are intended to appear. A great documentary is like a great matte painting in a Hollywood feature; it looks completely real and thus its artifice is practically invisible, but it was actually created with extraordinary craft and is the result of a series of artistic choices.

Jason Bourne and America’s Spiritual Crisis

Near the conclusion of The Bourne Identity (2002), we find our hero, Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), taking refuge in a country farmhouse belonging to Eamon, the ex-boyfriend of Bourne’s hostage/lover/sexy barber Marie (Franke Potente). Bourne’s shadowy employers have dispatched a rival Treadstone assassin – known only as The Professor (Clive Owen) – to eliminate the threat posed by their malfunctioning asset. When Eamon’s son notices the family dog has gone missing, Bourne (preternaturally perceptive, as always) recognizes the portent.