Saturday, November 25, 2017
First Lines: H.P. Lovecraft - At the Mountains of Madness
I am forced into speech because men of science have refused to follow my advice without knowing why.
To Die For (1995)
A beautiful but naïve aspiring television personality films a documentary on teenagers with a darker ulterior motive.
Slyly made satire with an excellent performance by Nicole Kidman has lost some of its bite over time, probably because much of it has come true.
Halliwell*: "A deft satire on the worship of celebrity for its own sake and the way television can elevate the ordinary to heroic status, though it takes aim at an exceptionally easy target - a small-town girl - without managing to hit the bull's-eye."
Maltin**1/2: "Kidman is perfect...this black comedy seems to make all the right moves, but plays out its story with a surprising lack of irony; by the climax it has nothing more to offer."
Friday, November 24, 2017
Don Camillo (1952)
In a village of the Po valley where the earth is hard and life miserly, the priest and the communist mayor are always fighting to be the head of the community.
Mildly satiric comedy with lovable characters finds humour in the smalltown Cold War antagonisms of its time.
Halliwell*: "Slightly lethargic character comedy with a mild message for its times, popular enough to warrant several sequels."
Maltin**1/2: "Fernandel is the whole show in this comic tale...Moderately funny satire of religion and politics..."
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
Kokuhaku (2010)
A grieving mother turns cold-blooded avenger with a twisty master plan to pay back those who were responsible for her daughter's death.
Amazingly dense and unusual psychological thriller is presented with a visually imaginative style, and the plot is complex and multiperspective.
