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Fat Girl (2001)
Filmmaker(s): Catherine Breillat

Anaïs is twelve and bears the weight of the world on her shoulders. She watches her older sister, Elena, whom she both loves and hates. Elena is fifteen and devilishly beautiful. Neither more futile, nor more stupid than her younger sister, she cannot understand that she is merely an object of desire. And, as such, she can only be taken. Or had. Indeed, this is the subject: a girl's loss of virginity. And, that summer, it opens a door to tragedy.

Sets Us Aside Brellliat drives me a little crazy. She is an observer of one small corner of life and seems incidentally a filmmaker. You get different editions of her observations on the distance of young sex across which we throw ropes. So the question is which...


Published November 13, 2022
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Far and Away (1992)
What they needed was a country big enough for their dreams.
Filmmaker(s): Ron Howard

A young man leaves Ireland with his landlord's daughter after some trouble with her father, and they dream of owning land at the big giveaway in Oklahoma ca. 1893. When they get to the new land, they find jobs and begin saving money. The man becomes a local barehands boxer, and rides in glory until he is beaten, then his employers steal all the couple's money and they must fight off starvation in the winter, and try to keep their dream of owning land alive. Meanwhile, the woman's parents find out where she has gone and have come to America to find her and take her back.

Another Slap Here is another film in the tradition of “The Quiet Man:” Irish as hard drinkin hard fightin dopes downyou luvem. Once again, the hero is a fighter with a pure heart who the fight-addicted crowds love. Once again, the fiery redhead needs to be...


Published November 13, 2022
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Enola Holmes 2 (2022)
Go Big. Go Holmes.
Filmmaker(s): Harry Bradbeer

Now a detective-for-hire like her infamous brother, Enola Holmes takes on her first official case to find a missing girl, as the sparks of a dangerous conspiracy ignite a mystery that requires the help of friends — and Sherlock himself — to unravel.

Confidence Games Three things to like in this. The first is the obvious breaking of the fourth wall. Rather than be sly like Bruce Willis often was, this is in your face old school in-action narration. It is refreshing. Not so sure it will still work...


Published November 12, 2022
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Fantastic Four (2005)
4 times the action. 4 times the adventure. 4 times the fantastic.
Filmmaker(s): Tim Story

During a space voyage, four scientists are altered by cosmic rays: Reed Richards gains the ability to stretch his body; Sue Storm can become invisible; Johnny Storm controls fire; and Ben Grimm is turned into a super-strong … thing. Together, these "Fantastic Four" must now thwart the evil plans of Dr. Doom and save the world from certain destruction.

Two and a half We are seeing a new genre be invented and the process is quite thrilling. No one really knows what the genre will actually be, what it will look like and what few things will characterise it. So dozens of teams take stabs at...


Published November 12, 2022
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The Kovak Box (2006)
Filmmaker(s): Daniel Monzón

David Norton is used to being in control. As a best-selling author, he decides the fate of his characters, their lives and their deaths. But what happens when his fictional world becomes all too real?

Inverted Writing There is a standard form for a movie like this. It is so heavily imprinted that when you encounter a deviation, it shocks. We have a writer who wrote a book that comes alive. We expect that the relationship between book (the film within)...


Published November 9, 2022
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See How They Run (2022)
The greatest murder ever staged
Filmmaker(s): Tom George

In the West End of 1950s London, plans for a movie version of a smash-hit play come to an abrupt halt after a pivotal member of the crew is murdered. When world-weary Inspector Stoppard and eager rookie Constable Stalker take on the case, the two find themselves thrown into a puzzling whodunit within the glamorously sordid theater underground, investigating the mysterious homicide at their own peril.

More Layers The film itself is lovely, after the style of Anderson but with softer edges and more welcome split screens. The use of the splits is cinematically reflective of the story. That’s the real star here, though most folks focus on the comedic cops. So,...


Published November 9, 2022
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Family Guy (1999- )
Parental Discretion Advised, that's how you know it's good.

Sick, twisted, politically incorrect and Freakin' Sweet animated series featuring the adventures of the dysfunctional Griffin family. Bumbling Peter and long-suffering Lois have three kids. Stewie (a brilliant but sadistic baby bent on killing his mother and taking over the world), Meg (the oldest, and is the most unpopular girl in town) and Chris (the middle kid, he's not very bright but has a passion for movies). The final member of the family is Brian - a talking dog and much more than a pet, he keeps Stewie in check whilst sipping Martinis and sorting through his own life issues.

Formulas It all started with “The Flintstones”, I suppose. In its time, it was novel. Since then we’ve had a number of versions of the dumb dad cartoon. This one was recommended to me by a reader because it is edgier than the others. Here’s the formula...


Published November 8, 2022
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Just a Little Harmless Sex (1998)
Filmmaker(s): Rick Rosenthal

A young married couple faces a serious break-up when the husband is caught committing adultery with a prostitute.

Prophylactic Intolerance We all want to be teenagers and some films are built to pander to that drive. The teenage condition is one in which all things are subservient to sex, but sex isn’t something you do. It isn’t something that is a component of a relationship...


Published November 7, 2022
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Paris, je t’aime (2006)
Stories of Love From the City of Love

Olivier Assayas, Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuaron are among the 20 distinguished directors who contribute to this collection of 18 stories, each exploring a different aspect of Parisian life. The colourful characters in this drama include a pair of mimes, a husband trying to chose between his wife and his lover, and a married man who turns to a prostitute for advice.

Tombstones, Subways Recently, I walked through a Japanese cemetery that is several hundred years old. There is in this place a variety of tombstones, a very wide variety. There are stylistic similarities, weaving through eras, religious traditions (which are remarkably complex and subtle). The place is...


Published November 7, 2022
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The Great Wall (2016)
1700 years to build. 5500 miles long. What were they trying to keep out?
Filmmaker(s): Zhang Yimou

European mercenaries searching for black powder become embroiled in the defense of the Great Wall of China against a horde of monstrous creatures.

Jump! I am an admirer of this filmmaker, and he does better when he gets closer to a single soul or small collection of them. But for large projects he seems to be able to understand how to group extras and their CG equivalent for...


Published November 6, 2022
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