Tag Archives: American cinema

a lonely father (film: Everybody’s Fine – Kirk Jones, 2009)

‘Everybody’s Fine‘, the 2009 American family drama by director Kirk Jones, offers the opportunity for a series of interesting reflections on the passing of cinematic time. Why do some older films seem contemporary, while other films, made a decade or … Continue reading

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capitalist apocalypse (film: Hell or High Water – David Mackenzie, 2016)

Many of the scenes in director David Mackenzie‘s 2016 film ‘Hell or High Water‘ appear to take place in a post-apocalyptic world. Sun-scorched fields that seem to produce nothing but clouds of dust. The deserted roads where from time to … Continue reading

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love and friendship (film: Falling in Love – Ulu Grosbard, 1984)

A movie starring Meryl Streep and Robert De Niro, made during a time that represented the peak of their careers can’t be too bad. I confess that I hadn’t heard much about ‘Falling in Love‘ nor about its director Ulu … Continue reading

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crime and friendship (film: Thunderbolt and Lightfoot – Michael Cimino, 1974)

I’m not a big fan of either Clint Eastwood (as an actor) or Jeff Bridges. I decided to see ‘Thunderbolt and Lightfoot’ because it is the debut film in 1974 by director Michael Cimino, whose next film would be ‘Deer … Continue reading

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Hitchcock’s colorful black comedy (film: The Trouble with Harry – Alfred Hitchcock, 1955)

‘The Trouble with Harry‘ is an unusual film in Alfred Hitchcock‘s filmography. Writing this introductory phrase, I realize that about half of Hitchcock‘s films can be called ‘unusual’. Of course, there is a ‘canonical Hitchcock’ in which corpses appear, with … Continue reading

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troubled motherhoods (film: The Lost Daughter – Maggie Gyllenhaal, 2021)

Maggie Gyllenhaal, an actress that I really like, now joins the respectable gallery of actors who pass on the other side of the camera and become directors. I am even happier to see that her debut film, both as a … Continue reading

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small is the future (film: Downsizing – Alexander Payne, 2017)

Whenever I have a hard time to categorize a film in a certain genre, the reasons can be very good or very bad. Sometimes it’s one of those original and inventive films that escapes the patterns imposed by film critics. … Continue reading

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love and lavishness (film: The Age of Innocence – Martin Scorsese, 1993)

‘The Age of Innocence‘ is a rather atypical film, at least from the point of view of the social environment in which the story takes place, for Martin Scorsese‘s filmography. Made in 1993, it stands chronologically in his career between … Continue reading

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a horror movie that fails to scare (film: Suburbicon – George Clooney, 2017)

I have a problem with George Clooney. I may be to blame, I may not be the only one to blame. I was never excited about his acting performances. All the less so as the director, and this lack of … Continue reading

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the terror of silence (film: A Quiet Place – John Krasinski, 2018)

John Krasinski, the director of the horror films in the ‘A Quite Place‘ series, learned an important lesson from the classics of the genre, and especially, I believe, from Alfred Hitchcock. If you have a good idea in hand, focus … Continue reading

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