173. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
How do you make a film about a character who can neither move nor speak, but can only blink his left eye?
Tag Archives: Stanley Kubrick
164. The Parallax View
Adapted from Loren Singer’s poorly reviewed best seller, Alan J. Pakula’s conspiracy thriller is a classic of assured pacing and paranoia.
161. Dr. Strangelove
Until 1964, Stanley Kubrick had suffered years of set-backs, disappointments and frustration. But he made his reputation with this satire on nuclear war.
155. Jazz in Film
If jazz really is the authentic American art form, why are there so few great jazz movies? No matter, at least there are dozens of great jazz soundtracks.
141. Once Upon a Time in the West
Sergio Leone’s masterpiece doesn’t only reference American westerns. He also drew inspiration from an English film.
Fifty Shades of Hate
This video-essay addresses the abuse inflicted by men against women in cinema. The films are critically acclaimed, Oscar winners and box-office hits. WARNING: It features scenes of extreme graphic violence.
American Trailers
This extended video-essay charts the development and possible future of the America movie trailer. Beginning in 1912, taking in the coming of television and suggesting where it might go in the age of the internet.
136. American Sniper
Clint Eastwood’s latest film has earned 6 Oscar nominations and is breaking box-office records. But does it deserve all the controversy it is generating?
Moving Pictures: From Hollywood to Silicon Valley
This extended video-essay examines the innovations at the heart of cinema, focusing on how cinema is coping with the move from Hollywood to Silicon Valley.
125. Out of Sight
Out of Sight is about second chances and it helped the three main players; Steven Soderbergh, George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez to relaunch their careers.
123. The Terminator
Because The Terminator is not about a cyborg but a resilient woman, James Cameron’s landmark film presented him as a unique feminist.
122. Under The Skin
It took Jonathan Glazer over ten years to bring Under the Skin to the screen, but with that long gestation he might just have delivered the film of the decade.
113. The Crying Game
Neil Jordan won an Oscar for his script, but only after every studio had turned him down saying his story was uncommercial, offensive and the characters unsympathetic.
104. The Grifters
Based on Jim Thompson’s grimey story about smalltime criminals, Stephen Frears’ film was robbed when it didn’t win a single Oscar from its four nominations.
The Journeys of Martin Scorsese
This video-essay celebrates the career of Martin Scorsese, showing how he has taken cinema as a means of telling stories and expanded it as a means of personal expression.
84. Days of Heaven
Regarded as a poet of cinema, Terrence Malick’s films have rarely connected with audiences. Has he been ahead of his time or is he now running out of it?
83. The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow did not just make history when she became the first woman to win an Oscar for directing. She also made a landmark war film.
77. Barry Lyndon
Stanley Kubrick’s most awarded film is the one that Martin Scorsese says was his best. Ridley Scott worships it. So why is it so seldom seen?
68. Black & White
When it comes to cinema, many people consider black & white as old. Yet the same people also consider it beautiful. Surely black & white is more than that?
Alien
This video-essay on Ridley Scott’s Alien examines the origins of horror and science-fiction and uses them to illustrate the disparate themes, ideas and influences that came to bear on the film’s creation.
56. Surrealism in Cinema
Originally, surrealism set out to shock. But it has become such a normal element in cinema, has it lost its original power?
53. Brazil
Brazil is Terry Gilliam’s masterpiece. But when he first showed it to the studio, they didn’t know what to make of it. So they decided not to release it.
Blade Runner
This video-essay on Blade Runner examines how Ridley Scott visualizes the film’s numerous and seemingly disparate themes of urbanity, ecology, identity and mortality.
41. Paths of Glory
Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Humphrey Cobb’s novel was not shown in France for three decades and despite the passing years, it still has the power to shock.
