134. Foxcatcher
The publicity will tell you that Foxcatcher is about wrestling. But like all great directors, Bennett Miller uses his subject as a metaphor for something else.
Tag Archives: cinematography
133. Birdman
Alejandro Iñárritu’s brilliant new film pretends to be about an actor trying to escape his comic-book alter ego. But really it’s about our need to escape our own egos.
132. Mildred Pierce
Joan Crawford’s portrayal of martyred mother Mildred Pierce is the stuff of legend. It not only won her an Oscar but provided her with a career defining role.
130. House of Cards
If you want to change television, stop people watching it. That is just one of the many tricks behind this great adaptation of Michael Dobbs’s best-selling novels.
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.
129. Trainspotting
Released in 1996, Trainspotting was accused of promoting drug abuse. But really, it was a much needed shot in the arm for British cinema.
127. Mike Nichols
Without question, Mike Nichols was one of America’s most feted entertainers. But how did he manage to break new ground and tell such compelling stories?
126. Raging Bull
In a career featuring several masterpieces, Raging Bull is considered Martin Scorsese’s greatest achievement. But what did he achieve in making it?
121. Gone Girl
Adapted from Gillian Flynn’s best-selling thriller, David Fincher’s film keeps its most surprising twist until the final shot. And it’s not what you think.
120. The Fabulous Baker Boys
It’s called The Fabulous Baker Boys, but it was Michelle Pfeiffer’s Oscar nominated performance that earned the film its adjective.
118. Witness
Just how long does it take to write an Oscar-winning screenplay? In the case of Witness, it was 13 years. But how many drafts did it take and how many writers?
110. The Shawshank Redemption
A box-office flop in 1994, Frank Darabont’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novella is proof that some films deserve a second chance.
107. The Grand Budapest Hotel
Wes Anderson may share his surname with other directors, but there’s no mistaking his films for anybody elses.
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.
101. 12 Years a Slave
He has made only 3 feature films, but with each of them being a masterpieces Steve McQueen is now one of the world’s leading filmmakers.
99. Christopher Nolan’s Mementos
He may make blockbusters, but Christopher Nolan’s tastes lean more to art house cinema. So what are his films really about?
96. The Social Network
Aaron Sorkin’s script is lauded as dazzling. But a script is more than just dialogue, and that’s why Sorkin’s is so great.
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.
94. JFK
Oliver Stone’s JFK was lambasted by both the political left and right for its factual inaccuracies. But since very few can agree on the facts, is it a good movie?
93. The Deer Hunter
If it was originally called The Man Who Came To Play and took place in a Las Vegas casino, how did the story end up taking place in Vietnam during the war?
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.
81. Atonement
Ian McEwan’s novel was always going to be a tough nut to crack, but Joe Wright and Christopher Hampton delivered a modern classic of a tragic tale.
Spielberg’s Techniques
This video-essay examines Steven Spielberg’s career, from his days in television up until War Horse, and shows how he uses the disciplines of cinema to secure specific emotional responses.
