Tomato |
Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) |
"Robert Bresson's aesthetic of realist, material sounds and images assembled in paradoxical ways virtually defines the cinematic parable..." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Battle of Algiers (1966) |
"What must surely be the best film (re)released in theatres this year has become what could also be the best single-title DVD package of the year." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Best of Youth (2005) |
"It avoids the pratfalls of easy melodrama by maintaining a psychological distance from its characters; there are never any obvious explanations for their choices or behaviors." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Big Animal (2006) |
"It's a modest film...but Stuhr's sure hand with his material and the effective performances make it a memorable parable about the spark of individuality." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Blade Runner - The Final Cut (1982) |
"The film's noisy sound mix and congested pictorialism--as if it had been directed by a crazed, postmodern Von Sternberg--is a direct corollary to its moral ambiguity and sense of climactic human expiration (technological and social)." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) |
"[The film impresses] with its painterly and dramatic lighting, beautiful dissolves and tracking shots, sophisticated effects, and unexpected eccentricities." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Buffalo Boy (2004) |
"In a lesser film, the copious floods would signal pat themes of life and renewal, but Nguyen-Vo emphasizes the water's destructive power as well." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Cavite (2006) |
"The film maintains an impressive narrative momentum throughout, but its documentary details make the biggest impression." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Cria Cuervos (1977) |
"The film's vaguely uncanny and disquieting tone is due to several factors, including its emphasis on death, loss, and decay...In many ways, the film is a lament and warning for Spain's future." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Darwin's Nightmare (2006) |
"Sauper is no polemicist, and his close observation and eye for challenging juxtaposition provides more than enough impetus for engagement." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961) |
"The disaster genre is not generally known for its insights into characters or its clever dialogue, but The Day the Earth Caught Fire is an admirable exception." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Diary of a Country Priest (1950) |
"The paradoxical discovery of meaning in its apparent absence serves as a primary theme of the film as well as its aesthetic model." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On |
"One of the more astonishing aspects of the film (one that also incriminates the viewer) is [its] shocking moral fury." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
F For Fake (1976) |
"An almost impossibly lively pastiche of images and ideas that never tires." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Freaks (1932) |
"It's part of the film's brilliance that the lines between normal and abnormal, us and them, and even morality and immorality, are constantly blurred and reversed..." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Funny Ha Ha (2005) |
"Dollenmayer's low-key naturalism is a perfect compliment to the camera's hand-held gaze, presenting a touching combination of amiable nonchalance and emotional yearning." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Fury (1936) |
"Fury offers a striking portrait of the structure of society; its assorted classes, organizations and technologies, and methods of law and order..." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Future Of Food (2005) |
"With alarming and concise analysis, it highlights the way traditional farming in the US has become a corporate-controlled, less diversified business with global repercussions." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead (2008) |
"This time out, the elements seem particularly impassioned and conscientiously formed." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Hamlet (1964) |
"Kozintsev emphasizes the imprisoning moral architecture of Elsinore, not by obvious claustrophobic visuals, but by a rich, widescreen frame and purist, black-and-white imagery..." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The House is Black (1963) |
"Farrokhzad breaks through the repugnant aura that has often haunted victims of [leprosy] and affirms their resilience and human beauty." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Howl's Moving Castle (2005) |
"...heartfelt humanism once again enlivens the filmmaker's craft, yet this time around the film seems quieter, more charming and eccentric than awing." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
I Vitelloni (1953) |
"Although the plot moves between set pieces, its dramatic structure is centered on the characters, individuals caught between terminal stasis and illegitimate dreams." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
It's All True (1993) |
"...the film at once seems like a visually dynamic conflation of a Robert Flaherty film and a proto-neorealist fable comprised of photogenic locals and working class heroics." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Jacquot (1991) |
"A portrait that is at once a love letter to the movies, a critical perspective on one of its celebrated artist's, and a personal tribute." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Kapurush (1965) |
"A deeply felt and observantly rendered mood piece that pivots on setting, camera placement, actor positions, and an editing structure that incorporates flashbacks via emotional associations" |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Killer of Sheep (1977) |
"If this sounds depressing, it's not, largely due to Burnett's ability to highlight warmth, humor, and unexpected moments of compassion." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
King Lear (1971) |
"The film is a visually impressive Russian recontextualization of the play with strong, empathic performances." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
L'Argent (1983) |
"L'Argent showcases the filmmaker at the height of his formal ingenuity, particularly his use of narrative ellipses and fragmented space (close-ups of legs, hands, objects)." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
La Commune (2000) |
"Filled with wall-to-wall political debate, pleas for social equality and critiques of power, the film is a furious, provocative, and rousing experimental documentary that reenacts the Commune's historical moment." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Lancelot of the Lake (1975) |
"It's often characterized as a 'despairing' film in Bresson's late oeuvre, but in fact, it's an elegiac lamentation...beautifully rendered in loving, rhythmic care." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
La Leyenda del tiempo (2006) |
"A seemingly effortless, but enigmatic and deeply engaging observation of modern San Fernando islanders." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Los Angeles Plays Itself (2004) |
"[A] passionate call for a more accurate account of the diverse struggles, hopes, and joys to be found throughout the city of angels." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) |
"Hollywood melodramas do not often compare to timeless masterpieces of world cinema, but this does, largely through McCarey's sophisticated blend of tragic pathos, psychological insight, and rich, knowing humor." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
A Man Escaped (1956) |
"Bresson accentuates the metaphysical aspects of the narrative, turning the story into a meditation on existential and spiritual themes rendered in precise, physical terms." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Maria Full of Grace (2004) |
"It's a testament to the filmmakers' creative maturity that [the film] navigates its narrative without once capitulating to obvious emotional readings." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Milky Way (1969) |
"More witty than Dogma and more aesthetically refined than the original Bedazzled, the film is affectionately irreverent and adventurous storytelling." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
More Treasures From American Film Archives: 1894-1931 - Box Set (2004) |
"...one of the most entertaining--and important--DVD releases of the year...browsing through it has delivered one unexpected and delightful joy after another." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Mr. Arkadin (1955) |
"While the plot sometimes seems too fragmented for its own good, Welles' consistently inventive imagery nevertheless ensures that the action remains thoroughly engrossing." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Nang-Nak (1999) |
"George Lucas isn't the only filmmaker who can turn ancient myth, graphic eye candy, doomed romance, and Buddhist non-attachment into box office gold..." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Norman McLaren - The Collector's Edition (1940) |
"Although a more comprehensive DVD set of McLaren's career is reportedly being released in Japan, this North American release provides an excellent introduction to his work." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Le Notti Bianche (1957) |
"Filmed completely inside the studio, the film recreates the foggy canal-lined streets of Livorno and the rabble-rousing social outcasts who frequent its shadows." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Our Times (2002) |
"A personal and informative time capsule of a crucial moment revealing the ongoing cultural tensions in Iran between conservatism and progress." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Out 1, Noli Me Tangere (1971) |
"Out 1 has been accurately described as a "film-fleuve," and though its current may be slow, its volume is massive; one could easily follow any one of its many tributaries to vast thematic territory." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Playtime (1967) |
"The setting is a relative of Metropolis and Blade Runner, its fictional urban landscape brilliantly representing problems of modern life through steel and glass." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The River (1951) |
"The film's scenario is merely a loose framework for emphasizing its setting through various festivals, bazaars, and imaginative legends." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Road to Guantanamo (2006) |
"To its credit, the film isn't sensationalistic nor is it political agitprop. While the violence is concrete and upsetting, it's virtually tame by contemporary Hollywood standards." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Salt of the Earth (1953) |
"More than a typical Miramax/Tarantino extravaganza, it's films like this that establish the historical precedent and importance of truly independent American filmmaking." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
Salvatore Giuliano (1961) |
"Rosi adopts an austere structure with a complex timeframe that provocatively avoids narrative embellishment and the usual emotional padding." |
Doug Cummings |
Tomato |
The Secret of the Grain (2008) |
"Through his superlative cast of performers, Kechiche's family portrait is a doting record of the innate resiliency of this beloved community." |
Doug Cummings |
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