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3/5
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Napoleon
(2023)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It’s as unique as a snowflake, or as a strike of lightning. Dreary for its time and deranged for all of time.
Posted Nov 26, 2023
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5/5
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Open
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
The best independent Hollywood South flick of the year. Immensely entertaining.
Posted Nov 02, 2023
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3.5/5
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Sloane: A Jazz Singer
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Few profile documentaries capture the kind of honesty and intelligence of a person’s very being as this one does, and it does it well. Incredibly well, even.
Posted Sep 04, 2023
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3.5/5
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Shortcomings
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Quirky, offbeat, and cool. Its performances and arcs are pretty bold, thanks to Justin Min, Sherry Cola, and Ally Maki.
Posted Aug 24, 2023
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4/5
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The Secret Society for Slow Romance 2: Cosmic Disco Detective Rene
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Has that something special, that very spark which tickles and chills all over. A hilarious triumph, I proclaim.
Posted Aug 24, 2023
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4/5
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Blood for Dust
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Brief bursts of heavy action that punctuate stretches of eery calm, sad reflection, and tense silence. It delivers a hard punch from such a small frame.
Posted Aug 15, 2023
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2.5/5
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The Devil's Tongue
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Stands out as a fresh example of true independent filmmaking from a fresh new voice. When the film gets hardcore is when it shines. When it brings out the devil is when the fun happens.
Posted Jul 27, 2023
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5/5
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Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
A crowd-pleaser and then some. This mission, to pull the theatrical experience of cinema back from the edge of death, is an amazing hat trick that combines the tangible with the abstract. Alchemy? Almost.
Posted Jul 17, 2023
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3.5/5
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Wildflower
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
This movie is a celebration of independence and living the best lives possible, no matter the obstacles, and no matter how corny that notion by itself might be.
Posted Jul 10, 2023
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5/5
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Kim's Video
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
This odyssey is one of persistence most palpable and thrills most exciting. Romantics will identify all the way with this trip, film lovers or otherwise.
Posted Jun 11, 2023
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5/5
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BlackBerry
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
BlackBerry is at its best when it has room to breathe and space to get loud. It’s theatrical in the best sense of the word, and a finely shot and composed comedy of misfits and mistakes.
Posted May 22, 2023
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5/5
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Only in Theaters
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Wonderfully sentimental and devastatingly real. Only In Theaters is really one of the best films released in 2023.
Posted May 06, 2023
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2.5/5
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Burt Reynolds: The Last Interview
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
The Last Interview isn’t enlightening, but it is a decent chunk of gold to see shine. It’s a dedication, more than anything.
Posted Apr 21, 2023
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5/5
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We Kill for Love
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Thorough to an infinite degree and academic in almost Pulitzer territory, this exploration into a hush-hush and purposefully underappreciated genre is an oh-so delight.
Posted Apr 17, 2023
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5/5
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How to Blow Up a Pipeline
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Never sanctimonious and never pretentious to the point of pretending to offer a true solution, it’s a ticking timebomb of a film.
Posted Apr 07, 2023
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4/5
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Quantum Cowboys
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Quantum Cowboys looks and feels starry nightly and colorful, imaginative to no limit.
Posted Mar 26, 2023
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2.5/5
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Randy Rhoads: Reflections of a Guitar Icon
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
This documentary isn't the best about the best, but it is a fine monument to man and music.
Posted Mar 15, 2023
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3/5
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Mind Leech
(2023)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
The movie is such an oddity, and it's the type of flick that I live for.
Posted Mar 15, 2023
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|
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The Secret Society for Slow Romance
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
The Secret Society for Slow Romance is bold to the point of lovely absurdity, living as an ever-escalating comedy of illusions, of lightened heights, and of packed-in small talk.
Posted Mar 13, 2023
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4/5
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Creed III
(2023)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Creed III punches up, being the best-written, best-performed, and most dramatic entry yet. It’s big, it’s personal, and it’s strong.
Posted Feb 24, 2023
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3/5
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Three Worlds
(2018)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Where Terrence Malick’s Knight of Cups walked, Three Worlds sprints. Where Orson Welles’ The Other Side of the Wind spoke, Three Worlds whistles.
Posted Feb 23, 2023
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4/5
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Kids vs. Aliens
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
A phenomenal array of brightness and sensory attack from every possible angle, visually and audibly. Dammit, this is a hoot and a half.
Posted Jan 17, 2023
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3.5/5
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Emancipation
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Emancipation delivers drama and terror with and against the grain of American slavery films, even when it’s a redundant sensory overload.
Posted Dec 06, 2022
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2.5/5
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I'll Find You
(2019)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
From some surprises to other not-so-surprising parts, I’ll Find You goes from ho-hum to superb when given a chance. A chance from its director, and a chance from its audience.
Posted Nov 28, 2022
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4/5
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Causeway
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
An entirely fulfilling picture, where character balances with drama in a profound blend.
Posted Nov 10, 2022
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3.5/5
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Eradication
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
A surprisingly imaginative movie that properly trains the eyes on the thing that’s beating, instead of on the beat all alone. Another way of putting it would be that people are front and center, not fodder for a tale ripped from headlines.
Posted Oct 11, 2022
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4/5
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Sunspot
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It’s fleeting, but it’s nice. That’s what this is - a fleeting but nice romance. With what? With growing up. With being. With being around others. That’s nice.
Posted Oct 06, 2022
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5/5
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Blonde
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
By and large, Blonde is a great film. I may never watch it again, but it is great.
Posted Sep 19, 2022
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2.5/5
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Belle Vie
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Despite the fine outlook on life, the movie wears itself thin, even in the most interesting of eras and developments.
Posted Sep 13, 2022
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2.5/5
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Clerks III
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It may be more screenplay than play for the screen, but as a final round with Dante and Randal, it’s a little beautiful. And a little goes a long way.
Posted Sep 09, 2022
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3.5/5
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Anonymous Club
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It’s not groundbreaking, nor should it have to be. Following a once in a generation artist is enough. Getting into her state of mind is a plus. And being directed by her moods and motions? Incredible.
Posted Sep 06, 2022
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4/5
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Sharp Stick
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Lena Dunham’s latest is a biting and positive film of female sexual self-discovery and self-discovery in and of itself. It’s funny, it’s open, and it’s kind of timeless too.
Posted Aug 25, 2022
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5/5
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Three Minutes - A Lengthening
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
With the purity of a campfire tale as told from memory and interpretation, Three Minutes is one of the more important movies in recent years and decades. Only the works of Bill Morrison compare, and even those similarities are tenuous.
Posted Aug 25, 2022
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4/5
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Potato Dreams of America
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
A jewel of modern independent cinema, and a funny if very tender movie about finding comfort in the home and in oneself.
Posted Aug 18, 2022
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3/5
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Phony
(2022)
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Bill Arceneaux
|
Entertains and challenges with what is and isn't questionable or answerable in relationships, in deception, and in cinema.
Posted Jul 14, 2022
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2/5
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Gasoline Alley
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Sawa is very good here, as is his lone good guy vigilante story. Similar to Drive with Ryan Gosling? No, but Sawa is still pretty cool. And that’s worth a watch.
Posted Jul 13, 2022
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3.5/5
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City of a Million Dreams
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
A cauldron of cinematic and cultural seasonings, boiling to a heightened temperature that everyone can appreciate and learn from. It’s all oh so good, and oh so surprising.
Posted Jun 26, 2022
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5/5
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Top Gun: Maverick
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Spectacular spectacle, with chills and thrills running throughout the body whole. Crying on cue is just part of the ride.
Posted May 31, 2022
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5/5
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The Northman
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
This is a film that gives what is wanted, without any regrets, through an environment that’s as angry as it is awesome.
Posted May 04, 2022
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5/5
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The Wobblies
(1979)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Powerful like a fist that's worked on steel, co-directors Deborah Shaffer and Stewart Bird dropped their movie like a sack of bricks onto the cinema's collective stage, having made what is likely the best pro-worker film of all time.
Posted May 01, 2022
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4/5
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Stay Awake
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
One of the more fantastically told movies on the subject of addiction thats been made in recent times. Never overblown, always grounded when needed.
Posted Apr 19, 2022
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5/5
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Little Satchmo
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
A feat of layered insight and strength that takes a sadly shadowed scenario and projects much-needed light onto it, this is.
Posted Mar 18, 2022
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2.5/5
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Crabs!
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
This is sugar high cinema. In fact, the movie is much like a confectionary treat, but only of the first batch kind.
Posted Mar 07, 2022
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5/5
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Kimi
(2022)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Soderbergh and crew are ever so wistful in their competence, their understanding, and their craft. They make things look so good and so easy, it's only natural to fall head over heels in pleasure for a movie this great.
Posted Feb 14, 2022
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4/5
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Brainstorm
(1983)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
When combined with such vision and such application of large-format filmmaking, elevation occurs past popcorn thrills to memorable chills. It's some kind of masterpiece, rivaled only by the works of James Cameron (yes) and Terrence Malick (for sure).
Posted Feb 10, 2022
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4/5
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Look Away, Look Away
(2020)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It's a light example of true soul searching and a great example of balancing its own feelings with the acceptance necessary to speak with those that are different. Or despicable.
Posted Jan 09, 2022
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5/5
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Rapture
(1979)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
This is a dangerous and challenging film, made with every possible ounce of passion that can ever be mastered by any individual. Memorable? More like burrowed and embedded.
Posted Dec 27, 2021
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5/5
|
Licorice Pizza
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
"Licorice Pizza" is entirely sharp, guided by a mind revisiting a time and place changing but stuck in a particular mood.
Posted Dec 19, 2021
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4/5
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Don't Look Up
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
It's loud, it's aggressive, and its approach is drastic. But, so are the times we're living in. A perfectly violent escalation of our entire species as it stands, done up satirically and painfully.
Posted Dec 10, 2021
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5/5
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That Cold Dead Look in Your Eyes
(2021)
|
Bill Arceneaux
|
Black, white, and French all over, this movie is great. Effing great. Bizarre but not so absurd, it's a story that folds in on itself before opening back up again with a new perspective and a fresh beginning.
Posted Dec 03, 2021
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