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Naked Lunch Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Enter the Interzone

By Gordon S. Miller | Feb 4, 2014

By incorporating elements of William S. Burroughs' life into the screenplay, David Cronenberg's Naked Lunch is not a straight adaptation ...

Jules and Jim Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Seminal French New Wave Love Triangle

By Greg Barbrick | Feb 4, 2014

The greatest literature is often inspired by true events, and the story behind Francois Truffaut's Jules and Jim (1962) is ...

The Long Day Closes Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Terence Davies’ Personal Vision of Liverpool

By Critical curmudgeon | Jan 27, 2014

Terence Davies plumbs his Liverpool upbringing in 1992's brilliantly dense The Long Day Closes, a film that is as much ...

La vie de bohème Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Aki Kaurismäki Does Tragedy and Comedy Equally Well

By Dusty Somers | Jan 22, 2014

The Film Finnish great Aki Kaurismäki's take on Paris bohemian life, La vie de bohème, doesn't end well for its ...

Grey Gardens (1976) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An S-T-A-U-N-C-H Classic

By Dusty Somers | Dec 11, 2013

The Film A landmark in documentary filmmaking and possibly the most well known work from the school of direct cinema, ...

City Lights Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Well Received and Slightly Defiant

By Shawn Bourdo | Dec 4, 2013

The Criterion Collection has returned to the well again this month. They are releasing the fifth film in their Charlie ...

The Uninvited (1944) Criterion Collection DVD Review: Who ‘Ya Gonna Call?

By Luigi Bastardo | Nov 12, 2013

In today's era of mishmash horror moviemaking - wherein there's a new Paranormal Activity flick released every other year - ...

John Cassavetes: Five Films Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Independent Spirit

By Steve Geise | Nov 9, 2013

Whether or not you enjoy the directorial efforts of John Cassavetes, it's impossible to overlook his contribution to the rise ...

I Married a Witch Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Veronica Lake Bewitches, Bothers, and Bewilders

By Cinema Sentries | Nov 2, 2013

Written by Kristen Lopez Halloween may be over, but any time is a good time for a new Halloween classic ...

By Mark Buckingham | Oct 29, 2013

La Notte is definitely a film from a different era where plots were not entirely clear until the third act, ...

Blue Is the Warmest Color Movie Review: A Compelling Story About Love and Life

By Gordon S. Miller | Oct 24, 2013

Abdellatif Kechiche's Blue Is the Warmest Color is a beautiful, coming-of-age story set over the course of about 10 years ...

I Married a Witch Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Low on Magic, High on Fumes

By Critical curmudgeon | Oct 11, 2013

Directed by René Clair, I Married a Witch is low on magic and high on fumes. Its major selling feature ...

Eyes Without a Face Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Mesmerizing, Poetic Film

By Mat Brewster | Oct 11, 2013

In the 1950s French critics and cultural purveyors thought that horror films were beneath them. Monsters and gore were not ...

I Married a Witch Criterion Collection DVD Review: Truly Bewitching

By Greg Barbrick | Oct 7, 2013

Forget Elizabeth Montgomery in Bewitched; the most beautiful witch of all time is Veronica Lake in I Married a Witch ...

La Cage aux Folles Criterion Collection DVD Review: Classic French Farce Bliss

By Luigi Bastardo | Oct 6, 2013

Eighteen years before the enjoyable-but-ultimately-uncalled-for remake, The Birdcage hit theater screens across the world, La Cage aux Folles first introduced ...

By Dusty Somers | Oct 3, 2013

The FilmsThough their collaborations were largely overshadowed by the scandal of their romance, Roberto Rossellini and Ingrid Bergman proved to ...

3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman Criterion Collection DVD Review: The Definitive Journey

By Greg Barbrick | Sep 28, 2013

When Roberto Rossellini's Rome, Open City (1945) won the Grand Prize at Cannes in 1946, he was recognized as the ...

La Cage aux Folles Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: “Utter Hell” to Make, Pure Heaven to Watch

By Critical curmudgeon | Sep 24, 2013

Director Édouard Molinaro considered the making of his La Cage aux Folles as "utter hell," but it's hard not to ...

The Earrings of Madame de … Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Direction of Max Ophuls Dazzles Like a Diamond

By Gordon S. Miller | Sep 21, 2013

Director Max Ophuls' penultimate film The Earrings of Madame de ... is a classic French '50s melodrama that rivals its ...

The Devil’s Backbone Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: One of Guillermo del Toro’s Most Personal Films

By Lorna Miller | Sep 20, 2013

Guillermo del Toro is one of the most interesting directors currently making films because of his unique vision and style. ...

Slacker Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Formally Fascinating, Warmly Hilarious Film

By Dusty Somers | Sep 18, 2013

The FilmRichard Linklater's Slacker is a film that sounds like a doodle on paper, a fun little experiment from the ...

Autumn Sonata Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Utterly Sad and Nearly Perfect

By Mat Brewster | Sep 16, 2013

Our monthly Foreign Film Night is typically very sparsely attended. This is not unexpected as one cannot plan for a ...

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Masterfully Acted and Presented

By generaljabbo | Sep 10, 2013

The 1960s Cold War era proved a fertile time for the spy movie genre. James Bond offered a glamorous, high-tech ...

The Devil’s Backbone Criterion Collection DVD Review: Hell Is for Children

By Luigi Bastardo | Aug 28, 2013

During the mid '90s, my fascination with all things foreign and artsy-like led me into the welcoming arms of two ...

The Big City Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Girl Power

By Steve Geise | Aug 22, 2013

Prior to The Big City, director Satyajit Ray had never tackled a contemporary project, choosing to focus on explorations of ...

Charulata Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Indian Film, European Sensibility

By Steve Geise | Aug 21, 2013

This is not a Bollywood film, at least not in the accepted modern-day definition of the term. Half a century ...

Babette’s Feast Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Tale of Love, Life, and Food

By Luigi Bastardo | Aug 21, 2013

Gabriel Axel's multiple award-winning film Babette's Feast takes place almost entirely in a tiny, remote, 19th century village somewhere near ...

To Be or Not to Be (1942) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: You’ll Get a ‘Terrific Laugh’ Out of This One

By Cinema Sentries | Aug 17, 2013

Written by Kristen Lopez In 1942, the U.S. hadn't entered World War II and audiences were unaware of the horrific ...

Shoah Criterion Collection DVD Review: Superb Release of Haunting, Tragic Film

By Kent Conrad | Aug 16, 2013

Shoah is a film about trains. Inside its nearly 10 hours of running time, the image and movement of the ...

The Thin Red Line Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An Impressive Movie

By Shawn Bourdo | Aug 8, 2013

There's something to be said about be prolific. Take Alfred Hitchcock's work for example - there are runs of three-four ...

The Ice Storm Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Person’s Body Is His Temple

By Critical curmudgeon | Aug 7, 2013

There is a moment in Ang Lee's The Ice Storm, now available on Criterion Collection Blu-ray, where the 14-year-old Mikey ...

3:10 To Yuma (1957) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The High Cost of Living

By Gordon S. Miller | Jul 26, 2013

Though the story of a lone man standing up for what is right is a common Western motif, Delmer Daves' ...

Babette’s Feast Criterion Collection DVD Review: Eye- and Mouth-Watering Delights

By Mat Brewster | Jul 22, 2013

About once a month, we host a Foreign Film Night at our house. We invite a few friends over, we ...

Jubal Criterion Collection DVD Review: An Underrated Western Gem

By Cinema Sentries | Jul 21, 2013

Written by Brandie Ashe Delmer Daves' 1956 film Jubal is sometimes dismissed as simply a cowboy retelling of William Shakespeare's ...

Lord of the Flies (1963) Criterion Collection DVD Review: Lightning Struck Twice

By Greg Barbrick | Jul 20, 2013

William Golding was 43 years old when his first book was published. The year was 1954, and the title of ...

Lord of the Flies (1963) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Definitive Version of a Classic Text

By Cinema Sentries | Jul 17, 2013

Written by Kristen Lopez I vividly remember the Lord of the Flies unit in my seventh grade class. I'm not ...

The Life of Oharu Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Mizoguchi’s Breakthrough Masterpiece

By Dusty Somers | Jul 16, 2013

The Film The film that made Kenji Mizoguchi an international sensation and the first in a string of masterpieces that ...

The Life of Oharu Criterion Collection DVD Review: The Downward Spiral

By Steve Geise | Jul 12, 2013

While watching this film, I was reminded of another tale of a classy lady who gradually becomes marginalized: Anna Karenina. ...

Life Is Sweet Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Mike Leigh’s International Breakout

By Shawn Bourdo | Jul 2, 2013

Mike Leigh films can be comedies but you'd never put the phrase "light hearted" in front of that description. His ...

Brazil Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Dreams and Nightmares Courtesy of Terry Gilliam

By Gordon S. Miller | Jun 28, 2013

Terry Gilliam's dystopian classic Brazil, a film about a man fighting against an oppressive system, led to life imitating art ...

Safety Last! Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Time Is Money

By Critical curmudgeon | Jun 26, 2013

The matter of Harold Lloyd's lack of fame has been of much discussion over the years. He is often cited ...

Things to Come Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An Overly Didactic Technical Marvel

By Dusty Somers | Jun 25, 2013

The Film An impressive technical achievement, even if its didacticism threatens to overwhelm all other elements, H.G. Wells' Things to ...

Safety Last! (1923) Criterion Collection DVD Review: A Silent Comedic Masterpiece

By Greg Barbrick | Jun 25, 2013

The three comedic geniuses of the silent film era were Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd. For various reasons, ...

By Steve Geise | Jun 21, 2013

You know how Game of Thrones gets really confusing with the various warring clans populated by so many characters that ...

Things To Come (1936) Criterion Collection DVD Review: An Unforgettable Piece of Cinematic History

By Greg Barbrick | Jun 19, 2013

H.G. Wells has had a number of books turned into classic films, including The Island of Lost Souls (1932), and ...

Medium Cool Criterion Collection DVD Review: The Theatrics of Observation and Social Crisis

By Critical curmudgeon | Jun 19, 2013

Filmmaker Haskell Wexler's Medium Cool walks the tender line between fiction and non-fiction, using the cinema vérité method to beg ...

By Critical curmudgeon | Jun 14, 2013

Mike Leigh's wonderful Life Is Sweet is less a film about something and more a film about the thrust of ...

Wild Strawberries Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Beautiful, Complex, Symbolic Film

By Mat Brewster | Jun 10, 2013

I am 37 years old. With luck, I'll live another 37 before I die. At the middle of my life, ...

Masaki Kobayashi Against the System DVD Review: Angry and Elegant Political Films

By Dusty Somers | Jun 7, 2013

Known for his exemplary samurai film Harakiri and three-part World War II humanist epic The Human Condition, Masaki Kobayashi wasn't ...

Jubal Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Shakespeare in the Wild West

By Luigi Bastardo | May 29, 2013

While traditional and contemporary adaptations of William Shakespeare's works have been coming and going since someone figured out how to ...