Soldier Of Orange (1977)

Tuxedos and tails are a recurring item of clothing. Initially worn by the group of male uni students at parties, signifying their upper class status. Later as World War II leads to Holland being invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany, the tuxedo is used by resistance members reentering their own country, passing themselves as members […]

Theatre Of Blood (1973)

Vincent Price playing a hammy theatre actor, delivering Shakespeare monologues, right before taking revenge on a critic who’s wronged him, played by a gallery of great British character actors (Harry Andrews, Robert Morley, Jack Hawkins), and the bloody murder has some thematic tie to a Shakespeare play. And then you have Diana Rigg playing Price’s […]

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

As a 90s kid in Australia, I had a bit of confusion around The Heartbreak Kid, since that was also the title of a hit Australian teen drama, starring Alex Dimitridaias and Claudia Karvan, which eventually led to the TV show Heartbreak High. Completely unrelated, The Heartbreak Kid (1972) was based on a short story […]

Fruit Of Paradise (1970)

When it comes to the avant garde as long as it looks good, I don’t care if it’s incomprehensible. Not that I really think Czech director Věra Chytilová’s Fruit Of Paradise (1970) is incomprehensible. I have seen Chytilová’s most famous film, Daisies, twice in my life and enjoyed it. In the first ten minutes of […]

Le Navrie Night (1979)

When it comes to art cinema, and slow cinema, I often think of an ideal viewer that must exist who is 100% alert and awake, and intellectually keyed into the symbolism and poetics that might take place. But then again, why should I judge myself against an ideal viewer that doesn’t exist? If you fall […]