Winter Kills (1979)

Winter Kills (1979) is the absurdist extension of the conspiracy thriller in vogue during the 1970s. Imagine The Parallax View, a riff on imagined counter narratives to the official record of the JFK assassination, but exaggerated with a strange comedy, not quite spoof or parody. Each scene in Winter Kills is eventually marked by a […]

The Decline Of Western Civilisation III (1998)

Scene report: crust-punks in the 1990s. I dragged my feet watching the third entry into Penelope Spheeris’ Decline of Western Civilisation trilogy. The second has the blockbuster marquee appeal with its Metal Years bone-head hilarity, and the first is a witness to the LA punk scene as it happens. In the back half of the […]

Flesh + Blood (1985)

Flesh + Blood (1985) as a title has always felt like the best summary of Paul Verhoeven as a director. This is what marks his greatness, a keen study of “flesh and blood,” all the ways it can be shown and conceptualised. How moments can stick in your mind through the filmmaker’s capacity to make […]

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 […]

Born In Flames (1983)

File this under “Why didn’t I watch this earlier?” and “This is as great as they say…” Maybe I thought that a film about activism would be a bit like homework. Directed by Lizzie Borden, Born In Flames (1983) captures a moment of time – 1980s New York, in the No Wave era – but […]