Black Coal, Thin Ice (2014)

I really loved Chinese director Diao Yinan’s neo-noir The Wild Goose Lake. I’ve seen it twice now, and it is definitely style over substance, in that I remember most fondly the images and sequences rather than the story itself. Purple neon hotel lighting engulfing a room where three thieves talk shop. A motorbike at night, […]

Gun Crazy (1950)

Always gratifying to hear about a film for a long time that’s considered a classic, like Gun Crazy (1950) is considered a classic of film noir, and when you finally watch it, it’s so clear and apparent how great the movie is. Yes, this is a classic. Why did it take me so long to […]

After Hours (1985)

Screened at Luna Cinemas Leederville as part of the Trash Classics season programmed by VHS Tracking. There was a period of time when I was younger when I would rent the two 1980s Martin Scorsese comedies, The King of Comedy and After Hours, over and over again from the video store. The VHS tapes weren’t available to buy, […]

Streets Of Fire (1984)

Screened at Luna Cinemas Leederville as part of the Trash Classics season programmed by VHS Tracking. My brother attended the Streets Of Fire (1984) screening because of its trailer: “If the movie is anything like that, it’ll be great!” After the movie, my brother said, “It was good, but it’s like these old movies always run out of […]

Mars Express (2023)

Mars Express (2023) is a French animated movie that recently screened at the Fantastic Film Festival. What caught my eye was that Mars Express is firmly in the cyberpunk genre, inspired by Blade Runner and Japanese anime like Ghost In The Shell. Set in the 23rd century, the Earth is a sprawl where lower class […]