Nightmare Alley (1947)

All I really knew about Nightmare Alley (1947) was that it was a classic film noir, it’s currently being remade by Guillermo Del Toro and it’s another film I’d not seen that was covered in Danny Peary’s Cult Movies 2. That, and it had something to do with carny life. This is definitely a case […]

News From Home (1977)

After seeing The Meetings Of Anna for the first time, and really loving it, I wanted to explore more of the filmography of Belgian director Chantal Akerman. News From Home (1977) is a critically acclaimed avant-garde documentary that she directed that I decided to take the plunge on. It’s basically a series of long takes, […]

Drunken Angel (1948)

Past Movie Squad reviewer Paul Grace wrote a recommendation of Drunken Angel (1948) for an old issue of the VHS Tracking zine. Directed by Akira Kurosawa, I only realised after I had watched it that it was his first collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune. While he’s always been a handsome, attractive man to me, Mifune […]

Cat People (1942)

I’d heard so much about Cat People (1942) over the years as a classic horror-noir, and it was one of those old Hollywood movies that lived up to its reputation. I was watching it by myself one afternoon, and every moment of expressionistic lighting, suggestive and creepy use of shadows and sound design, I would […]

Close-Up (1990)

What a magic trick this movie is. An odd courtroom case is filmed by the camera, the person charged is studied in the frame, everyday people are asked to become actors and recreate what they experienced, and the result offers a complexity of meanings and readings, but also depending on your viewing experience, it also […]