The Wild Goose Lake (2019)

I’m a sucker for the neo-noir vibe and thank goodness filmmakers all over the world are too. The Wild Goose Lake (2019) is a Chinese film about aesthetics, rainy nights in urban areas, neon signs casting a glow outside in the darkness and bold lighting indoors. But the film also feels tied to a specific […]

Across 110th Street (1972)

Jackie Brown is one of my all time favourite soundtracks and I always wanted to watch the movie where it took its opening/closing theme, ‘Across 110th Street’ by Bobby Womack. I was a little surprised to find that the melancholic, orchestral sweep of the song I know was not used in the title credit sequence […]

The Meetings Of Anna (1978)

My first Chantal Akerman. The illustrated poster, and the sound of the plot convinced me. The Meetings Of Anna (1978) or sounds better in the original French title, Les Rendez-vous d’Anna, follows a film director named Anna (Aurore Clément – who would later star in Paris, Texas), a possible alter-ego for director Akerman herself, as […]

The Ninth Configuration (1980)

A castle surrounded by a forrest that is swamped by a slowly creeping fog. A dream of an astronaut on the moon looking away from the American flag to see Jesus on the cross. Stacy Keach’s face, serious and seething, eyes bulging red with rage. A few of the key images from William Peter Blatty’s […]

The Enigma Of Kaspar Hauser (1974)

Being a fan of director Werner Herzog, I’ve always been meaning to watch The Enigma Of Kaspar Hauser (1974; Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle; Every Man for Himself and God Against All) as one of his acclaimed works from the 1970s New Wave of German Cinema. I always assumed it would be arduous […]