Blow The Man Down (2019)

Acquired by Amazon Studios and streaming now on Amazon Prime is the film, Blow The Man Down (2019). Beginning with a stirring rendition of the title sea shanty by several fisherman on the docks (who function as a type of Greek Chorus throughout the film), it’s a stylish way of announcing its setting – a […]

3 Women (1977)

My friend Lauren Cowdrey wrote a recommendation of Robert Altman’s 3 Women (1977) for VHS Tracking Issue 2. I finally watched it recently and thought it was great. Lauren’s review from the zine says it better than I could: “The first time I saw it I was struck by its beauty, like a painting both […]

Smooth Talk (1985)

Based on a Joyce Carol Oates short story, Smooth Talk (1985) follows a young Laura Dern as a small town teenage girl, rebelling against her stern mother and hanging out with boys at the hamburger stand. This aimless character piece gets very tense in the second half with the dance of dialogue between Dern and […]

The Legend Of Billie Jean (1985)

All I knew about The Legend Of Billie Jean (1985) was the title and the Pat Benatar song ‘Invincible’ (Theme from The Legend Of Billie Jean), which was used in the first season of Netflix’s GLOW. Helen Slater is the lead character living in a small Texas town who comes to her brother’s defence (a […]

Certain Women (2016)

Certain Women (2016) is based on the short stories by Maile Meloy, and set and shot in Montana, small towns and wide open plains, everything overcast and grey, filmed as a space of both beauty and loneliness. Three short narratives play out – a lawyer’s (Laura Dern) interaction with a disgruntled client (Jared Harris), a […]