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I am not a sucker for horror films but sometimes I get suckered into watching one. The two I saw in the past year that I recommend are The Babadook for screams and A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night for style. Bonus: they are both directed by women! observation minimalism editorial restraint no original score (but some sequences flowed as though music was there) polished cinematography that I associate more with fiction films (e.g. some Soderbergh flicks)   From the short story 'A Brutal Murder in a Public Place' by Joyce Carol Oates, found in McSwenney's 37.
I stopped by the Weinstein Gallery for paintings, photographs and documents by and about Leonor Fini, the enigmatic surrealist who enjoyed putting on a striking appearance to dazzle others. Most accounts spoke of her in almost mythological terms. I so wish I had a chance to cross paths with her, if even the briefest of encounters. One of my favorite works was Le Train. Great accompanying quote (pictured below):  'The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution', an important, infuriating, stirring documentary10/5/2015
I caught the doc 'The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution' this past weekend, by director of 'Freedom Riders' Stanley Nelson. The film provides excellent grounds for thinking about ongoing abuses of power on the one hand, and models of empowerment on the other. It features a comprehensive collection of archival material and beautiful profiles of the women and men at the helm of the movement. Days later I'm still thinking about it and looking up names and words such as the insidious FBI program COINTELPRO, which was behind the worst attacks on the Panthers. The screening was followed by a Q&A with Stanley Nelson and a former Panther, which could have gone on for days. As Stanley reminded us, you could make a whole documentary series on the Panthers. One opinion piece about the state of the documentary form leads to another. I have to mostly agree with the second and thank these writers for the thought food Even from the privileged vantage point of a Golden Age, it’s possible to see a medium in need of freshening up, as nonfiction filmmakers fall into the trap of relying on their charismatic, timely subjects to engage viewers, rather than bold, daring or artful filmmaking itself. I don’t shy away from talking about the current era as a golden age of documentaries. I believe it. And I’m not just talking about box office. I am specifically talking about the sort of innovations in artistry that Ms. Hornaday is somehow missing. They’re everywhere. That’s a fact. |
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