Author: Jonathan Eig
An Ode to the short film: Five classic shorts you should see
In honor of the Oscar Nominated short films, about to be playing in an arthouse near you (provided you live in a major American city), I thought I’d write a little something about the short. The very first movies were shorts – one spool of film, which depending on the hand cranked speed of the…
The biggest Oscars snubs of 2019
Best part of the Oscars? The day after, listening to everyone bitch about the injustice of the selections. (“How the hell did some movie about old British guys who ran a race like a million years ago possibly beat out Raiders of the Lost Freaking Ark?”) But alas, these days, more of the post-ceremony pique…
Best of the Rest: The finest films not nominated for a Golden Globe in 2018
All right, new rules. 347 movies are eligible for the Best Picture Oscar for 2018. 34 of them received at least one Golden Globe nomination. I am choosing my Best Of selections from the remaining 313. (Check my math there – it was never my strong suit.) This is my annual exercise in recognizing the…
AFI 2018 European Union Film Showcase: Part Four
The AFI EU Film Showcase concluded with a strong roster of films. In all, 49 movies from 25 countries played over the three weeks. (Sorry Luxembourg, Malta, and Sweden. Sweden’s Becoming Astrid did screen just before the festival, but its release date made it impossible to include in the festival proper.) If European movies interest…
AFI 2018 European Union Film Showcase: Part Three
Let’s jump straight into it, shall we? Here are six more interesting films that screened at the American Film Institute’s EU Film Showcase. Keep your eye out for these in 2019. Transit by Christian Petzold (Germany) If Michelangelo Antonioni replaced Michael Curtiz in the director’s chair for Casablanca, he may have come up with something…