Tag: movies
The Terminator: The Problematic Naming of Dr. Silberman
The Terminator (1984) is anti-Semitic. That’s the thought that goes through my mind every time I sit down to watch this marvellous James Cameron science-fiction film, which features some of star Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best work as a merciless cyborg out to prevent a rebellious future by dispatching its source preemptively. It’s an idea that bothers…
The Coen Brothers’ Films Sorted From Worst to Best: Part Two
If you read the first part of this countdown, you know which eight movies are remaining. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about the Coen Brothers’ career is that those eight movies represent Film Noir, Absurdist Comedy, Western, Gangster, Musical, as well as three movies that defy any easy description. They are spread throughout the brothers’…
The Coen Brothers’ Films Sorted From Worst to Best: Part One
They came out of St. Louis Park, Minnesota in the heart of the baby boom, endowed with a deep love of classic Hollywood film noir, a passion for image and idea, and the quirky sense of humour that seems the purview of the northern end of the mighty Mississip. Initially, the older brother directed, the…
Hollywood Parking in The Intern: A Sweet Tune Undermined by False Notes
There’s a cliché in American movies and television known as “Hollywood parking.” You know the drill. Middle of New York City. Hero drives up to some swanky spot and parallel parks in front of the door. It’s the kind of thing that never actually happens if you are not in a movie. It’s the kind…
Bad Movie Magic: Why the Junk of Yesteryear Tops the Junk of Today
Would you rather watch a bad movie made incompetently or a bad movie done well? Let me be more specific: Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966) or 300: Rise of an Empire (2014)? I know which one I’d prefer. And it’s the sad state of crummy filmmaking that validates my decision. Once upon a time,…