The Gorgeous Face of Catharsis in HAPPY FACE

On 02/03/201907/04/2024 By C.H. NewellIn 2019, Alexandre Franchi, Drama, Film, Robin L'Houmeau, Slamdance Film Festival1 Comment

Franchi's HAPPY FACE is a wonderful spit in the eye to vapid, beauty-obsessed culture— an anthem for the outcast!

Dichotomies of Violence: Abuse, Autonomy, and BDSM in Nicolas Pesce’s PIERCING

On 02/02/201902/08/2019 By C.H. NewellIn Christopher Abbott, Film, Horror, Mia Wasikowska, Nicolas Pesce, Ryû Murakami, ThrillerLeave a comment

Nicolas Pesce's adaptation of PIERCING, by novelist Ryû Murakami, is a stunning, brutal look at the thin line between pain/pleasure.

[Slamdance 2019] Land of the Free, Home of the Hate in THIS TEACHER

On 01/29/201904/11/2019 By C.H. NewellIn Drama, Film, Hafsia Herzi, Mark Jackson, Racism, Sarah KazemyLeave a comment

THIS TEACHER examines the barely hidden intolerance of America from the perspective of one French Arab woman.

Slamdance 2019 (Narrative Competition): CAT STICKS

On 01/28/2019 By C.H. NewellIn 2019, Drama, Drugs, Film, Indian Film, Joyraj Bhattacharya, Ronny Sen, Tanmay DhananiaLeave a comment

CAT STICKS portrays the lives of junkies in Kolkata— some of whom wish to escape their addiction, some of whom are caught in a perpetual cycle.

Slamdance 2019 (Narrative Competition): A GREAT LAMP

On 01/25/2019 By C.H. NewellIn 2019, Film, Max Wilde, Saad Qureshi, Slamdance Film Festival, Spencer Bang, Steven MaierLeave a comment

Saad Qureshi's feature film debut explores millennial aimlessness, suffering, and modern friendship with a dose of beautiful surrealism.

Slamdance 2019 (Documentary Competition): BEHIND THE BULLET

On 01/25/201904/11/2019 By C.H. NewellIn 2019, Documentary, Film, Gun Violence, Heidi Yewman, Slamdance Film FestivalLeave a comment

Heidi Yewman's gun violence documentary will devastate you— it also educates and illuminates, too.

“My life is like an empty cylinder”: Modern Cowboys & Daddy Issues in THE SISTERS BROTHERS

On 01/22/201901/22/2019 By C.H. NewellIn 2018, Carol Kane, Crime, Film, Jacques Audiard, Jake Gyllenhaal, Joaquin Phoenix, John C. Reilly, Riz Ahmed, Rutger Hauer, Western1 Comment

Jacques Audiard's film adaptation of THE SISTERS BROTHERS deals with the Wild West becoming a modern world.

Decadence and the Destruction of Discourse: The Death of Modern America in Adam McKay’s VICE

On 01/21/2019 By C.H. NewellIn Adam McKay, Amy Adams, Biography, Christian Bale, Film, Politics, Satire, Steve Carrell1 Comment

Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.