2001-2010

Synopsis:
The film uses a mix of cut-out animation from photographs and live-action segments, and tells the story of a married man who lives a double life in his dreams, where he is married to another woman.Read More »

A two-part omnibus consisting of b/w comedy about a group of friends who try to cover up a murder, and thriller set in an abandoned warehouse where three policemen guard their witness-collaborator who claims “they” will come and shoot them all.Read More »

The story of a private security contractor in Iraq who rejected the official explanation of his friend’s death and sets out to discover the truth.Read More »

Quote:
Toru recalls his life in the 1960s, when his friend Kizuki killed himself and he grew close to Naoko, Kizuki’s girlfriend, and another woman, the outgoing, lively Midori.Read More »

Anyone who has interest in LA, architecture, Hollywood, or portrayal of a city in film should see this, imho.

Quote:
If we can appreciate documentaries for their dramatic qualities, perhaps we can appreciate fiction films for their documentary revelations. — Thom Andersen, Los Angeles Plays ItselfRead More »

Quote:
Rock ‘n’ roll comes to Germany just ahead of the Berlin Wall in “The Red Cockatoo.” Stylish period piece is weighed down by a too-familiar love triangle, generating nostalgia for a difficult time not nearly as successfully as clear predecessor “Good Bye Lenin!”

Unlike helmer Wolfgang Becker’s “Good Bye Lenin!,” “Cockatoo” will work best for those with some knowledge of the early days of the German Democratic Republic and tension generated by the Wall throughout the country.Read More »

Quote:
In the late 1960s and early 1970s polarization of American political situation was becoming acute, with the Vietnam War abroad and civil rights at home being the most pressing issues. For the youth political movement, seemingly ineffectual methods of peaceful protest and resistance led to the rise of a faction that wanted a more extreme approach that the government could not ignore. One particular group, the Weather Underground, attempted to team up with the Black Panthers to violently confront the US government. They began with participation in street riots, and escalated their efforts to include the bombing of specific targets associated with the government or local power structures. Through archival footage and interviews of participants on both sides of this conflict, this film covers the Weather Underground’s campaign of violence through this period, the FBI’s strategies and tactics to apprehend them (including some deemed unethical or illegal), until changing times and disillusionment brought their activities to an end.Read More »

Master and Margarita (2005) is a Menippean film based on the eponymous book by Mikhail A. Bugakov. Set in Moscow under Stalin it has several story-lines that are intertwined. The sacrifices of Master (Galibin), a talented author of a manuscript about the biblical Pontius Pilate, and Master’s muse – Margarita (Kovalchuk), are paralleled by the biblical story of Yeshua in Yerushalaim, and the deceit of the cowardly ambiguous Pilate (Lavrov), whose character alludes to a Soviet leader. The reality is distorted by Satan Woland (Basilashvili), and his lieutenants, who are manipulating public events and people’s lives by pushing the buttons of human weaknesses and sins. Margarita taps into Woland’s power as she becomes the Queen of the Satan’s Ball. She turns into a witch to save Master. Some characters allude to Soviet leaders: Lenin, Stalin, Beria, and their entourage.Read More »

Quote:
An unknown creature has murdered the Creator of Universe and unleashed the ability to produce miracles. This ability is now in the hands of human beings who have driven themselves into destructive envy and the horrible chaos of suddenly becoming Gods themselves.Read More »