Buffalo Soldiers dir. Jordan Opens Fri Aug 8 Various Theaters From Dr. Strangelove‘s Cold War wheelies to Heathers‘ bulimic teenage wasteland, the best satire has always worked without a net. Completed just before 9/11 and finally released, much of the taboo status surrounding the matte-black comedy Buffalo Soldiers may have come from unexpected world events, […]
Andrew Wright
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Single-Shot Theory
Russian Ark’s Pleasant Pretension
Russian Ark dir. Sokurov Opens Fri Feb 28 Cinema 21 Legendary schlockmeister William (13 Ghosts) Castle knew it best: when it comes to putting butts in seats, you just can’t beat a good gimmick. The PIFF conversation dominatrix Russian Ark is far too respectable to ever stoop to the likes of dumping a rubber skeleton […]
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Remain In the Light
Darkness Falls Wants YOU!
Darkness Falls dir. Liebesman Opens Fri Jan 24 Various Theaters Giant sharks, dream demons, evil clowns–no one ever went broke by exploiting childhood fears and fingering Freudian pressure points. From the very first frame, Darkness Falls cannily aims for the mythic-fear double-whammy of the dark and dentistry: a kindly crone known as the Tooth Fairy […]
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The Struggle of Gangs
Did Leo Eat the Plot?
Gangs of New York dir. Scorsese Opens Fri Dec 20 Various Theaters After a decade of interesting departures and mild disappointments, there were whisperings that the long-dreamed project Gangs Of New York, about the struggle of rival Civil War-era clans for Bronx supremacy, would allow Martin Scorsese to tap back into the passion that fueled […]
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Clooney in the Sky with Demons
Solaris = Great/Boring!
Solaris dir. Soderbergh Opens Fri Nov 29 Various Theaters Movies that grip you emotionally are the hardest ones to discuss rationally. Few things are more frustrating than telling someone about an experience that pierced you to the core, and then seeing their attempt to relive it with glazed, confused, or angry eyes. All of which […]
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Rude Awakening
Reno: You Might Want to Stay Asleep
Waking Up in Reno dir. Brady Opens Fri Oct 25 Various Theaters Few experiences in life are as vapid and unfulfilling as sitting through a mediocre movie–the ones that leave you dry-mouthed, and with a vague sense of lost time better spent in the sunlight. Particular bile is reserved for those sorry cases that can’t […]
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Kill Your Television
Before It Kills You
Over the past few years, Japanese horror cinema has pumped out an increasingly high-octane brand of nightmare fuel, from the Lynchian Ny-Quil fugue of Uzumaki, to Audition‘s trachea-blistering misery date. Grand champion of them all, though, might be 1998’s Ring, a creepingly effective slab of techno-horror that smashed native box office records, burned out a […]
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Mercury Video Picks
Shaken, Not Stirred The ever-present ads may trumpet “A new breed of secret agent,” but before Diesel Did the Dew in XXX, there existed a number of other contenders looking to untie the Bondian knot. For your unbelieving eyes only: • Never Too Young To Die (1986)–A heavily mulleted John Stamos makes out with Vanity, […]
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Commercial Love
I’m a Pepper, You’re a Pepper
40 Years of Classic Commercials dir. Various Opens Fri Aug 9 Clinton Street Theater A cartoon bird is rendered stark raving mad at the sight of chocolate puffs. Malt liquor heralds the appearance of a rampaging bull. A gargantuan, anthropomorphic Jug crashes through walls and exhorts parched children to drink of its garishly colored bodily […]
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Mercury Video Picks
Future schlock
From Nostradamus to Miss Cleo, predicting the future has proven to be endlessly fertile ground for entertainers. The problem is, most of these bold predictions come with a finite shelf life. Take these once visionary cinematic glimpses into the future, now existing well past the due date: • Parasite (1982)–Mixing social satire with oodles of […]
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Mercury Video Picks
Freshness Dated Know you this truism, wannabe pop-culture mavens: Today’s razor scooter is the pet rock of tomorrow. Faced with the constantly shifting mutability of the American people, only the canniest of producers are able to slip their of-the-moment entertainment products through the fickle window of opportunity before it slams forever shut. Please rise and […]
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Mercury Video Picks
Hack Narcissus Some talents are just too large to be limited to one side of the camera. The success of singular sensations such as Eastwood, Costner, and Streisand has inspired a multitude of ego-tripping thespians yearning to expand their personal horizons and direct themselves. What follows are some of the more blatant examples of self-love […]