Prayer has been at the heart of cinema in 2026 in a way that it usually is not, from Wake-Up Dead Man to Sentimental Value to A Little Prayer. Even Superman, one could argue, as a helpless boy clings to his name as men with guns point them at him, following Read More …
The Coen Brothers often gravitate toward stories about folks that are in over theirheads in situations spiraling from one single decision. Actions have consequences, andwhat is intended as merely passive involvement ultimately results in very activeparticipation. In the case of Fargo (1996), Jerry Lundegaard’s (William Read More …
There was a glorious moment in The Banshees of Inisherin when Pádraic (Colin Farrel) tells Colm (Brendan Gleason) why he refuses to be shunned by his former friend despite the latter’s threats of self-mutilation. At that moment, I thought perhaps he was acting as an Read More …
Perhaps the great dystopian satire of the cinema, Brazil reveals the foolishness and absurdity of its Brave New World with a dark wit and a robust humor. Jonathan Pryce plays the hapless Sam Lowry as a comic variation on Kafka’s Josef K. As in The Trial (the 1962 Orson Welles adaptation Read More …
Neither the comedian nor his audience knew the full extent of Nazi atrocities; if they had, The Great Dictator either wouldn’t have been made or wouldn’t have succeeded. Still, its takedown of Hitler (not to mention Mussolini, Goebbels, and Goering) is relentless and blistering, even if it’s Read More …
When the Pythons first thought of making a comedy about Jesus, they decided to actually read the gospels first. They discovered that his teachings were so good, he couldn’t be mocked. So they made a movie about Brian instead, an accidental messiah whose frustrations with Read More …