OFCS members don’t just write film reviews. Here are several articles you might find interesting.
Best of Lists
5 Favorites #132: Dern, Goldblum, Howard, Neill, Treverrow
Interviews
Father Son Holy Gore Interviews Mark O’Brien
C.H. Newell @ Father Son Holy Gore
Essays
Larysa Artiugina, Documentarian, Activist, and Cultural Champion
Marilyn Ferdinand @ Alliance of Women Film Journalists
- Excerpt: Ukrainian filmmaker and activist Larysa Artiugina has been on the ground in eastern Ukraine, where Russia has been shelling Ukrainian citizens continuously since 2014, telling stories that depict the country’s plight and resistance—work she continues in a variety of roles.
They’re (still) Heeeere!: “Poltergeist’ at 40
Jerry Roberts @ Armchair Cinema
- Excerpt: Poltergeist was released in the United States 40 years ago today and it remains my favorite horror movie and that underlying subtext is a major reason why. Here is a commercial movie, a big-budget ghost story, and yes, a rollercoaster ride, but underneath lies a potent commentary about the ugly side of the American dream.
Awards Coverage
The Friday Face-Off, The Lists: Foundation
Poll: Remaking Best Directing, 2005
Upcoming Film Previews
The Forgiven
The Gray Man
The Menu
Mr. Malcolm’s List
Pinocchio
Topside
Vengeance
The Walk
Wyrm
Reviews of Short Films
Amo
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: Emmanuel Gras’ aesthetically minded short is an abstract vision that blends planetary movement and physical intimacy, playfully meditating on where exactly we come from.
And Then They Burn the Sea
- Excerpt: Granted, the whole thing emerges as pretentious on many occasions, in a style that points more towards an installation than a film, but as a whole, “And Then They Burn the Sea” works completely, with the combination of beauty and the presentation of cinema as a tool of memory carrying the 13 minute short from beginning to end
Blink in the Desert
- Excerpt: Despite the small issue with the storytelling, “Blink in the Desert” is an excellent animation, that shows, once more, that there is life in Japan, even outside the anime industry.
Goodness
- Excerpt: At 5 minutes, there is not much more to say about “Goodness”. Regarding CG animation however, 1999-born Yusuke Gunji, seems to have what it takes to become a big name in the future.
Ice Merchants
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: A father and son make daily parachute jumps from their cliffside home to sell ice in João Gonzalez’s gripping and poignant animation.
Liquid Bread
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: An offbeat comedy about family dysfunction ultimately becomes a touching examination of how we deal with scars left on us by our histories.
Night Light
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: A teenager cares for her younger siblings in this delicate portrait of familial love and the desire to hold on to a semblance of childhood.
On Xerxes’ Throne
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: The outlawing of physical contact creates a cauldron of unexpressed sensuality for the burnished and browbeaten shipyard workers of Evi Kalogiropoulou’s eerie dystopian short.
The Pass
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: Pepi Ginsberg’s riveting drama tackles the combustible nature of repressed sexuality when a spot of wild swimming takes an unexpectedly dangerous turn.
Persona
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: A young woman wrestles with the duality of her private self and her public persona in this brief but highly effective South Korean animation.
The Spiral
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: María Silvia Esteve’s new short is a bombastic and overwhelming voyage of colour and sound that conveys the psychological sensation of spiraling hypochondria.
Swallow
- Excerpt: The combination of horror, well-handled pretentiousness, subtle sexuality in the way all women act like femme fatales, to a point at least, and the excellent cinematography deem “Swallow” a truly excellent movie, one that is evident that it could easily become a feature, something I eagerly await from Nakanishi in the near future.
Takano Intersection
- Excerpt: “Takano Intersection” is an excellent short, that highlights the quality of Japanese animation, even outside the anime industry.
Tsutsue
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: Two boys struggle with the loss of their older brother in this liminal and haunting Ghanian drama from director Amartei Armar.
Will You Look At Me
Ben Nicholson @ The Film Verdict
- Excerpt: Shuli Huang’s intensely personal and moving diary film is like a heart-wrenching exploration of – and possibly coda to – his relationship with his mother.
Other Types of Articles
The Aesthetics of Shadow: Lighting and Japanese Cinema
- Excerpt: These however, are minor details that do not fault the overall quality of a truly unique book at all. “The Aesthetics of Shadow” is a must-read for every student of Japanese cinema.
Anime Review: Ultraman Season 2
- Excerpt: Despite the CG and the lack of serious context, “Ultraman Season 2” actually emerges as a rather entertaining series, quite easy to watch, and with rather impressive action scenes.
The Beautiful Game on the Silver Screen
- Excerpt: With a biopic of the self-mythologising Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic heading to cinemas, we look back at the history of the beautiful game on screen
‘The Boys’ (Season 3) Review
- Excerpt: The Boys Season 3 continues to blur the line between hero and villain. While squeezing in more characters, gruesome kills, and political satire. Also, Jensen Ackles totally delivers as Soldier Boy. More of him please!
“The Boys” Season 3 Delivers Mayhem and Meaning in Equal, Delightful Measure
Christopher Reed @ Film Festival Today
- Excerpt: The series has always been terrific at reflecting trends in the real world, its emphasis on the role of social media, branding, and celebrity in the modern world spot on from start to finish.
Let’s Talk Spoilers – ‘Stranger Things 4’ – Vol. I
- Excerpt: The newest Let’s Talk Spoilers is now live! Today we return to Hawkins, Indiana and the Upside Down to talk about Stranger Things 4!
