Tag Archives: luis bunuel

Metaphor and Symbol in Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995), Spirit of the Beehive (1973), Salaam Bombay! (1988) and Los Olvidados (1950)

Posted on April 15, 2013 by

The four films under consideration – Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995), Spirit of the Beehive (1973), Salaam Bombay! (1988) and Los Olvidados (1950) – all develop what could be called a “root metaphor” for their vision of childhood and the … Continue reading →

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That Obscure Object of Desire (Luis Buñuel, 1977)

Posted on March 9, 2013 by

“Lionsgate does right by the swan song of one of cinema’s least compromising, most iconoclastic mavericks, with a pristine new transfer and a robustly informative selection of spanking new extras.” Read my review of Lionsgate’s Blu-ray release of That Obscure … Continue reading →

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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (Luis Buñuel, 1972)

Posted on November 22, 2012 by

“The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, Luis Buñuel’s caustic comedy of middle-class mores, is arguably the Spanish surrealist’s most accessible late-period masterwork, consistently amusing in its champagne-dry wit, even if it’s never quite as trenchant in its autopsy of bourgeois … Continue reading →

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Tristana (Luis Buñuel, 1970)

Posted on October 11, 2012 by

“Flanked by late-period masterworks that represent the culmination and perfection of the old-guard surrealist’s long-cherished obsessions, the film is often relegated to the role of overlooked middle child.” Read my review of Luis Buñuel’s fairly straightforward, naturalistic Tristana, out in … Continue reading →

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Belle de Jour (Luis Buñuel, 1967)

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

“Part case history, part surrealist prank, Luis Buñuel’s Belle de Jour gets a stunning new Blu-ray transfer, bolstered with the usual treasure trove of extras, from the Criterion Collection.” Read my review of the terrific new Blu-ray version of Belle … Continue reading →

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“Neverending Story”: The Immortal Story (Orson Welles, 1968)

Posted on August 15, 2011 by

Based on a story drawn from Isak Dinesen‘s collection Anecdotes of Destiny and originally produced for French television, which explains its abbreviated c. 58 minute run-time, Orson Welles‘ The Immortal Story originally played in stateside theaters as one half of … Continue reading →

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“Death in the Afternoon”: The Hit (Stephen Frears, 1984)

Posted on July 25, 2011 by

An unexpectedly unconventional  British gangster film, The Hit avoids for the most part any of the usual trappings of the genre–a penchant for brutal ultraviolence, for one–opting instead to present a thoughtful, even philosophical, character study. For one thing, anti-hero … Continue reading →

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“Flower of Evil”: Pale Flower (Masahiro Shinoda, 1964)

Posted on July 21, 2011 by

Japanese New Wave meets old-style film noir in Masahiro Shinoda’s exceptional black-and-white film, every bit as extraordinary as his later Double Suicide (1969), a cubist/minimalist deconstruction of a well-known Kabuki drama. In addition to the prevalent noir tropes (location shooting … Continue reading →

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“Golden Age Thinking”: Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen, 2011)

Posted on June 17, 2011 by

Midnight in Paris, the latest chapter in Woody Allen’s ongoing Euro-travelogue, commences with an old-fashioned overture—a lengthy montage of postcard-pretty Parisian street scenes set to a Sidney Bechet clarinet number—hearkening back to the opening scenes of Manhattan (1977), the Woodman’s … Continue reading →

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Capsule Reviews: May 30 – June 2

Posted on June 3, 2011 by

A Generation (Andrzej Wajda, 1955) – 3/5 Kanal (Andrzej Wajda, 1957) – 5/5 Ashes and Diamonds (Andrzej Wajda, 1958) – 5/5 A Generation – the first installment in Andrzej Wajda’s War Trilogy – portrays the experiences of an idealistic young … Continue reading →

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