The L‘s critics have shared their favorite films of 2010, and now, before we pack it in and call it a year, here’s a definitive run-down of the year in cinema (“definitive” in this case meaning “50 films compressed into a single short video”):
The L‘s critics have shared their favorite films of 2010, and now, before we pack it in and call it a year, here’s a definitive run-down of the year in cinema (“definitive” in this case meaning “50 films compressed into a single short video”):
In studies of auteurist cinema, the role of the costume designer often gets overlooked, and… um… Matt Zoller Seitz and Sarah D. Bunting, um, don’t overlook it?
Sorry, let’s try that again.
David Fincher’s Zodiac is a police procedural, a horror movie and a historical epic, but first and foremost, it’s a period piece, an aspect that this video essay… um… explores… sort of.
Oh, hell, why even pretend? This piece is about awesome ties. And sport coats. And Three Dog Night. Enjoy.
In this Valentine’s Day-themed video, salute the most romantic medium, with a montage of (some of) its most romantic movies. We just want your extra time, and your…
“The old formula of committed madness feels apropos here,” says Nicolas Rapold in the current issue of the L, reviewing Flooding with Love for the Kid, Zachary Oberzan’s solo restaging of David Morrell’s novel First Blood, the basis for the Rambo films; Flooding with Love plays for a week at Anthology Film Archives beginning tomorrow, Friday January 8th. In this video essay, Matt Zoller Seitz dissects this D.I.Y. psychodrama. (A transcript of the narration can be found here.)
For this exhaustively subjective reflection on ten years of moviegoing, we solicited suggestions from a number of L critics and friends; the roughly chronological arrangement of clips generally reflects the year of the films’ public premiere, though some films have been grouped with the year of their initial US theatrical run.
For our writers’ reflections on the years that were, see here. And if you see anything we’ve missed, tell us all about it in the comments. Watch Part Two, covering 2005-2009, here.
There’s something inherently spooky about the establishing shot: we’re approaching someplace we’ve never been before—whether through killer-cam, point-of-view or objective perspective, and whether glimpsed from a distance or walked through for the first time, it’s that sense of uncertainty that unites these views of some of the most iconic locations of cinematic trauma, whether that location is an old dark house, a motel, a mansion on a hill, a church, a split-level, a torture chamber or a spaceship. See how many you recognize in our video essay, then tell us what we missed in the comments. Happy Halloween, everyone.
Tonight, Film Forum kicks off an Elia Kazan series with his American classic On the Waterfront, a film often considered the filmmaker’s self-justification for naming names to the House Un-American Activities Committee. In this video essay, Matt Zoller Seitz wonders if the truth isn’t more complicated. (Click here for an expanded transcript.)
Today, September 25th, NBC premiered the most important high school TV show of our time. In this video essay, we leaf through our old yearbook and remember the spot-on pop culture references, honestly and cringe-worthy adolescent embarrassment, and upwardly mobile cast and crew. For a transcript, see here.