Seven Samurai (Kurosawa, 1954) is truly a foundational film, not just of Japanese cinema, but of world cinema. Because it is has become a touchstone for so many tropes and devices that we recognize today, you might think that it is a stuffy film, or a hard slog because of…
Harlan County, USA (Kopple, 1976) is still a gut punch some fifty years later. Watching the violent and bloody events unfold as miners strike to be recognized for their union organization, for better wages and more safety measures, and simply to live by the end of their shift, their voices…
It’s our fourth annual Ants In Your Pants episode, as we close out 2018! As always, our lists were culled with much difficulty from all the wonderful films we saw this year, and we only talk about those we saw for the first time which made the biggest impressions on…
It’s our third annual Ants In Your Pants episode, as we close out 2017! As always, our lists were culled with much difficulty from all the wonderful films we saw this year, and we only talk about those we saw for the first time which made the biggest impressions on…
After repeated viewings, contemplation, and discussion, I don’t know what drives the main character of Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (Akerman, 1975). And I’m not just talking about the ending. Even after feeling a deep kinship with what I see on the screen, I don’t know that…
It’s that time of year again! We bring you our year-in-review, but with a twist, in Ants In Your Pants of 2016. Our lists were culled from the tremendous number of quality films we saw this year, and we focused on those we saw for the first time which made…
Eleven years ago, I was lured into the world of German Expressionism via the hypnotic gaze peering out at me from the cover of Fritz Lang’s The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933). It sat on the shelf at Barnes and Noble, beckoning me. Little did I know that my consumption…
In this episode, Ants In Your Pants of 2015, we bring you our year-in-review, but with a twist. Rather than focus exclusively on new releases, we each chose ten of our favorite film finds. These are older films that we watched for the first time this year which made the…