Favorite films

Recent reviews

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  Rocky Road to Dublin 1968

  ★★★½ Watched 22 Jul 2022

  Journalist Peter Lennon reports from the ground in 1960s Dublin. A strong critique of censorship and the role of the Catholic Church. Has an impression of the New Wave thanks to cinematography by Raoul Coutard. Ultimately the narrations start to grate and the film grinds towards the end of the hour running time.

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  Daguerréotypes 1975

  ★★★★ Watched 27 Jul 2022

  Varda introduces her neighbours and their professions. The editing includes some inspired use of the smash cut involving a magician’s performance.

Popular reviews

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  Irma Vep 1996

  ★★★★½ Watched 07 Feb 2022

  Long before Personal Shopper, Olivier Assayas made this imaginative tale of a foreigner (Maggie Cheung) struggling in Paris with a difficult yet absent boss (Jean-Pierre Leaud). It is one of my favourite movies about movie-making and a brilliant satire of the French film industry.

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  La Notte 1961

  ★★★½ Watched 01 Aug 2022

  Compares unfavourably to La Dolce Vita and Antonioni’s L’Avventura by covering similar themes in a more melodramatic style. Excellent cast of Marcello Mastroianni, Jeanne Moreau and Monica Vitti. Antonioni would later continue his obsession with open spaces, in colour, in Blow-up.

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