I'd seen two Haneke films prior to watching The Piano Teacher and I'm glad I did. It is more complicated and nuanced than it might first appear. Having already seen Cache (2005) and Funny Games (2007) helped me lean into the dissonance presented in The Piano Teacher.
While both Cache and Funny Games mess with the format and language of film, The Piano Teacher does not. The cinematography, characterization, dialogue and sound are all played straight. It is excellent filmmaking…
I am very rarely compelled to take notes while watching a movie. Usually I’m happy to ponder the experience the following day and see what stuck or shook loose. Kill It and Leave This Town is an exception.
Nearly every two minute sequence in the first half hour is packed dense with bizarre, surreal animation. There are production artifacts left in as a stylistic choice — such as tape, discolored paper or white out. The sound of a conversation slowly…
Structure Positive: Very efficiently answers most of the logistical "but what about?" questions regarding time loops.
Character Positive: Each of the four friends serve their purpose in the story.
Structure Negative: The plot itself makes no sense and requires you to suspend all disbelief about what Sam spends her time on between each of the events displayed on screen.
Character Negative: For a 2010s movie about bullying, you'd think they'd flesh out Juliet a bit more. She's just there to…
Structure Positive: The story starts with Hutchens and Chambers already established as their respective champions and very quickly intrigues us with which of them would beat the other.
Character Positive: Hutchens has a lot of character and little-to-no backstory exposition.
Structure Negative: Way too much "and then Chambers establishes dominance" filler in Act 2.
Character Negative: Neither Hutchens nor Chambers are interesting enough to carry the film. Makes it hard to stay invested in the outcome of the fight.
This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
Besides Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction was the Tarantino I was most eager to revisit. I've seen a lot of nonlinear movies but they generally suck. Pulp Fiction was one of maybe five that I held up as an example of this aspect helping tell its story.
On this rewatch, I specifically paid mind to the narrative structure. The verdict is that it still works. It doesn't work as well as I remembered -- but it's in the good enough territory.…
It took me over a month to fully process the impact Liz and the Blue Bird had on me. My thoughts keep returning to its sense of longing without courage. It's hard to convey what that feels like. Liz and the Blue Bird pulled me to that place and held me there.
Stories are about conflict. The best stories are conflicts between two people who are acting out benevolent desires. They are pulling in different directions because they have different…
