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‘Blade II’ (2002): A Superior Action Sequel

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro || Produced by: Peter Frankfurt, Wesley Snipes, Patrick Palmer, Avi Arad Screenplay by: David S. Goyer || Starring: Wesley Snipes, Kris Kristofferson, Ron Perlman, Leonor Varela, Norman Reedus, Luke Goss, Thomas Kretschmann, Matt Schulze, Danny John-Jules, Donnie Yen, Karel Roden, Marit Velle Kile, Darren Crawford, Tony Curran, Santiago Segura Music … Continue reading

‘Cube’ (1997): The Original “Trapped-in-a-[Blank]” Movie

Directed by: Vincenzo Natali || Produced by: Mehra Meh, Betty Orr, Colin Brunton Screenplay by: Andre Bijelic, Graeme Manson, Vincenzo Natali || Starring: Nicole de Boeer, Nicky Guadagni, David Hewlett, Andrew Miller, Julian Richings, Wayne Robson, Maurice Dean Wint Music by: Mark Korven || Cinematography: Derek Korven || Edited by: John Sanders || Country: Canada … Continue reading

‘Eastern Promises’ (2007): Sins in Blood and Ink

Directed by: David Cronenberg || Produced by: Paul Webster, Robert Lantos Screenplay by: Steve Knight || Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts, Vincent Cassel, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Sinead Cusak, Mina E. Mina, Jerzy Skolimowki, Donald Sumpter Music by: Howard Shore || Cinematography: Peter Suschitzky || Edited by: Ronald Sanders || Country: United Kingdom, Canada, United States || … Continue reading

America’s Reckoning: The Rise of Nativist Populism

My review of Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2007 magnum opus, There Will Be Blood, interpreted that film’s thematic premise as the conquering of American social, religious conservatism by American fiscal conservatism and the American financial elite. At the risk of spoiling a fantastic film, Daniel Day-Lewis’ protagonist, Daniel Plainview, a wealthy oil baron depicted as one … Continue reading

‘Earth’ (1998): Cinematic Sectarian Conflict

Directed by: Deepa Mehta || Produced by: Anne Masson, Deepa Mehta Screenplay by: Deepa Mehta || Starring: Aamir Khan, Nandita Das, Maia Sethna, Rahul Khanna, Shabana Azmi, Kitu Gidwani, Arif Zakaria, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Kumar Rajendra, Pavan Malhotra Music by: A. R. Rahman || Cinematography: Giles Nuttgens || Edited by: Barry Farrell || Country: Canada, India … Continue reading

‘Drug War’ (2012): Johnnie To’s Sociopathic Crime Saga

Directed by: Johnnie To || Produced by: Johnnie To, Wai Ka-Fai Screenplay by: Wai Ka-Fai, Yau Nai-hoi, Ryker Chan, Yu Xi || Starring: Sun Honglei, Louis Koo, Huang Yi, Wallace Chung, Gao Yunxiang, Li Guangjie, Guo Tao, Li Jing, Lo Hoi-pang, Eddie Cheung Music by: Xavier Jamaux || Cinematography: Cheng Siu-Keung, To Hung-Mo || Edited … Continue reading

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