See cinema differently
Director: Isabella Eklof Stars: Victoria Carmen Sonne, Lai Yde, Thijs Römer Applying The Lost Highway Hotel's 'Seal Of Approval' to this film feels like an act of self-sabotage, yet I can't help but respect what Isabella Eklof has attempted to do with this picture... ugly, nasty and confrontational as it may be. It's been a …
Year: 1974 Director: Jack Hill Stars: Jo Johnston, Rainbeaux Smith, Rosanne Keaton Is there such a thing as an elevated exploitation film? In the documentary on the Filipino B-movie boom Machete Maidens Unleashed, cult director John Landis laughs off the notion, rejecting the idea that filmmakers who indulge in exploitation pictures have any loftier intentions …
Continue reading "Why I Love… #106: The Swinging Cheerleaders"
Year: 1982 Director: Robert Altman Stars: Karen Black, Cher, Sandy Dennis The weather is scorching. Being a hopeless cinephile, a heatwave first and foremost gets me thinking about 'hot' films. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Wake In Fright. Body Heat etc. Movies defined by sweltering climates, in which the air seems sticky and the actors perspire for our …
Continue reading "Why I Love… #105: Come Back To The 5 And Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean"
Director: Agnès Varda Agnès Varda died on 29 March this year at the age of 90. I've seen too few of her films: the ones offered to me by MUBI in the wake of her death... last year's charming Faces Places... her own mini-documentary on the making of partner Jacques Demy's The Young Girls Of …
Do not worry about that title. The Lost Highway Hotel isn't about to descend into vacuous red carpet glamour. But as the end of the decade starts appearing on the horizon (and with 100 film recommendations already live for your exploration) it felt like a neat time to celebrate the incredible acting talents that have …
Director: Carlos Reygadas Stars: Carlos Reygadas, Natalia López, Rut Reygadas There are personal cinematic landmarks that one collects without even realising. A key one for me was in the spring of 2013. Picturehouse Cinemas run an on-again, off-again strand called Discover Tuesday, showcasing features from around the world that, for whatever reason, exist outside of …
This isn't a contrary piece arguing in favour of Jaws 2 being anywhere near comparable to Steven Spielberg's original blockbuster. It's quite in vogue for certain publications to float such edgelord opinions. These articles make for juicy clickbait, but often serve little purpose beyond that. No, Jeannot Szwarc's obligatory 1978 sequel to the monster smash …
Director: Gary Dauberman Stars: Katie Sarife, Madison Iseman, Mckenna Grace Ah, back again. The franchise offshoot that just won't die. Annabelle is a weird one. A series centred on an evil doll from The Conjuring which is completely inanimate, yet acts as a conduit for a cumbersome demon that wants to suck your soul out. The first …
Director: Michael Dowse Stars: Dave Bautista, Kumail Nanjiani, Betty Gilpin We live in an aggregate world. Websites like Trip Advisor and apps like Uber have made us obsessed with the highest - and lowest - scores attainable. They breed an element of competitiveness that is counter-productive. Anything less than top score isn't worth the experience. …
Year: 1951 Director: Samuel Fuller Stars: Richard Basehart, Gene Evans, Michael O'Shea Having worked his way up the ranks as a versatile screenwriter, Samuel Fuller 'upgraded' to the director's chair and quickly took on the thankless appearance of a 'journeyman' director. This was years before the critical reappraisal that rightly recognised his craft and influence. …
Director: Yann Gonzalez Stars: Vanessa Paradis, Nicolas Maury, Kate Moran It was only a week ago that I was advising that Peter Strickland's In Fabric is not the giallo love letter it might appear to be. Now, set to a dreamy score by M83, Yann Gonzalez' Knife+Heart is the film that fulfils that promise; an …
Director: Ari Aster Stars: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, William Jackson Harper Two films into his career, and you get the feeling that Ari Aster is working through some shit. Anyone who caught last year's Hereditary will have already guessed two things; 1) Aster is interested in the extremes of the grieving process and 2) he …
Director: Jon Watts Stars: Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zendaya Let's talk for a little bit about eyewear. In the DC universe, spectacles serve a very powerful function, and one might argue that without them Superman would be nothing. They are - incredulously - the key to his disguise. Without his specs, he would not be …
The Lost Highway Hotel 