8 years ago
All posts by Dan Schindel
The Oscar-Nominated Documentary Short Films
Every year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards Oscars in three categories dedicated to short films. Every year, viewers at home use the giving of these awards as a good time to get a snack or go to the bathroom. It’s ironic that people don’...
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The Oscar-Nominated Animated Short Films
Every year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards Oscars in three categories dedicated to short films. Every year, viewers at home use the giving of these awards as a good time to get a snack or go to the bathroom. It’s ironic that people don’...
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Sundance Review: “White God”
Dogs are better than humans. Deep down, we all know this, though we may not acknowledge it. It is for this reason that, though it is rife with flaws, White God is a magnificent achievement. Any film that exploits the inherent greatness of canines with a story ...
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“Amira & Sam”
The year is 2008. Bush is almost out of office, economic bubbles are still swelling, and in New York, two unlikely stars cross. Sam (Martin Starr) is an army veteran recently returned from the Middle East. Amira (Dina Shihabi) is an Iraqi immigrant who hawks D...
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Sundance Review: “World of Tomorrow”
In Don Hertzfeldt's World of Tomorrow, robots programmed to fear death stride endlessly across the surface of the moon. The dead bodies of people jettisoned into the upper atmosphere fall back to Earth as beautiful shooting stars. A woman falls in love with a ...
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“Red Army”
I can't recall the last time I saw a documentary in which the people behind the camera were so clearly out of their depth as they are in Red Army. Now, it takes someone with a fair share more gumption than that possessed by the average reedy doc filmmaker to g...
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Euro-Sleazy A: An Interview with Peter Strickland
The Duke of Burgundy, which has become a bit of a film-festival darling in the last several months, follows the ups and downs of a relationship between two women, Cynthia (Sidse Knudsen) and Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna), who practice sadomasochism in their sprawling...
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“Black Sea”
There’s a forgotten Nazi U-boat loaded with gold lying at the bottom of the Black Sea. There’s a crew of British and Russian character actors (and Scoot McNairy) out to get it. There’s a creaky old submarine. Element B loads into Element C to go after Element ...
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“Farewell, Herr Schwarz”
Human beings rewrite their personal and shared memories endlessly. History is a frighteningly fluid thing. It can be reshaped not just by the agendas of people and groups but by previously buried information. Both forms of historical rewriting are in play and ...
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“The Gambler”
The Gambler is embarrassing. It’s trying, and it’s trying so hard, to be an effective character study, but in the attempt can’t even manage to be… anything, really. It’s a film that fails to be, something that can’t even be said to be happening in front of you...
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