Fear & Loathing @ the 2012 Philadelphia Film Festival Part III: Boozie Movies sees things that can't be unseen, and then it sees ABCs OF DEATH

Disclaimer: I am not interested in things as they are but how they seem, how the feel, how they could be, how they should be, and most importantly, how I damn well want them to be. To read previous installments... More »

By Greg Christie

Fear & Loathing @ the 2012 Philadelphia Film Festival Part II: Boozie Movies Tries to Review Silver Linings Playbook but Gets Stoned with a Demon and has a Three Way with a Stripper Instead!

Dear readers, What follows below is a true story. Names have been changed to protect the subjects' identities. If you've missed the prologue, you can read it here. I warn you, this is not for the faint of the heart.CHAPTER... More »

By Greg Christie

Fear & Loathing @ the 2012 Philadelphia Film Festival Part I: Boozie Movies returns and goes to hell, literally.

Dear readers, What follows below is a true story. Names have been changed to protect the subjects' identities. This is only a prologue, an introduction for things to come. Parts 2 and 3 have already been written and the story... More »

By Greg Christie

Fantasia: Shion Sono's STRANGE CIRCUS (KIMY√î NA S√ÇKASU), starring Masumi Miyazaki, Issei Ish

FOR TRAILER, SEE THE BOTTOM OF THIS ARTICLE Shion Sono's Strange Circus (Kimy√¥ na s√¢kasu) is scheduled to be screened at the 2006 Fantasia Festival in Montr√©al on Thursday July 13th at 9:45 p.m.. The screening is to be... More »

By The Gomorrahizer

The Hanging Garden Review

What follows is an expanded version of my review of Toshiaki Toyoda's Hanging Garden updated to include a look at the film's recent Japanese DVD release. On first blush the news that Toshiaki Toyoda's The Hanging Garden, the follow... More »

By Todd Brown

Midnight My Love Review

In many ways it seems fair to say that Mum Jokmok is the Thai equivalent to Robin Williams. Those who know him in North America likely do so purely thanks to his role as Dirty Balls (or George, in... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Black Night (Nuit Noir) Review

I'm quite certain that all those pretty pictures in Olivier Smolders Nuit Noir must mean something but as for what that might be, I have no clue whatsoever ... A dark, surreal film that taps into the creepier side... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Danielson, A Family Movie Review

Full disclosure time: I've known Danielson's Dan Smith for many years now. Though we see each other so seldom these days that calling him a friend feels like over selling the relationship he is certainly more than an acquaintance... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Hard Candy Review

Despite a successful international festival run that saw the film take home Best Film and Best Screenplay awards at Sitges - which means many smarter people than I disagree with me on this - I confess to finding Hard... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Next Door (Naboer) Review

Two days and nine films into the Philadelphia Film Festival it doesn't seem to carry all that much weight to say that Pal Sletaune's Next Door is by far the best film I have seen here. Well how about... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Joni's Promise (Janji Joni) Review

When we first caught wind of Indonesian blockbuster comedy Joni's Promise some months back it came to us tagged as a Sabu style comedy. And while the basic plotline with it's constantly running lead character does sound like the... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Evil (To Kako) Review

Yourgos Noussias' Evil is one hundred percent a crowd film. I will confess to having seen this on DVD prior to the festival and - watching it at home, alone, on a mid sized television with the sound down... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Texture Of Skin Review

Did anyone see this coming? After acheiving significant international success with his family oriented animated feature My Beautiful Girl Mari - and he is currently at work on another animated feature, Cobby the Fox - Korea's Lee Sung-Gang opted... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: 7 Virgins Review

The aimless youth film is well nigh a genre unto itself. There are stacks of these films released every year, and you know the type. There are the uplifting stories of kids hard done by who manage to somehow... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: The King Review

If Gael Bernal were a white man he would be a massive star by now. He is an enormous talent with an impeccable eye for quality projects. His presence in a film is virtually enough on its own to... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Kinky Boots Review

Julian Jarrold's Kinky Boots is entirely predictable and emotionally manipulative. The first act is hugely flawed, failing to properly establish several key relationships and the nature of its lead character leaving lead actor Joel Edgerton looking lost and outclassed... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: Kissed By Winter (Vinterkyss) Review

Perhaps it is a function of the sheer number of awards Sara Johnsen's Kissed By Winter has won internationally, the weight of expectations, but I was expecting more. Despite some solid performances and strong cinematography the script ultimately lets... More »

By Todd Brown

Philly Fest Report: It's Only Talk Review

Director Ryuichi Hiroki has a very particular genius. While many others can out do him in terms of camera work and technical chops there are few, if any, working in the world today who are more gifted at drawing... More »

By Todd Brown

Yorgos Noussias' EVIL (TO KAKO), w/ Meletis Georgiadis, Pepi Moschovakou, Argiris Thanasoulas, Mary

FOR TRAILERS AND STILLS, SEE THE BOTTOM OF THIS ARTICLE This is a reminder that Yorgos Noussias' Evil (To kako) is scheduled to have its North American première at the 15th Philadelphia Film Festival (PFF) on April 3rd at... More »

By The Gomorrahizer

Mitsuru Meike's THE GLAMOROUS LIFE OF SACHIKO HANAI (HANAI SACHIKO NO KAREI NA SHÔGAI), w/ Emi Kuro

FOR TRAILER, SEE THE BOTTOM OF THIS ARTICLE Thanks to Twitch's own logboy for bringing to my attention the fact that Mitsuru Meike's The Glamorous Life of Sachiko Hanai (Hanai Sachiko no karei na shôgai) - an extended version... More »

By The Gomorrahizer

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Leading Voices in Global Cinema

Todd Brown, Founder & Editor Toronto
Peter Martin, Managing Editor Dallas
Ryland Aldrich, Festivals Editor Los Angeles
James Marsh, Asian Editor Hong Kong
Brian Clark, European Editor Paris

China Beat: What did China See in IRON MAN 3?

Much has already been written, both on these pages and many others, about the landmark Hollywood-China co-production that is Marvel and DMG Entertainment's Iron Man 3. The film, directed by Shane Black, is the third solo outing for Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark, and has proved a phenomenal success around... More »

FEAR & LOATHING AT CANNES, PART 2: I'M IN LOVE WITH EVERYBODY'S GIRL

CHAPTER 4: THE PHILOSOPHY OF ANNA KARINA AND BUTT PLUGSI'm sitting outside at a small Café that my editor told me to meet him at. I'm a 10 minute walk from the Marche Du Film convention hall and I'm still waiting for my editor to arrive so he take guide... More »

CINEMA HOLOCAUST ON THE FRENCH RIVIERA, PART 1: THOSE GOD DAMN FILM BLOGGERS

MIKE'S JOURNAL. MAY 13. MORNINGI wake up sometime around five AM. My flight to France doesn't leave until five PM. I should be there for security check in sometime around 3PM. There is no reason for me to be up this early but I'm feeling anxious. I have an itch... More »

FEAR & LOATHING AT CANNES, PART 1: A MAN'S HANDSHAKE SAYS EVERYTHING

CHAPTER ONE: THE BIGGER THE SIDEBURNS, THE BIGGER THE ASSHOLE. I've hit the big time now. I've finally made it. I'm in like Flint from here on out. I'm boarding a plane to France where I'll be attending the Cannes Film Festival for the first time.No more unpaid blogging from... More »

Destroy All Monsters: Leo DiCaprio and the Myth of the Chick Flick

I have a running argument about whether or not movie box office is a zero-sum game. I tend to attack film earning potential from the "mother of two" perspective - which is that while yes, it's nice to believe that if a film is good it has a theoretically unlimited... More »