Things Change is the second film directed by David Mamet. Throughout the '80s and into the '90s Mamet was the premiere American playwright of the era, but he was also an excellent director and screenwriter in film. His debut film and probably his best, House of Games, was not hugely successful despite having reviews that … Continue reading Things Change – Blu-Ray Review →

Nightwing and The Shadow of the Hawk are two late-70s, Native American-themed, killer creature films. They’re perfectly OK for creature features, but nothing special. Nighthawk was directed by Arthur Hiller, who is not really known for his genre features. Hiller is best known for Love Story, The Hospital and The In-Laws, three very different movies … Continue reading Nightwing & Shadow of the Hawk – Blu-Ray Review →

Cry Freedom was Richard Attenborough's follow-up to his first big critical and box-office fiasco, his adaptation of the musical A Chorus Line. It's very traditional Oscar bait, but it's also undeniably a strong film at times... though at other times, not so much. It's about the liberal journalist Donald Woods and his friendship with activist Steven Biko, … Continue reading Cry Freedom – Blu-Ray Review →

It’s pretty mind-blowing that a film like Mädchen in Uniform even exists, never mind survived. It was made at the tail end of the Weimar Republic, and within a few years was out of circulation. It's a shockingly frank film about lesbian desire, but also the rising threat of creeping authoritarianism. The film's director, Leontine Sagan, … Continue reading Mädchen in Uniform – Blu-Ray Review →

The late '80s and early '90s marked an enormous revival of noir, thanks primarily to Quentin Tarantino's meteoric rise to fame with Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, although it was brewing already in the work of David Lynch and John Dahl, amongst others. Romeo is Bleeding was the third in a row of crime films … Continue reading Romeo is Bleeding – Blu-Ray Review →