On this episode of Cinema Dual, Jon and Chris talk about a pair of movies set at the holidays.
Episode 37 – Holiday Set Movies
The Films of Claire Denis: Trouble Every Day (2001)
Imagine you are a filmmaker coming off the most well regarded film of your career. It’s the film that maybe you don’t realize now but will become what you’re best known. Regardless, the question that will be asked of you is “What’s next?” There’s two paths you can take. Do what’s expected of you, or... Continue Reading →
The Films of Claire Denis: Beau Travail (1999)
Tanks lie unattended near the foot of a mountain or a hill, with possibly empty oil drums next to them. Nameless people sit crowded in a train going through a desert. Women dance in a club hoping to attract the attention of French Foreign Legion soldiers. Those same soldiers, now caked in sand and dust,... Continue Reading →
The Films of Claire Denis: Stars At Noon (2002)
Towards the end of Claire Denis’s Stars At Noon, Benny Safdie’s CIA agent describes Central America as a “gambler’s paradise”. He says this with a smile and unconcerned attitude. Margaret Qualley’s journalist Trish looks at him with scorn. These two individuals know enough about this region that if it is a “gambler’s paradise”, then the... Continue Reading →
Episode 36 – Swashbucklers with Erik Highter
On this episode of Cinema Dual, Erik Highter returns to talk with Chris about a pair of swashbuckling movies.
The Films of Claire Denis: Chocolat (1988)
The camera gives us, the audience, a view of the Atlantic Ocean. This scene is not particularly peaceful. The waters here don’t look beautiful. The ocean roils into muddy bubbles. An African-American father and son though play unconcerned in these not particularly calm waters. The camera then turns to a white woman named France, watching... Continue Reading →
The Films of Claire Denis: An Introduction
One of the great joys of loving art is discovering an artist for your self. One that changes your perspective or fits into your already established aesthetic. It doesn’t matter if they’re new or established. The joy is in discovering those films for yourself. Great work remains great work no matter when you find it. ... Continue Reading →
Criterion Catch-Up: Devil In A Blue Dress (1995)
It's been a cool 10 months since I last did a Criterion Catch-up. It's not that I haven't been watching my collection, it's just that...well, I was doing other things, like May's Vinyl Challenge over at Consuming the Tangible and of course the recent Hooptober marathon right here at Cinema Dual. And in that time... Continue Reading →
Please Baby Please (2022)
Watching a film like Amanda Kramer’s Please Baby Please feels like looking into a window of the past. Not so much because it’s a period piece though that is a window into the past. No, it seems like a film that would fit alongside independent films made in the 1980s like Blue Velvet or Stranger... Continue Reading →
They/Them (2022)
Right now, there's a bit of slasher revival happening. There's been enough time since the end of the last slasher cycle that folks can come back to the genre with new eyes. It also allows for new perspectives. The feature debut of screenwriter John Logan (Skyfall, Alien: Covenant), They/Them brings a queer perspective to a... Continue Reading →
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