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editorial welcome to Issue 13 of our journal! Bette Davis in All About Eve

In an essay titled "Falling Out Of Love", Serge Daney coins a beautiful phrase - 'clothes pegs cinema' - or at least what the translator has concocted as the English equivalent. Daney explains it as such: ".when we 'take in a movie', we have to hold it in the depths of our eyes, and cannot do so - cannot make it stick - without the 'clothes pegs' which constitute our appreciation of that beautiful thing we call cinema". It is an extremely apt and poetic metaphor for the thrill of cinema viewing: guided by the filmmaker who "communicates something from one frame to the next", we genuinely feel the film, we "take it in", there is no questioning our complete immersion in the rush of the images and sounds before us. Any other reaction is "false" or a case of "fake" cinema. Throughout the course of this essay, Daney argues for a true and great cinema. The criteria for such a form cinema is one that - in the moment of a cut, a camera angle, a freeze-frame or so on - can submerge us into sensations and meanings previously unseen and unknown. As opposed to a cinema that panders to the "spectator-consumer", and the ability to instantly identify and recognise a sign, a meaning. This is a wonderful criteria and it rings true - the experience of arriving at meanings rather than merely reading them is far richer and rewarding. The occasion to discuss Serge Daney on these pages is afforded by a tribute devoted to him by Jonathan Rosenbaum and published in English in this issue. It is a delightful essay and combined with other interviews in the 'Film Critics' section, such as those with Noël Carrol and Godfrey Cheshire, remind us of the unique role played by the figure who merges critical thinking with journalism and the publishing world. This spirit of bringing together academic criticism and daily, practical even personal observations is important to Senses of Cinema and is represented not only in the eclectic array of articles on offer in this issue but also in individual articles themselves - for example, Tara Brabazon's wonderful piece on Bette Davis and feminist theory is not afraid to speak in bold and personal terms and to take the private and public life of this icon as an important role model for contemporary feminism: "tough, resolute and passionate". The collage of short paragraphs on the films of Wong Kar-wai brings together a range of responses. Interestingly, the adoring tone of most of these is challenged by a perspective that sees In the Mood for Love as futile and shallow. Perhaps Stephen Teo's indispensable discussion, which provides an important historical and cultural context to understanding the film, is a good place to start. Other highlights in this issue include a special section on 1970s US cinema and culture-jammer Craig Baldwin, whose vivid interrogation into dominant media channels and subversion of their meanings is inspiring. It is also a delight to present an excellent discussion of one of the more interesting Australian films to recently appear - Shirley Barrett's Walk the Talk, which succeeds in presenting a character that is layered and complex rather than one-dimensional and clichéd. An enormous thankyou goes to all the writers who contributed to this issue. I am happy to say that Senses of Cinema - now into its 13th Issue - is going very strong. We hope to continue to attract those genuinely passionate and interested in film and to bring to readers' attention films from the past, unknown festivals, ideas and thoughts on films that they may not have otherwise encountered. In particular, thanks to: George Papadopoulos, Michael from Popcorn Taxi, Mairead Phillips, Adrian Danks, James Hewison, and Michael Koller. I will not spare a minute more. So enjoy the issue! Fiona A. Villella                    go to Contents, Issue 13 our mission Senses of Cinema is an online film journal devoted to the serious and eclectic discussion of cinema. It has been set up to address a lack of cinephilic writing in local discourse, that is, writing sprung from the desire to think and write seriously, knowledgeably and passionately about film. Senses of Cinema is unique in its eclecticism: it encourages articles of all styles (casual, personal, academic, critical, impressionistic and poetic - or a combination of these), analytical approaches (thematic, psychoanalytic, etc) and subject matter. The only criteria that we prescribe are that all articles are demonstrably passionate, serious, intelligent and insightful reflections and/or analyses on the topic of cinema. Senses of Cinema promotes various divergent "voices" that speak to a wide and diverse audience. It aims to bring together a mix of writers:  established and emerging, theorists and un-published cinephiles, filmmakers and film programmers, and local and international writers. We are particularly committed to discussing art, independent, experimental and third world cinemas (everything from Renoir to Antonioni to Solàs to Oshima to Morrissey to Jost to Friedrich to Snow, feature films as well as short films) , theorising new encounters with digital technologies, and promoting writing that increases one's understanding and appreciation of cinema. We recognise that an object as ephemeral and ethereal as cinema continues to fascinate, to provoke, to inspire, to turn on, to evolve. And it is in relation to this object that we seek to facilitate and encourage expression and appreciation. Want to contribute to this journal? Click on the words above to read our guidelines for writers. about us Editor / Managing Director - Fiona A. Villella, 27, studied film at Melbourne University and has since gone on to write for many publications, including Metro, Real Time, IF and C'TEQ annotations.  She is also an independent filmmaker, has worked around the film scene, and lived and worked in NYC for 6 months.  She is also co-curator of the Melbourne Filmoteca and a board member of the Melbourne Cinémathèque.  Her favourite directors are Martin Scorsese, Robert Bresson, Eric Rohmer, Jean-Luc Godard, Federico Fellini, Spike Lee, Claire Denis and Julie Dash. You can email Fiona. Webmaster / Founding Editor / Top Tens compiler - Bill Mousoulis, 37, is an independent filmmaker with over 60 films to his name, including four low-budget features.  He was involved with the formation of the Melbourne Super 8 Film Group in 1985, and was its administrator for six years.  He founded Senses of Cinema in late 1999 and was its webmaster until May 2001.   His favourite directors are Roberto Rossellini, Robert Bresson, Jean-Luc Godard, Frank Borzage and Chantal Akerman.  Check out his website, Innersense. You can email Bill. Assistant to the Editor - Grant McDonald, 36, studies film at the University of Melbourne. He orignally studied in the Italian Department and has a special love for Italian cinema. Two of his favourite directors are Brian De Palma and Pedro Almodóvar You can email Grant. Editorial Godfather - Adrian Martin, 41, is one of Australia's foremost film critics. He is the the author of the books Phantasms (McPhee Gribble, 1994) and Once Upon a Time in America (BFI, 1998). His reviews of new releases can be read in The Age (Melbourne). He is currently working on books on Terrence Malick, Brian De Palma and the Mad Max series. Senses of Cinema (ISSN 1443-4059) is published approximately bi-monthly by Senses of Cinema Inc., with the financial assistance of the Australian Film Commission. Copyright lies with the individual authors. All views expressed in this journal are those of the authors and not the editors (unless indicated). As under the Copyright Act 1968 (Australia), no part of this journal may be reproduced by any process without the written permission of the editors except for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review.  These works may be read online, downloaded and copied for the above purposes but must not be copied for any other individuals or organisations. The work itself must not be published in either print or electronic form, be edited or otherwise altered or used as a teaching resource without the express permission of the author. Senses of Cinema Inc. - 2 Furzer Street, West Preston, Victoria, 3072, Australia. Senses of Cinema is indexed in the MLA (Modern Language Association of America) International Bibliography and is listed in the MLA Directory of Periodicals. All Australian content in Senses of Cinema is indexed in APAIS (Australian Public Affairs Information Service) of the National Library of Australia. Senses of Cinema acknowledges the financial assistance of the Australian Film Commission