an online journal devoted to the serious and eclectic discussion of cinema
Senses of Cinema
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2005 World Poll
Australian CinemaPortraits of Settler History in The Proposition by Carol HartHailed as an antipodean Western, this Nick Cave scripted and John Hillcoat directed feature raises considerable debate about the representation of Australia’s colonial history.The Genesis of The Naked Bunyip by John B. MurrayA producer, director, screenwriter and activist for an Australian national cinema provides a first-hand socio-cultural account of the era surrounding the late 1960s-early ’70s revival in local film production.
On Movies, Musicians and SoundtracksNo Direction Home: Looking Forward from Don’t Look Back by Tim O’FarrellGiven that much of this Bob Dylan documentary sources its material from the archives of the Direct Cinema movement of the 1960s, this article addresses the historical reframing of such footage for contemporary use.Observable Death: Gus Van Sant’s Last Days by John Lars EricsonOstensibly about very little, Van Sant’s film on the last days of a rock musician is discussed in the light of theorist Siegfried Kracauer’s ideas on filmic realism.An Analysis of the Soundtrack in the Work of Malcolm Le Grice by Denice McMahonAvant-garde cinema has a long and illustrious tradition of experimentation between image and music. The work of this seminal structural/materialist filmmaker is further testament to that abiding practice.Give Me a Second Grace: Music as Absolution in The Royal Tenenbaums by Carole Lyn PiechotaAn insightful thematic cross-reading of the film’s narrative in relation to its pop-music soundtrack.
Nicholas Ray: Two Classics RevisitedBigger Than Life: The Picture, the Production, the Press by Sam WassonComprehensive examination of one of Nick Ray’s most renowned melodramas.Regarding Bitter Victory: Hollywood’s Philoctetes in the Desert or La Politique des Comédiens by Carloss James ChamberlinFor many, the films of Nick Ray are a litmus test for the pros and cons of la politique des auteurs. This article provides the most extensive analysis to date of the elusive ‘Nick Ray Style’.
Spotlight on Robert Towne, Part 2Riding the New Wave: The Case of Bonnie and Clyde by Elaine LennonA further instalment (see Issue 37) on the career of this fabled American screenwriter. Elaine Lennon examines in detail Towne’s contribution to this key film of the post-classical Hollywood era.
FeaturesRide Lonesome: The Career of Budd Boetticher by Sean AxmakerA biographical and critical overview of this greatly admired filmmaker and seminal stylist of the Hollywood B-movie tradition.A Journey into the Light: Matthias Müller’s Film Pensão Globo by Daniel KothenschulteInsightful discussion on the fragility of cinema and life in the æsthetic practice of experimental filmmaker Matthias Müller.Faozan Rizal: Landscapes of Feeling by Nathan AndersenIndependent Indonesian filmmaker Faozan Rizal was the unofficial subject of a retrospective at the 2005 Singapore International Film Festival. Relatively still unknown outside the region, this article provides a welcome introduction to the poetics of Rizal’s cinema.Fragments of a Great Event Viewed from a Tiny Room: Abel Gance’s Napoléon, Film History and Conservation by Dean BowmanAbel Gance’s multi-screen 1926 silent epic was one of the first to receive an up-market, highly publicised restoration (Francis Coppola was one of its sponsors). Dean Bowman examines the legacy.
Conversations with Filmmakers“A Vessel of Imagery”: An Interview with Gregg Araki by Damon Young and Gilbert CaluyaFor many, Mysterious Skin was one of the best films of 2005. In this wide-ranging discussion director Gregg Araki talks about what attracted him to the story, and much else about his career in general.Battle in Heaven: An Interview with Carlos Reygadas by Maximilian Le CainOne of the more controversial films of 2005, Mexican filmmaker Carlos Reygadas discusses the merits of his film.
Festival ReportsWhat Price Cinema? A Report from the 43rd New York Film Festival by Kevin B. LeeThree Flavours of Polish Films’ Rejuvenation and Stability: The 30th Polish Feature Film Festival in Gdynia by Renata MurawskaMy Un-queer Pusan: Or How I Got into an Argument with The Unforgiven: The 10th Pusan International Film Festival by Paolo BertolinIn a Box (Canyon) and on a Line: The 32nd Telluride Film Festival by Sarah A. HellerAmbiguous Adventures: The 23rd Torino Film Festival by Olaf MöllerTowards World Domination: The 30th Toronto International Film Festival by Dan SallittDeux Fois: Some Thoughts on the 24th Vancouver International Film Festival by Bérénice ReynaudBetween Seeing and Memory: A Report on the 62nd Venice Film Festival by Saul SymondsImagining Iran: A Symposium on Iranian Cinema by Greg Dolgopolov
Book ReviewsThe Cinema of Abbas Kiarostami by Alberto Elena feature review by Hamish FordLe Varianti Trasparenti: I Film con Ingrid Bergman di Roberto Rossellini by Elena Dagrada review by Geoffrey Nowell-SmithNot Reconciled: Australian Cinema after Mabo by Felicity Collins and Therese Davis review by Eva RueschmannHitchcock’s Cryptonymies, Volume 1: Secret Agents by Tom Cohen review by Polona PetekCary Grant: A Biography by Marc Eliot review by Anthony D’AmatoHorizons West: Directing the Western from John Ford to Clint Eastwood by Jim Kitses review by Saige WaltonShepperton Babylon by Matthew Sweet review by Daniel GrittenClose Up: An Actor Telling Tales by John Fraser review by David Melville
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Also new this issue 4 profiles have been added to the Great
Directors critical database:
19 annotations have been added to the Cinémathèque Annotations on Film section: 14 new lists have been added to the Top Tens section.
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