It Felt Like Love Is An Appropriately Hard-to-Watch Directorial Debut for Eliza Hittman

Lila (Gina Piersanti) really wants to be like her more experienced friend Chiara (Giovanni Salimeni). Chiara's got a steady boyfriend and has already had sex. In Lila's eyes, that's an easy ticket to adulthood and independence. Thus, she quickly strikes up a relationship with a much older guy named Patrick (Jesse Cordasco). It's all the start of Lila trying her best to change herself to fit her idea of what it means to be "adult". Her hair color changes, she brags about her fictional sexual exploits to anyone who will listen and she even begins to attend rowdy parties. In the process of changing herself so drastically, though, one has to wonder what will be left of Lila when this is all finished.

Kiera Knightley Goes in a Different Direction For The Endearing Laggies

In the year 2014, you could see many unique sights on the big screen. A gun-toting raccoon with the voice of Bradley Cooper made his first foray onto the big screen. Rosamund Pike stabbed Neil Patrick Harris in the genitals. Tom Cruise got run over by a truck while trying to save the world. But perhaps the most unexpected and unusual sight of all came in the indie feature Laggies. Said sight was seeing Kiera Knightley not only in a movie set in the modern world but also playing a lady residing in Seattle, Washington! The queen of British period pieces traveling across the pond to play a struggling twenty-something, what a concept!

13 Days of First-Time Frights: A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night

13 Days of First-Time Frights is a series of reviews for October 2019 where Douglas Laman, in the spirit of Halloween, watches and writes about thirteen horror movies he's never seen before. These reviews will be posted each Tuesday and Thursday as well as the last three Wednesdays of October 2019.

Entry #9: A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night

You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout, I'm telling you why. There's a vampire at the center of A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night simply called The Girl (Sheila Vand) who stalks and devours cruel men in her local community. These guys have usually done something of the most wicked variety to earn their fate as a snack for this person who puts on the appearance of just being your average woman. At the same time, Arash (Arash Marandi) is having his own struggles stemming from his father's troubles with addiction. His own life is so filled with problems, maybe a bit of romance will help him forget his woes? As luck would have it, he finds himself enamored with The Girl, not realizing she's a bloodthirsty vampire. Ah, the trials and tribulations of romance.

In the five years since its initial release, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night has garnered widespread acclaim that's launched both the film and its director Ana Lily Amirpour into stardom. I can't say I was as bowled over by it as its most ardent fans but that's mostly on a personal preference basis rather than some complaint on this film being inherently subpar. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is one of those slower-paced horror features that sometimes work like gangbusters for me and other times leave me at such an arm's length that they leave me a touch cold. Even if it's pacing wasn't always captivating, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night still have plenty of qualities to it that still make it a noteworthy horror film.

Most notably, the way Ana Lily Amirpour keeps undercutting visual expectations throughout A Girl Walks Home at Night is most intriguing. This stems as an extension of The Girl and how she is not what she appears to be. Walking through the streets of Iran wearing a shash and garbasaar, Amirpour is aware that characters dressed in this manner like The Girl are traditionally coded in male-created cinema narratives as being passive figures, whereas The Girl is somebody who can devour dudes in no time flat. That's just the tip of the iceberg in terms of how A Girl Walks Home at Night frequently takes standard pop culture assumptions and then running in the total opposite direction.

A tender scene of Arash going back to The Girl's house for the first time is an especially good example of this as the way the scene is shot, paced and scored echoes classic 1980's teen romance movies, complete with a glistening disco ball providing fragmented glittery lighting. The only difference here is that the fact that The Girl is a vampire lends a ticking clock factor to the sequence, you're just waiting for the moment where the fangs will pop out and this whole scene will go from Sixteen Candles to Nosferatu! The lead character of A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is not what she seems and subversion is also on the mind of the film itself in this sequence and throughout the rest of the movie.

Sheila Vand is really good at fiddling around with viewers expectations too, you never quite know when the monstrous side of The Girl is going to come out of the blue and star chowing down on characters in a scene. This part of the performance is so well-done because Vand is so skilled at portraying The Girl as just a person, she doesn't tackle this role as a one-dimensional monsters. She's especially attune to the down-to-Earth qualities of the role when she's tasked with depicting the character in a more conflicted state in the third act, that you can easily (and intentionally) forget you're watching someone whose also a vampire until those fangs come on out again.

That engaging level of uncertainty over when The Girl's more vicious side will crop up is aided by the films sense of pacing, which really bides its time in building up to whenever vampire mayhem breaks out. Sometimes this pacing left me cold, sure, but more often than not it did effectively keep me on my toes as to what moves The Girl would make next. Generating tension on a visual level is the best part of Ana Lily Amirpour's directing in A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, a movie whose best qualities make it clear why this motion picture managed to catapult its creative participants fame and acclaim.

The Guest Is In Touch With The Past And Its Own Distinct Identity

In this prequel to Bill Condon's Beauty and the Beast, David Collins (Dan Stevens) randomly shows up on the doorstep of the Peterson family one day and tells them he knew their deceased son, Caleb. Apparently, David and Caleb worked in the same Army unit, as evidenced by them being in a photo together that lies on top of the Peterson's fireplace. With his twang-infused accent and an emphasis on ending each sentence with "sir" and "ma'am", David Collins is a good o'l Southern boy in every way shape and form and the family, save for Caleb's sister Anna (Maika Monroe), begins to adore David Collins, particularly bullied High Schooler Luke (Brendan Meyer), and they allow him to stay in their home for a prolonged period of time.

Blue Ruin Is Astonishingly Absorbing

At the start of the 2010s, crowdfunding through websites like Kickstarter really broke through as a way to get films financed without relying on the money of corporations that could creatively stifle the production. The ideal use of this financing source would be to get off-kilter original indie movies like Jeremy Saulnier's Blue Ruin made, though the biggest of the films benefiting from crowdsourcing were extensions of already-existing franchises like Veronica Mars: The Movie and Super Troopers 2. As the decade comes to a close, it feels like the bloom is off the crowdsourcing rose thanks to a whole bunch of controversial Kickstarter campaigns that have diluted the reputation of the idea of crowdsourcing a movie. At least we'll always have Blue Ruin!

Enemy Has Audacity To Spare And A Top-Notch Jake Gyllenhaal Performance To Spare

Unless you're Jan de Bont or Simon Kinberg, blockbuster movie directors don't start their directorial careers helming big-budget features. Usually, they kick off their filmographies with smaller-scale tales that depart heavily in tone and genre from the blockbusters they'd eventually helm. Jon Watts, for instance, directed the small-scale thriller Cop Car before moving on to helm the MCU Spider-Man movies and Peter Jackson directed foul-mouthed horny puppets before he directed the epic fantasy movies Lord of the Rings. So it is with Denis Villeneuve, who is in the middle of directing a massively expensive adaptation of the sci-fi epic Dune, but just five years ago directed the highly unorthodox thriller Enemy.

Despite Some Quality Production Design And Amy Adam Acting, Big Eyes Is Less Than Stellar

I once ate at a Tex-Mex eatery that delivered the best quesadillas, they were just scrumptious and filled with chicken that had been grilled just right. They were a delight to chow down on and left me with a delightful aftertaste that constantly reminded my tastebuds of what a glorious meal we'd just consumed. Alas, a few hours later these quesadillas ended up giving me stomach trouble something fierce, I had difficulty even sleeping that night because of how upset my stomach was. Tim Burton's Big Eyes is kind of like those fateful quesadillas that betrayed my insides, pleasant to experience but it ends up making your stomach churn afterwards.

A Fascinating Script And A Detached Driver Are All Locke Needs To Be Transfixing

One of Tom Hardy's most prominent trait as an actor up to this point has been his tendency to do these highly exaggerated voices for some of his characters, such as his heavy Southern drawl in The Revenant, that deep frequently incoherent Venom voice or his iconic Bane voice. Many actors use different voices across different performances but what makes Hardy special is that he goes all-in on some really unique and odd vocal choices. Sure, numerous actors do both American and British accents in their careers, but how many have decided that a Bugs Bunny impression was just what the doctor ordered for a portrayal of Al Capone?

The Ways That Obvious Child Excels Are....Apparent

Why don't we talk about Obvious Child more? I know the film garnered acclaim in its initial theatrical release in June 2014, but man, I feel like writer/director Gillian Robespierre's work here deserves so much more recognition than it's gotten in the four years since it first came out. With Obvious Child, she's created such an entertaining and wonderfully low-key character study bolstered by a terrific performance from Jenny Slate. To boot, this movie is all about lending humanity to a scenario that's usually reserved as a go-to plot twist in a bad melodrama or as a source of villainy in a dreadful Christian movie starring Kevin Sorbo.

Who Would Want To Get Rid Of A Thoughtful Horror Movie Like The Babadook?

For Amelia Vanek (Essie Davis), life as a single mother isn't easy. You can tell just by looking at her tired face that she's being run ragged by the responsibilities of her life including raising her precocious son, Samuel (Noah Wiseman), on her own. Samuel has some major behavior problems and his school is just about ready to give up on the boy and the fact that Samuel has become just as fascinated by a monster called the Babadook and telling everyone within earshot about how he's going to kill the Babadook as he is with performing magic tricks isn't helping anyone. Like I said, this isn't an easy life.

You Betcha That The First Season Of Fargo Is An Outstanding Piece Of Television!

TV shows based on movies don't exactly have the best track record, when you stop to think about it. As a kid, I watched loads of kids programs based on classic Disney animated movies that couldn't hold a candle to the feature films they were leaning heavily on (The Emperor's New School is totally a thing that existed at one point in time for reasons no one can fathom) and many others in this genre (such as last year's heavily derided Rush Hour TV show) have similarly failed to gain traction. But no subgenre of storytelling is inherently flawed and you've got still got programs like M*A*S*H that people adore.

The Purge: Election Year Is A Majorly Forgettable Piece Of Action/Horror Satire

The first Purge movie back in 2013 was a blah movie that was heavy on trite storytelling and low on genuine scares while 2014's The Purge: Anarchy, was a so-so voyage into a Purge night that expanded the narrative scope from its predecessor with some lackluster characters and one or two truly inventive sequences. I wish The Purge: Election Year managed to even hit the moderate hits of that previous entry in this series, when it is instead a major step down in form that's surprisingly low on memorable action or scares.

Film On The Television (9/18/2015): John Wick on HBO2

Stinging from the epic failure of 47 Ronin, Keanu Reeves needed a comeback and fast. Luckily, he got one in John Wick, a fast-paced, excellently filmed and light on its feet action film that was one of last years most enjoyable surprises. Mixing a bombastic approach to everything from the action to even the subtitles with the emotional connection between the titular characters deceased wife and a beagle puppy and you've got yourself one helluva potent combo.

Planes: Fire And Rescue Review (Classic Write-Up)

As Plane As The Ann On Noses Face

The entire Cars franchise fascinates me to a degree that would easily perplex 98% of the human population. I love the first movie, which is the most underrated PIXAR film in my book, but Cars 2 was a messy feature that was made solely for toys and commercial tie-ins. But here's the thing; John Lasseter, who directed the first two Cars movies and produces both Planes features, genuinely loves this franchise. The first movie originated from a very personal place inside of him, and his love for toys and marketing is why this franchise has such a high level of presence in the world of marketing (well, that and of course the fact that Cars stuff sells like hotcakes).

The Grand Budapest Hotel Review

Lobbying For This Extraordinary Film

There are some directors who have such a presence in their projects that it's impossible to imagine the stories they tell being brought to life by any other storyteller. Wes Anderson is easily one such director, and his 2014 effort The Grand Budapest Hotel (a film he takes sole directing and screenwriting credit for) may be the best showcase for why he's the kind of filmmaker so widely admired by cinema obsessives (that's me!) and casual moviegoers alike.

Michael Fassbender Goes West In Trailer For Slow West

Michael Fassbender has been on a roll for pretty much his entire career. Whether it's been a great complicated villain in the X-Men movies, having a terrifying presence in 12 Years A Slave or being the star of one of last year's most underrated movies, Frank, the guy is usually quite compelling in his acting work. His next venture is Slow West, a film that debuted at Sundance and one A24 (with help from DirectTV, which does movies now too I guess?) is distributing. Check out the trailer for the movie below!

A Look At The Highest Grossing Movies Of The 21st Century

In the first 14 years of the 21st century, a wide variety of films have come around to arise as champions, in that they became the biggest movies of their respective years of release. Looking over the movies that have managed to achieve such a feat, I was surprised to see high quality features usually (emphasis on usually) top the years box office. The Avengers, Toy Story 3, The Dark Knight, The Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King and Avatar (yes, I know I lost respect from many of you right there) are all excellent films that managed to make untold amounts of moolah.

Still Alice Review

Still Struggling

Family life is very rarely idyllic paradise. There's always some kind of fraught conflict existing between spouses, siblings, parents and their offspring that can range from the mundane to the cataclysmic. Having a mother diagnosed with a familial form of Alzheimer's is obviously the kind of development that can change a families entire outlook on life, and as for the mother, her life will never be the same. 

Fifty Shades Of Grey Will Tie Up Victory At The Box Office With Ease This Weekend (Box Office Predictions)

And so, one of the most anticipated features of 2015 arrives this weekend. Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele finally debut in the widest opening weekend theater count for an R-rated movie, an appropriate milestone for a hugely anticipated feature. But how high can it go? And will Kingsman: The Secret Service manage to drum up respectable business as well? Let's take a look at this Valentine's Day weekend, shall we?

Sex Tape Review

I Just Watched Sex Tape! (SEX!) It Wasn't That Goooo-ooood!!

I'm pretty the entire existence of Sex Tape came when Columbia Pictures executives were trying to pitch new projects for Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel to star in after the success of the 2011 comedy Bad Teacher. One of the ideas mentioned was "a comedy about a sex tape" and they worked backwards from that phrase to conjure up a story. That's my theory for this features origins, and I'm sticking to it. After all, this films slipshod quality does a fine job supporting my claims.