Although it was a busy month for everyone, November was a month filled with great articles from our contributors! Below is the list of our ten best articles of November. In case you missed them before, enjoy!
Features
5 People Who Won Oscars For The Wrong Film by Sam Kelly
It’s no surprise that the Oscars often get it wrong. The list of film legends who have never won an Academy Award is pretty damning on the Academy: from Stanley Kubrick, Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchc*ck to Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. That in itself is enough to make you question who chooses these awards, and why anyone listens to them. But they still have a certain magic to them, drawing huge audiences, discussions and record-breaking tweets. The fact is that film fans love to talk about why they’re right, why they’re wrong, and who deserves what… continue reading
The Art of Teaser Trailers by Chris Worrall
Unless you have been living under a rock for the fortnight or so (or have no interest in the genre), you may have noticed that the first teaser for continue reading
Six Superb Soundtracks by Rachael Sampson
Soundtracks are often not given enough credit in the film world, from us as critics and film lovers, but they have a stronger effect on the audience than you’d think. I have found that those pivotal goose bump moments occur when the music over the image is perfectly fitting; culturally and emotionally, allowing us to feel more involved with the movie… continue reading
The American Southern: The Birth Of A Modern Independent Film Genre by Adam Evans
“These men who bust their asses work like dogs. And I believe in them, but every day they hurt. They get old, they peel back… There’s no frontier anymore.” These words uttered by the titular character, played by a never-better Nicolas Cage, inDavid Gordon Green’s 2013 film Joe conjure a feeling shared by numerous American Independent films as of late: The western is dead and in its place are films about real people not trying to chase the American Dream, but rather simply trying to make it along without stumbling… continue reading
Reviews
BIRDMAN Is Incredible & It Makes Me Feel Bad Writing About It by Jay Ledbetter (98% rating)
Michael Keaton is one of those “If only he was given a chance, he could have done great things” type of guys. Edward Nortonis one of those “If he could just suck it up and take other people’s advice he could be one of the biggest stars in the world” type of guys. This is no secret to us and it is certainly no secret to Alejandro González Iñárritu, who takes full advantage of our outside knowledge to create the only slightly twisted reality of Birdman. Taking these actors and having them play exaggerated versions of themselves is a great idea that was sure to garner attention in the media, but that is not enough to prop up an entire film… continue reading
BIG HERO 6: Nerdgasms Aplenty! by Yash Bhatia (80% rating)
Big Hero 6 takes the cultural stereotypes of the East and West, smashes them together to a fine powder, and fabricates from it a 100-minute ride that is so eye-poppingly pretty, so gently moving and so explosively inventive that it’s the most unabashed, jolting fun you’ll have at the movies this year. Even after turning out two very strong features like Wreck-it Ralphand Frozen, Disney proves once again that its capability to push boundaries of imagination is strengthening by each passing endeavor… continue reading
INTERSTELLAR: A Big, Bold, Superbly Entertaining Sci-Fi by David Fontana (95% rating)
Christopher Nolan has made a solid place for himself in the rank of modern filmmakers. His latest film, continue reading
WILD: Better Than Your Average Oscar-Bait by Alistair Ryder (68% rating)
Every year when Oscar season rolls around I become an increasingly cynical person. I stop enjoying the movies I’m watching and instead start to tick off the list of tropes I see in a game I like to call “Oscar-bait Bingo.” In the coming months, cinema screens worldwide will be treated to my two least favorite Oscar-baiting sub-genres: non-disabled actors playing disabled characters (continue reading
Resources
The Beginner’s Guide: Paul Thomas Anderson, Writer/Director by Jay Ledbetter
Stories are built around characters. No matter how complex and fascinating a narrative may be, the only way to make people care is by implanting interesting characters to whom we can relate, root for, loathe, or sympathize with. Character creation is a skill that too few filmmakers possess today. But if there is one master of character building, it is Paul Thomas Anderson… continue reading
The History of Hong Kong Action Cinema Part I – 1896-1930: The Pioneers by Alex Miller
When I was young my Uncle Fred was our gateway to cool movies at a young age. He would babysit my brother and I, and going to the video store (yes, VHS) was the high point of the evening. After running the gamut of classic R rated action, and horror films we landed on the iconic movies of Bruce Lee. At this time Jackie Chan broken into the U.S. market and the brazen action films of John Woo were fixtures in my growing movie collection. At this time I was sure of one thing, if you wanted great action films, Hong Kong is where they came from… continue reading
Of course, we published many more fabulous articles in November, you can find a complete overview here.
Let us know if you enjoyed our articles – we’re also very open to any ideas and suggestions!
(top image: Birdman – source: Fox Searchlight Pictures)
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