Author Archives: davidalkhed

George Miller: The Mad Max Films

Despite not exactly being a household name outside of most film circles and cinephiles and a relatively small body of work, the Australian film director George Miller has proven to be one of the most influential directors, not just in film but in culture in general. Let’s face it, the only reason post-apocalyptic costumes andContinue reading “George Miller: The Mad Max Films”

Memories of Murder (2003): Bong Joon-Ho’s Serial Killer Masterpiece

Roughly two years ago, I was doing a marathon of Spike Lee films in preparation for BlacKkKlansman, and one of the films of his I had available through my library was his remake of Oldboy. I fortunately decided to do the smart thing and watched Park Chan-wook’s original film from 2003, and it truly fuckedContinue reading “Memories of Murder (2003): Bong Joon-Ho’s Serial Killer Masterpiece”

Color Out of Space (2019): A Slow But Effective Adaptation of Lovecraft

When you’re talking about the most influential writers in the horror genre, one of the first names to come up is most certainly H.P. Lovecraft. Alongside Edgar Allan Poe, Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker he is without a doubt one of the most influential, and remains a popular author for fans of the genre. DespiteContinue reading “Color Out of Space (2019): A Slow But Effective Adaptation of Lovecraft”

Show Me Cinema #3: Smiles of a Summer Night (1955)

Once I decided that I would cover mainly Swedish cinema for A Fistful of Film, one of the first thoughts that entered my head was “when are you gonna cover Bergman and where do you start?” Without a doubt the most internationally renowned and influential Swedish filmmaker who’s ever lived, it might’ve seemed obvious toContinue reading “Show Me Cinema #3: Smiles of a Summer Night (1955)”

1917 (2019): A Highly Flawed Yet Ambitious War Epic

The idea of doing a film in all one shot is nothing new in 2020. Many films have been made to appear to look like one continuous shot, some famous examples include Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman and Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope, and then there are films that truly are filmed in one shot, such as AlexanderContinue reading “1917 (2019): A Highly Flawed Yet Ambitious War Epic”

Show Me Cinema #2: And Then We Danced (2019)

Right from the beginning of And Then We Danced, we sense that Georgia is a country steeped in tradition. The film begins with black-and-white documentary footage of Georgian dancers performing concerts all over the world are intercut with the first few opening credits, then it cuts to our main characters practicing their own dancing routines.Continue reading “Show Me Cinema #2: And Then We Danced (2019)”

Little Women (2019): A Fresh Take on a Classic Story

So let’s get this right out of the way; I have never read Louisa May Alcott’s original novel nor have I seen any of the prior adaptations. I think perhaps if I had grown up in an English-speaking country it might have been a different story, but I don’t think Little Women is held inContinue reading “Little Women (2019): A Fresh Take on a Classic Story”

Se7en (1995): A Descent Into the Inferno of Humanity

“Ernest Hemingway once wrote, ‘the world is a fine place and worth fighting for’. I agree with the second part”. Those are the final lines of dialogue uttered in David Fincher’s serial killer classic Se7en from 1995, spoken by Morgan Freeman’s character detective Somerset. Not only is the line incredibly profound, it speaks to theContinue reading “Se7en (1995): A Descent Into the Inferno of Humanity”

Fellini 100 Years – La Dolce Vita (1960)

For most of the 1950s, Federico Fellini experienced great success with personal yet stylized films that placed him as one of the major filmmakers in Italian neorealist cinema of post-WWII Europe. Films like I Vitelloni, La Strada and Nights of Cabiria were all extremely successful, both in Italy and abroad. But as Fellini approached aContinue reading “Fellini 100 Years – La Dolce Vita (1960)”