by Byron BixlerMy relationship with the Beverly Hills Cop franchise goes like this: The first film is one of my favorite comedies. It was a total surprise — an instant favorite straight out of the gate. It was also the first movie that helped me discover my inexplicable love of ’80s Eddie Murphy films. The … Continue reading
by Byron BixlerEvery once in a while, a film manages to capture the ethereal. This elusive, utterly unquantifiable quality is commonly found in the raw earthiness of Werner Herzog films and the dreamily experiential cinema of Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Tropical Malady, Uncle Boonmee who can Recall his Past Lives). It’s also realized with unprecedented … Continue reading
by Byron BixlerMiles Davis was a bad motherfucker — or at least that’s what the long-in-the-making biopic, Miles Ahead, wants us to initially believe. Written, produced, directed by and starring Don Cheadle in the central role, the film presents the jazz superstar as a swaggering gangster type. Self-involved, brazenly pistol-packing and unapologetically abrasive, Miles embodies … Continue reading
Y Tu Mamá También (Cuarón, 2001) Roads are never just roads in road trip movies. They’re frontiers waiting to be passed, thresholds to be broken through. They are the physical manifestations of the journey ahead, whether that journey be for love, a new life, or self acceptance. In Alfonso Cuarón’s Y Tu Mamá También, the … Continue reading
by Byron Bixler & Jacqueline Borwick Coriolanus (Fiennes, 2011) For his directorial debut, Ralph Fiennes teamed up with screenwriter John Logan (who previously penned The Aviator, The Last Samurai and Gladiator) to take on the tragedy Coriolanus. Written by Shakespeare in his later years, the original play has often been neglected, placed in the shadows … Continue reading
Over a period of two weeks, Filmic members were asked to submit ranked lists reflecting the very best 2015 films they saw. 21 lists were ultimately received and 64 titles of considerable diversity were named. The following is the final ranked aggregate: HONORABLE MENTIONS The Hateful Eight (dir. Quentin Tarantino) What we get with The … Continue reading
When Ethan and Joel Coen released their darkly comedic crime thriller, Fargo, in 1996, the movie had an impact on the film community that wasn’t unlike the effect of Quentin Tarantino’s breakthrough, Pulp Fiction two years earlier. Fargo may not have been the duo’s first outing, but it was the film that made them a … Continue reading
by Byron BixlerSo fragile is that precious thing called love. The memories, the fragrances, the images that linger; all dissolved in a moment of doubt and the acknowledgement of profound delusions. In his previous film, Weekend, Andrew Haigh found emotional authenticity in a blossoming romance between two men. It was young love – spontaneous, raw … Continue reading
by Byron BixlerFor the second straight year, we find ourselves having a conversation about race and the Academy Awards. Accusations of unchecked racism are flooding social media once more, but this time, the “hashtag uproar” is translating to boycotts and the Academy’s Board of Governors has already announced dramatic changes to increase the diversity of … Continue reading
by Byron BixlerLike the best animated fantasies, Song of the Sea comes at the viewer with the kind of serenely poetic energy often only reserved for lullabies. Its world is expansive—seemingly pre-formed from Celtic mythologies. Humans tell stories of ancient spirits while unknowingly rubbing shoulders with the very entities they speak of and the painterly … Continue reading
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