Author Archives: Zac Petrillo

Dargis and Scott Weigh-in on an “Interesting” Year of Movies

If film critics aren’t salivating fanboys or stuffy film scholars (whose fear of the supposedly lesser contemporary world of film runs a shockingly parallel course to recent Republican apocalypse proclamations), then they are likely young and over-stuffed with Internet knowledge … Continue reading

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Authentic and Surreal: Sounds of Lincoln & Skyfall

Two of most well-received major releases this year, Lincoln and Skyfall are not only being applauded for creating visually arresting stories, but also creative soundscapes. Lincoln’s sound designer, Ben Burtt worked tirelessly to capture authentic sounds such as old doors … Continue reading

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Homeland, Ep. 208: I’ll Fly Away

Homeland’s “I’ll Fly Away” heightens the passion between Carrie and Brody while complicating the head games that continue to escalate between them. Now in a tug-of-war representative of an entire intelligence chess game, Carrie’s explosive personality threatens to not only … Continue reading

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A Bond Newbie’s Thoughts on 007: The Living Daylights

Short Take: Timothy Dalton’s take on Bond has the reptilian darkness to allude to something more interesting, but caricature villains and bombastic plot lines move in contradiction with the dour lead. You’ve probably heard about Timothy Dalton’s Bond being an … Continue reading

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Kaminski Talks Pretty Pictures

In a recent feature, Vulture sat down with Janusz Kaminski to discuss some of the best images he’s created for Steven Spielberg movies. While I’m far from a Spielberg enthusiast, I also don’t subscribe to the school that sees him … Continue reading

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REVIEW: Anna Karenina

Leave it to director Joe Wright to turn a work of timelessness into a bravura exercise of over-the-top theatricality. An intoxicating film of vision and ambition, in Wright’s hands Anna Karenina looks like an impressionist painting that pays homage to … Continue reading

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Criterion Announces Chronicle of a Summer

“Chronicling” far more than only a summer, Jean Rouch’s 1960 documentary remains the definitive nonfiction project to probe the nature of moviemaking, acting, performance, and perspective. What a novel idea to film a group of random subjects, screen their footage … Continue reading

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Fincher and Netflix Unveil House of Cards Preview

When the best show on “television” actually streams from the Internet, wins an Emmy for Best Drama, and the nation can’t stop talking about it, will the game be officially changed? It’s impossible not to think about this watching the … Continue reading

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Variety’s Ten Greatest Scores

In a recent music-centric article, Variety polled 40 composers about the best scores of all time. The article also contains nice tidbits about this year’s Oscar race – including write-ups about Benh Zeitlin’s “Gumbo” style in Beast of the Southern … Continue reading

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OSCAR FORECAST: Best Picture 2013

Best Picture Predictions (as of 11-14-12): Argo Silver Linings Playbook Lincoln Les Misérables Life of Pi Django Unchained Moonrise Kingdom Hitchcock Considering all the great movies that have appeared since I last wrote about Best Picture, there’s surprisingly little change … Continue reading

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