“Time Without Pity” Movie Review by Mike Dub

Time Without Pity (1957; Joseph Losey) GRADE: B By Mike Dub By the time Joseph Losey released Time Without Pity in 1957, the “named” communist had been living in exile from HUAC for five years, and had made four films that were released under pseudonyms.  His previous directing credit, […]

Rohmer’s Moral Tales: “La Collectionneuse” and “Claire’s Knee” Reviews

La Collectionneuse (1967; Eric Rohmer) GRADE: B+ By Daniel Barnes Two-thirds of the way through Rohmer’s Six Moral Tales series, I feel that I know exactly what to expect from the French filmmaker, and yet still remain utterly mystified. In writing about his movies, I often feel like […]

“My Night at Maud’s” Movie Review by Mike Dub

My Night at Maud’s (1969; Eric Rohmer) GRADE: B+ By Mike Dub In describing Eric Rohmer’s My Night at Maud’s, the third and probably best-known of his Moral Tales, it is tempting to use terms that might sound somewhat condescending, or make the film seem trivial.  “Novel,” “refreshing,” […]

Suzanne's Career

“Suzanne’s Career” Movie Review By Daniel Barnes

Suzanne’s Career (1963; Eric Rohmer) GRADE: B- By Daniel Barnes Shot on a shoestring and never released theatrically, the 60-minute featurette Suzanne’s Career is a technically abysmal early effort.  Most professional filmmakers would look to bury it, as Quentin Tarantino did with My Best Friend’s Birthday. The film […]

ESFS Festival #4 Wrap-Up – Psychotherapy on Film

By Mike Dub and Daniel Barnes MD: Going into this festival, I wanted to concentrate on the subgenres and archetypes of the movie psychiatrist, but after watching these three films, another thread struck me as being prominent to the psychotherapy film: the relationship between prestige and exploitation.  All […]

“Let the Fire Burn” Movie Review by Daniel Barnes

Let the Fire Burn (2013; Jason Osder) GRADE: A- By Daniel Barnes Jason Osder’s powerful and disturbing Let the Fire Burn is part of a new wave of media collage documentaries that also includes Brett Morgen’s July 17, 1994 and Penny Lane’s Our Nixon. Rather than offer comforting […]