Miss Congeniality

Jan 10, 2014 — It’s impossible to watch the unforgettable climax of Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood and not wonder, How’d they do that? Spoilers ahead: In the scene, Toshiro Mifune’s ruthless warrior, modeled on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, finally gets his comeuppance in the form...

Dec 22, 2013 — The author reflects on his interactions with the great filmmaker.

Dec 10, 2013 — In 1998, I interviewed Little Edie Beale, the surviving star of 1976’s Grey Gardens, one of the Maysles brothers’ numerous masterworks (Gimme Shelter, Meet Marlon Brando, and With Love from Truman are equal in technical and emotional innovation). Miss Beale,...

Oct 22, 2013 — This delicately creepy Hollywood horror movie lives up to its reputation as a classic of the genre.

Sep 26, 2013 — Roberto Rossellini officially left neorealism behind with his modern masterpiece, an intimate tale of marriage on the rocks.

Aug 9, 2013 — Did You See This?• An early Orson Welles film unearthed and being restored • Remembering the divine Karen Black in words and moving pictures • Yasujiro Ozu as you’ve never seen him • Investigating the essay film • Admiring the...

Aug 7, 2013 — In 1958, in the midst of his most fecund cinematic period, Yasujiro Ozu made his first color film, the splendid Equinox Flower. Like so many of Ozu’s films, this poignant drama is about the subtly difficult emotional landscape navigated by...

Jun 21, 2013 — Did You See This?• Lunching with Orson Welles • The doyenne of the New Queer Cinema is back. • Matt Zoller Seitz remembers James Gandolfini. • Television’s new golden age is a man’s world. • Kicking back with Dad •...

Jun 17, 2013 — The author recounts the story of his friendship with the great filmmaker.

Jun 11, 2013 — Ingmar Bergman’s classic character study is a moving depiction of aging and regret but also joy and forgiveness.