Damien Chazelle’s latest film has been called many things: grotesque, overlong, indulgent. But there’s a difference between an indulgent film and a film about indulgence. BABYLON, set in 1920s Hollywood, opens hard with graphic bodily functions, and though those burners never fully extinguish, it’s the hardest the film goes for some time. A deliberate message: […]
Author: Dustin Buursma
VAL Review – Kilmer Forever
I didn’t know about Val Kilmer’s battle with throat cancer before this film. Blame my inability to keep up with the latest celebrity news or the fact that Kilmer has always struggled to remain a prominent presence in Hollywood media, but the ads for VAL—the new documentary on his past, present, and possible future—took me […]
THE MITCHELLS VS THE MACHINES Review: See It Big
Roughly thirteen months ago, most of us had to alter the way we live our daily lives when the pandemic shut everything down. A… lot has happened since then, but in March 2020 I was already in a state of change: after almost four years at the largest movie theatre in my city, I’d decided […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: PARASITE (2019)
Welcome to the final installment of Ten Decades of Oscars, and today’s film will be the latest Best Picture winner until later tonight when the awards are announced. What to say of the 2010s? The first half is fairly middling, the second half is a much better improvement. We saw gaffes of untold proportions with […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007)
Welcome back to Ten Decades of Oscars! Today it’s the 2000s, one of my favourite decades. CRASH (2005) is the only black eye in an otherwise distinguished lineup of winners. Even when my personal pick of a given year didn’t win, I was happy with the outcome. Films like THE DEPARTED (2006) and GLADIATOR (2000)? […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999)
Hey, we’re making it! We’re getting there! Feels like I’ve been saying that for a while but this time I feel some semblance of truth in it! Welcome back to Ten Decades of Oscars, and now things are getting weird because now we’ve reached an era of film that I feel personally connected to because […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: TERMS OF ENDEARMENT (1983)
After a lovely yet arduous Easter long weekend, I’m back with the next installment of my weekly feature: Ten Decades of Oscars. We’ve come a long way, covered a fair bit of ground, and now we’re here at the interminable 80s. And I must remind our readers that even though we’ve now reached the 80s, […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST (1975)
Hello! And welcome to yet another installment of my ongoing feature: Ten Decades of Oscars. Well, we’ve done it: we’ve reached the 70s. It’s all downhill from here, folks! I joke, I joke. Kinda. The 70s isn’t my generation of films, but it’s one that’s heavily informed my desire to explore cinema as both an […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: WEST SIDE STORY (1961)
Hello! And welcome to another week of Ten Decades of Oscars, where each week I watch every Best Picture winner from a decade and then choose one to discuss at length. This week was the 1960s, and boy, the size and scale of these films have certainly started to strike upward. BRIDGE ON THE RIVER […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: MARTY (1955)
Welcome back! We’re a little late this week due to scheduling but that’s fine! I am totally managing this ten films per week thing! Managing it like Batman manages grief. And this year’s Oscar nominations came out today and I’ve only seen two of the eight Best Picture nominees—it’s fine! I’m fine! Let’s talk about […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: THE LOST WEEKEND (1945)
Hello! And welcome to Ten Decades of Oscars where each week I watch the Best Picture winners in a given decade and then choose one to discuss at length. In case you haven’t done the math yet, that means ten movies in one week! And in case you’ve forgotten, there are seven days in a […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU (1938)
Hello! And welcome to the second installment of my weekly feature Ten Decades of Oscars where each week I’ll watch every Best Picture from a given decade, then choose one to discuss at length. This week, it’s Frank Capra’s YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU, which won top prize in 1938. The film follows the […]
Ten Decades of Oscars: WINGS (1927)
Hello! And welcome to a weekly feature I’ll be writing in the run-up to the 2020 Oscars on April 25th. I’m one of those idiots who still buys physical media—often an annual metric tonnage of it—and I’m also one of those idiots who can’t help but be swept up in the politics and the competition […]
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI review: Praise the Talkers
A confident and elegant directorial debut from Regina King, ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI recounts a fictional night in a hotel room between four cultural icons during the Civil Rights movement of the 60s. I don’t know if it’s the pandemic or mere happenstance, but there have been plenty of stage play-to-film adaptations this year—THE BOYS […]
Review: THE LAUNDROMAT – The Promise of Story
FADE IN. INT. SMALL ONE-BEDROOM APARTMENT – DAY DUSTIN (30, bearded, your reviewer) sits at his computer desk. Suddenly, he notices THE CAMERA and looks into it, breaking the fourth wall. He is now able to address the audience directly and, by doing so, has mastered the tier of wit showcased in the new Steven […]