Directed by Abbas Kiarostami Close-Up is a deeply humanistic docudrama about a poor man on trial for impersonating a well-known film director. We begin with a conversation in a car (a Kiarostami staple) between a reporter who is eager to expose this imposter and print this sensational story and his taxi driver. In the backseat … Continue reading Close-Up (1990)
docudrama
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)
Directed by Joe Berlinger Alright so Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile claims to present a new angle on the Ted Bundy story, a perspective through the eyes of his girlfriend, Liz (Lily Collins)... and yet she's hardly a character in the movie. It is instead focused on Bundy (Zac Efron) himself, specifically his charged charisma. … Continue reading Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)
The Legend of Cocaine Island (2018)
Directed by Theo Love The Legend of Cocaine Island has a lot in common with another recent docudrama, 2018's American Animals. Near the beginning of both movies we're told that the assorted narrators here are unreliable, a framing device which never detracts from the quality of the story and which enables the filmmakers to take their … Continue reading The Legend of Cocaine Island (2018)
Detroit (2017)
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow Kathryn Bigelow's Detroit is a scattered period piece ostensibly about the 1967 Detroit riot but which centers around an incident at the Algiers Motel that left three black teenagers dead and more heavily beaten. So much of the movie is limited to the long night at the motel that should just be the entire … Continue reading Detroit (2017)
The Rider (2017)
Directed by Chloé Zhao The Rider tells a vaguely fictional story, using nonprofessional actors to play a version of themselves and pulling from stories in their own lives. The story follows Brady Blackburn (Brady Jandreau), a young cowboy who has just suffered a traumatic head injury from bronc riding. His journey will be one of self-reflection … Continue reading The Rider (2017)
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