Directed by Lulu Wang In The Farewell a family gathers in China to say goodbye to the family matriarch, recently diagnosed with lung cancer. Nai Nai (Shuzhen Zhao) doesn't know she is dying, and the family would like to keep it that way, the thought being that it's not the cancer that kills you so much … Continue reading The Farewell (2019)
western
Rio Bravo (1959)
Directed by Howard Hawks It seems to me that older films can be considered great for two main reasons. One has to do with being a bit of an artifact of a particular moment in history, and the second has to do with creating a trend that so many other films copied. The first of … Continue reading Rio Bravo (1959)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Directed by John Ford "when the legend becomes fact, print the legend" The relationship between John Ford and John Wayne was tumultuous but undeniably fruitful, legendary even. They are two icons of the movie western, but for all the worship laid at their feet, it sounds like their lives, both professional and otherwise, weren't all … Continue reading The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Meek’s Cutoff (2010)
Directed by Kelly Reichardt In Meek's Cutoff a small group consisting of three families and a hired guide get lost on their way to the Willamette Valley. They are already lost when we meet them, and they remain lost when we leave them. In the middle there is some deliberation, drama and finally the breakdown of … Continue reading Meek’s Cutoff (2010)
The Sisters Brothers (2018)
Directed by Jacques Audiard Starting with a cold massacre, The Sisters Brothers builds to an unexpectedly tender finale. It's a western that feels subversive if only because it becomes less violent over time, following its sibling assassin duo as they leave the game behind and look for other ways to survive. That's not their goal … Continue reading The Sisters Brothers (2018)
Ride in the Whirlwind (1966)
Directed by Monte Hellman Ride in the Whirlwind is one of Monte Hellman's two bleak, sparse westerns made with Jack Nicholson in 1966. The other is an existential little thing called The Shooting. Like that film this one is brief and slow at the same time. They chronicle ever tightening nooses, so to speak, as a … Continue reading Ride in the Whirlwind (1966)
Damsel (2018)
Directed by David Zellner, Nathan Zellner The "damsel" in question is Penelope (Mia Wasikowska), and she does not need to be saved. Though she's the titular character, Penelope doesn't enter the narrative until halfway into the movie, and her role is really to be the eye of the storm, the center around which all the … Continue reading Damsel (2018)
High Noon (1952)
Directed by Fred Zinnemann High Noon takes place over the course of a tense but mostly uneventful 90 minutes, at least until the expected gunfight which ends the film. The story concerns a freshly married, newly retired Marshal, Will Kane (Gary Cooper), whose sense of duty compels him to stay on the job just a … Continue reading High Noon (1952)
True Grit (2010)
Directed by the Coen Brothers The 1969 film was a celebration of all things John Wayne while the Coen Brothers' adaptation of the same source material is much more broadly comedic, at least to a point. The Rooster Cogburn character here is played by a legendary actor in his own right, Jeff Bridges. He's somewhere … Continue reading True Grit (2010)
The Hangman (1959)
Directed by Michael Curtiz There aren't any shootouts in The Hangman, and save for a couple of errant gunshots near the end, there might as well be no firearms in the film at all. The film isn't exactly contemplative either, as it concerns the practical aims of an out of town bounty hunter of sorts, but … Continue reading The Hangman (1959)
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