Posts Tagged ‘history’

Hotel Lux (2011)

Hotel Lux (2011)
The ways in which the modern-day Germans deal with the atrocities committed by the Nazis in WWII can be complicated. Most Germans are very ashamed of what happened, and this is manifested in many different ways, ranging from refusal to talk about it and to searing soul-searching about its causes. But...
April 21st, 2012 | Feature, Film Reviews | Read More

Faust (2011)

Faust (2011)
The story of Faust is an old German legend first written down in Latin in 1587, translated to English in 1592, forming the basis for Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus in 1604. The most famous version of it, however, is the two-part play by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, written in 1808, and often held...
April 20th, 2012 | Film Reviews | Read More

The Tailor from Ulm (1979)

The Tailor from Ulm (1979)
There are several kinds of historical movies. Some are almost pure fantasy, others take a lot of artistic license, and others still strive to portray events like they actually were, according to the sources, with minimal additional drama added. As a student of history, and a fan of historical movies,...
April 12th, 2012 | DVD Reviews | Read More

Titanic 3D (1997)

Titanic 3D (1997)
Re-released to mark the 100 year anniversary of one of history’s most famous tragedies (or for you more cynical readers; a chance for James Cameron to milk some more cash from his obsession with stereoscopic filmmaking) Titanic 3D sees one of Hollywood’s most successful blockbusters sail...
April 2nd, 2012 | Feature, Film Reviews | Read More

Shadow of the Sword (2005)

Shadow of the Sword (2005)
Also known as The Headsman, this is a historical drama that takes place in Tyrol, starting in 1520. At the age of about 8, two boyhood friends are adopted by the Archbishop and brought up separately. Martin is trained as a soldier, and Georg is brought up as part of the clergy. Twenty years later, [...]
April 1st, 2012 | DVD Reviews | Read More

If Not Us, Who? (2011)

If Not Us, Who? (2011)
My introduction to the Baader-Meinhof came during the mid-90s in the new York city underground club scene. Their infamous wanted poster was used as a very clever flyer. Outlaws, fringe dwellers, party people “revolutionaries of the world unite!” was the cry or so I thought. Not that I was...
March 6th, 2012 | Feature, Film Reviews | Read More

The Insect Woman (1963)

The Insect Woman (1963)
The latest release in the Masters of Cinema series is director Shohei Imamura’s The Insect Woman from 1963. The title evokes some kind of Kafkaesque horror movie, but in this case the title is metaphorical, referring to the resilience of women as they cope with the ordeals of a social order which automatically...
February 17th, 2012 | DVD Reviews | Read More

J. Edgar (2011)

J. Edgar (2011)
Open hate, repressed love At the end of Clint Eastwood’s biopic about J. Edgar Hoover (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), an aged Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer) labors into a dark bedroom full of curios and then slumps down and weeps over the swollen white albatross of a body. It’s his longtime companion,...
January 16th, 2012 | Feature, Film Reviews | Read More

Sarah’s Key (2010)

Sarah’s Key (2010)
Kristin Scott Thomas has, in a very quietly impressive fashion, somehow made herself the First Lady of Anglo-French relations. With her mix of acting talent, style, poise, intelligence and beauty she has enjoyed success in both countries in roles that have seen her epitomise, in varying ways, the perceived...
November 26th, 2011 | DVD Reviews | Read More

Legend of the Soldier (2010)

Legend of the Soldier (2010)
“On June 6, 1808, the aim of Napoleon Bonaparte’s invincible army was to destroy the Spanish army’s gunpowder store and so control the whole of Europe. With only 25km to its objective, the Grande Armée, for the first time in its history knew the bitter taste of defeat in the Sacred Mountain of...
October 26th, 2011 | DVD Reviews | Read More
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