Friday, December 12, 2008

Breathless: A review of Le Deuxieme Souffle

"Silence pervades most of the action in Le Deuxième souffle, a French gangster film where music is used sparingly and characters are reticent (it takes seven minutes for us to receive the first line of dialogue). Director Jean-Pierre Melville aspires to create organic suspense sequences where character movement is precious and the camera is respectfully observational – and boy, does it work. The film contains a much revered heist sequence where the anticipation plays out with realistic and unbearable intensity."

Click here to read my DVD review at PopMatters

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Chump Charity: A Review of Where God Left His Shoes


"Unless you stay to the very end of the credits — in which it states that a portion of the film’s proceeds are being donated to homeless shelters and urges viewers to contribute further — the film feels like a message movie without the message."


Click here to read my review in The L Magazine