Jurgen & Marcy's Independent Film Blog November 2005 Archive

The nominees for the 2006 Indie Spirit Awards have been announced. Noah Baumbach's divorce dramedy "The Squid and the Whale" was the year's big taker, receiving six nominations. Fair enough--"Squid" ... Read More

Three weeks before Christmas, the release of new DVDs is no simple matter: gifts must be gotten. For your finicky cinephile, there might be nothing better than the deluxe edition ... Read More

In Debra Granik's independent drama, a mother in a small upstate New York town struggles with her drug addiction. "Down to the Bone" builds with a strong, quiet intensity, and ... Read More

The penguins are here, the penguins are here--and just in time for the holiday season! The visually stunning and family-friendly documentary grossed 77 million cool dollars after more than twenty ... Read More

It's Black Friday--time for the grouches of the world to start dreading the annual shopping frenzy, the ever present Christmas carols, and the never-ending ho-ho-ho. Our list of top ten ... Read More

Bjork had a famously difficult time working with Lars von Trier on her first film "Dancer in the Dark." So bad, in fact, that the Icelandic ... Read More

Marvelous French actress Emmanuelle Devos is receiving raves for her performance in "Gilles's Wife," a heartbreaking tragedy playing in theaters now. Two wonderful films featuring Devos arrive on DVD this ... Read More

Michael Winterbottom pushes boundaries with "9 Songs," a surprisingly tender film that uses live rock'n roll footage and unsimulated sex for a love story that could not be told any ... Read More

Not yet twenty years old, Sara Forestier has almost a dozen movies on her resume and will next be seen in Tom Tykwer's adaptation of Patrick Süsskind's "Perfume." Julia Jentsch ... Read More

Like "Rififi" and "Touchez-Pas Au Grisbi" before it, New York's Film Forum unearthed this terrific 1960 thriller by director Claude Sautet ("Un Couer en Hiver.") With surprising warmth, Lino ... Read More

Poet, photographer, and impassioned slayer of Orcs Viggo Mortensen has starred in such great films as "Lord of the Rings," "History of Violence," and one of my sentimental favorites, "A ... Read More

Based on the novel by Patrick McCabe, Neil Jordan directs the depressingly predictable tale of Patrick "Kitten" Braden (Cillian Murphy), a transsexual growing up in Ireland. As we follow the ... Read More

The short list for Best Documentary for the upcoming Academy Award nominations was announced. Whittled down from a pool of 82 eligible films, fifteen documentaries made the cut. Two of ... Read More

Eddie Murphy once came to Queens looking for a suitable bride. New York's most ethnically diverse borough also boasts an excellent international film festival, now in its third year. The ... Read More

It's a great week for indie releases on DVD. Don't miss Maggie Gyllenhaal's unforgettable performance in Don Roo's Sundance hit "Happy Endings," or "Reception," an independent drama that was shot ... Read More

Emma Garman's top ten guy-on-guy onscreen kisses at Radar Online is worth checking out. She's looking forward to Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger smooching in "Brokeback Mountain," but until then, ... Read More

Marcel Camus' Oscar-winning updating of the Orpheus myth, set during carnival in Rio, is an intoxicating masterpiece that affects the head, heart, and feet in equal measure. The Criterion Collection ... Read More

Jerry Weinstein's cyber conversation with director Craig Lucas ("The Dying Gaul") often borders on the surreal. Lucas shares his thoughts on writing, amorality, and unconditional love. Read ... Read More

Chloe Sevigny may want out of the indies, but Lili Taylor remains committed to the independent film scene. Her latest film "Factotum," an adaptation of the beloved Charles Bukowski ... Read More

Anxious about the quickly approaching holiday season? Prepare yourself for turkey, football, and family drama with our list of best Thanksgiving movies. More top ten lists: Top Ten World Films ... Read More

Sorry, we won't have a review of "Pride and Prejudice" this week or anytime soon. The latest Jane Austen adaptation, opening today, may very well be a fine film. I'm ... Read More

No taboo is sacred when Sarah Silverman jokes about rape, incest, religion, and race, race, race. Her new film documents her outrageous, merciless standup act. But for how long can ... Read More

Gael Garcia Bernal ("Y Tu Mama Tambien," "The Motorcyle Diaries") has achieved major movie star status. So it's a pleasant surprise to discover this award-winning 2001 short by Dominic Santana ... Read More

It was only a matter of time: intrepid bloggers are now delivering movie reviews via podcast, the technology that lets you subscribe to online radio shows and download them straight to your ... Read More

Laugh, cry, or cringe: this weeks's top DVDs cover our basest emotional responses to film. Daniel Auteuil's hilarious antics in "Apres Vous" are sure to please. Four motherless in children ... Read More

Still bummed you had to miss the memorial service for Hunter S. Thompson, when Johnny Depp and other assorted friends of the legendary gonzo writer ("Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas") shot his ashes from ... Read More

The nominations for the 2005 European Film Awards have been announced. Michael Haneke's somber drama "Cache," starring Daniel Auteuil and Juliette Binoche, leads the field with seven nominations. Up for for Best European Film: Pawel Pawlikowski's "My Summer Of Love," Susanne ... Read More

It was late, and I was only going to check out the trailer for this hip-hop documentary before heading off to bed--but by the time I got up next, the ... Read More

The studios are beginning to release their "Oscar-worthy" films. Catch new trailers for Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain," "Syriana," "Rent ," "Bee Season," "Memoirs of a Geisha" and more. View all movie ... Read More

Craig Lucas couldn't have assembled a better cast for his independent drama "The Dying Gaul." Campbell Scott, Patricia Clarkson, and Peter Sarsgaard do their thesbian best, but nothing can save ... Read More

The best thing about Sam Mendes' Gulf War epic "Jarhead"? Jake Gyllenhaal gets down with Naughty By Nature's "O.P.P.," wearing nothing but a Santa Claus hat. Based on Anthony Swofford's ... Read More

Who knew a film about a flock of wild birds could made you cry? Judy Irving's moving documentary "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill" did just that. She gave us the birds' names, their individual ... Read More

We are big Michelle Williams fans around here. The winning young indie actress ("Me Without You," "The Baxter") and equally famous partner Heath Ledger became first-time parents, bringing Matilda Rose ... Read More

IndieWIRE spreads the exciting news that Harmony Korine is putting together his first feature film since 1999's "Julien Donkey-Boy." According to Screen Daily, "Mr. Lonely" will feature Anita Pallenberg, Denis Lavant, Samantha Morton, and Diego Luna. [posted by Marcy]

"Fanboy blinkered" was one of the nicer things Jurgen was called for his rave review of "Revenge of the Sith." But he stands by every word: "Star Wars Episode III" ... Read More