Jurgen & Marcy's Independent Film Blog December 2005 Archive

Every time Woody Allen releases a new film, it's the same ritual. The advance buzz tells us that this one marks his return to form! Don't believe a ... Read More

It's not all popcorn and free movies: the lives of film critics are fraught with danger. Sore backs, headaches, and loss of faith in cinema as an art form are ... Read More

Daniel Auteuil and Juliette Binoche play a successful literary couple that is being terrorized by mysterious video tapes in Michael Haneke's discomfiting drama "Hidden." The film won Best ... Read More

No matter if you're desperately looking for a last minute present or just want to use the holidays to catch up on must-see movies, our list of essential foreign films ... Read More

I would have loved to recommend the DVD release of "The Brothers Grimm." After all, Terry Gilliam made "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" and "Brazil," two of my ... Read More

This year I was swept away by small moments in small films: the breathtakingly radiant smile of Isild Le Besco in "A Tout De Suite," the nervous, giddy glee of ... Read More

Blame the political climate, the wars or the natural disasters--one thing is certain: it was an outstanding year for tragedy. It's rare that my ten favorites share a theme as ... Read More

We are still making up our minds what exactly to think of Michael Haneke's disturbing thriller "Caché (Hidden)," which has swept several major European awards and is scheduled to open ... Read More

This week's most interesting new DVD releases include "The Ross McElwee Collection," a comprehensive box set that includes five features by the famous documentarian, including the award winning "Bright Leaves." ... Read More

How is it that I overlooked Ziad Doueiri's "Lila Says" until now? It's one of the small cinematic wonders of the year, in the same category as the tense and ... Read More

These days, documentaries spread in strange ways. While Robert Greenwald's "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price" is making its way to audiences through innovative house parties and a direct-to-DVD ... Read More

Every December, we spend one Sunday afternoon bringing democracy to film criticism: as members of New York Film Critics Online, your guides vote for the best films of 2005. As ... Read More

Kirsten Dunst naked but for a fan, Jason Schwartzman in a wig, Versailles and fireworks, all set to a poorly fitting New Order song: judging from the brand-new trailer, Sofia ... Read More

Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain" is an epic love story about gay cowboys and that, in itself, is something. Otherwise, the film, adapted from an Annie Proulx short story, is not ... Read More

The Criterion Collection releases two restored French classics this week: René Clément's heartbreaking "Forbidden Games" and Francois Truffaut's playful "Shoot The Piano Player." Also: "Ladies in Lavender," "The Ninth Day," ... Read More

I'll post a full review closer to the December 14 release date, but I thought fans of formerly obscure New Zealand slasher director Peter Jackson would like to hear that ... Read More

In Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady's documentary, twenty at-risk kids from an inner city high school in Baltimore are sent to a boarding school in Kenya for a year. They ... Read More

Jean-Luc Godard is 75 years old today. Reason enough to link to our reviews of his classics "Masculin Feminin" and "Contempt," his most recent film "Notre Musique," and our favorite ... Read More

The star of Julia Jentsch ("The Edukators," "Downfall") keeps rising: she just won best actress at the European Film awards for her performance in the title role of "Sophie Scholl." ... Read More

Sibel Kekilli shook audiences with her electrifying performance in Fatih Akin's "Head-On." New films are on the horizon for the Turkish-German actress. She'll soon be seen in Sebastian Steinbichler's "Winterreise," ... Read More

"She sold her soul and betrayed her country:" Zhang Ziyi, star of such martial art house flicks as "House of Flying Daggers," "Hero," and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," finds herself ... Read More