![]() It’s 1945, and Nelly, a Jewish chanteuse emerging from the living hell of Auschwitz, has lost her career, her family, and now her very appearance to the Nazis. Glancing down into the rubble of a collapsed building, Nelly Lenz catches her own reflection in a shard of broken glass and is shocked to discover that she doesn’t recognize the stranger staring back at her. More thoughts from the Criticwire Network : Finally, Severin Films has Roman Polanski’s “What?” a comedy about an American girl (Sydne Rome) who takes shelter in an Italian villa filled with strange guests, including a retired pimp (Marcello Mastoianni). Arrow films has two new Blu-rays this week: John Milius’ “Dillinger,” about the true-life story of the titular gangster played by Warren Oates, and the Nico Mastorakis’ B-movie “The Zero Boys” about a paintball team that discovers a massacre in the mountains and must fight the enemy with real weapons. Vinegar Syndrome has the classic blaxploitation film “Dolemite” about a pimp (Rudy Ray Moore) serving a 20-year prison sentence after being set up by his rival, but when a fellow pimp schemes to get him out, Dolemite tries to take revenge. has William Friedkin’s 1977 film “ Sorcerer” about four outcasts tasked to transport six crates of unstable dynamite through the South American jungle. Oscilloscope Pictures has Kelly Reichardt’s first film “ River of Grass” on Blu-ray. Besides “Phoenix,” Criterion has two more Blu-ray releases: David Lean’s “Brief Encounter,” about an emotional love affair between a married woman and a stranger in 1930’s England, and “The Kennedy Films of Robert Drew & Associates,” a series of three documentaries and one poetic short about JFK on the campaign trail and in the oval office. On top of that, there are plenty of classic films on deck this week. The last new release is Gavin O’Conner’s action western “Jane Got a Gun,” starring Natalie Portman as a woman who asks her ex-lover (Joel Edgerton) to help save her husband (Noah Emmerich) from a gang that’s trying to kill him. Many critics consider it a landmark in the depiction of the Holocaust on film. “Son of Saul” garnered plenty of critical acclaim and won many accolades, including the Grand Prix prize at the Cannes Film Festival and the Best Foreign Language Film award at the Oscars and the Golden Globes. The film was shot on 35mm film and garnered praise for its cinematography that captured the sounds of the concentration camp in the periphery of the action. One day, he finds the body of a boy he believes to be his son, and he wishes to give the boy a proper burial. The other major new release this week is László Nemes’ “ Son of Saul,” a Holocaust drama, which follows a day-and-a-half in the life of Saul Ausländer (Géza Röhrig), a Hungarian member of the Sonderkommando, who helped assist in the disposal of gas chamber victims. Make no mistake: “Phoenix” is worth your time. Hoss’ performance was singled out for praise, especially her work in the last minutes of the film. The film garnered rave reviews for its layered psychodrama within a noir genre piece, as well as its complex, interwoven metaphors involving survivor trauma, denial in the face of unspeakable horror, and the instability of love. He then ropes her into a complex scheme in order to obtain Nina’s inheritance. Nina finds him anyway but is shocked to discover that Johnny is unable to recognize her, though he admits that she bears a striking resemblance to his late wife. Upon return, she wishes to reconnect with her husband Johnny (Ronald Zehrfeld), but Lene (Nina Kunzendorf), her friend, warns her that Johnny was the one to betray her. The film follows Nelly ( Nina Hoss in an absolutely stunning performance), a Jewish survivor of Auschwitz, who returns to Berlin after undergoing facial reconstruction surgery. Let’s kick things off with Criterion’s release of Christian Petzold’s “ Phoenix,” one of the very best films of 2015. ( Both rated high in categories on Criticwire’s 2015 Year-End poll.) There’s also a classic love affair story, a series of invigorating political documentaries, a phenomenal debut feature finally available on DVD, an underrated classic from director William Friedkin, plus so much more. ![]() ![]() This week, there are two World War II dramas, one set in the immediate aftermath about a survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp and the other set in the concentration camp. It’s a fairly busy week for this week in home video with an exciting mix of new and classic releases.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |