REVIEW: I Am Belfast [2016]

“Brick then iron then mesh” Don’t spend too long deciphering the title to Mark Cousins‘ latest essay film on his hometown I Am Belfast because it’s meant to be taken at face value. The film itself is this Northern Ireland city and the narrator (Helena Bereen) is as well. Don’t try to project metaphors or spiritual possession on top either because Cousins wants us to embrace this woman as Belfast without irony, comedy, or fantasy. She’s 10,000 years old and remembers everything. She knows what we all think—that we remember…

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REVIEW: The Limits of Control [2009]

“Two espressos in separate cups” What do you get when you pair a minimalist such as Jim Jarmusch with a genius cinematographer in Christopher Doyle? The answer is a stunning work of art, starkly beautiful in its compositions and intelligently obtuse in its storytelling. Much like the director’s other films for which I’ve had the pleasure of seeing, The Limits of Control is about one man’s spiritual journey. Sometimes his movies have a more straightforward focus in plot, (Ghost Dog or Broken Flowers), but other instances are more metaphysical and…

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