It is perhaps fitting that Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom is opening in select theaters the same week that Andrew Sarris, one of the most important film critics in American history, died at age 83. Sarris’ legacy, immortalized in his book The American Cinema, was to apply the auteurist ideas of the 1950s French critics to such neglected American directors as Raoul Walsh, … [Read more...]
Charming French whimsy, by way of Finnish auteur
As charming as it is preposterous, a French fable called Le Havre arrives this week by way of Finland, the home of writer-director Aki Kaurismäki, whose idiosyncratic style is evident throughout this tale of that current events topic -- illegal immigration. Le Havre, the industrial port city in Normandy plays a vital role in this story of a likeable freelance shoeshine guy, … [Read more...]