We hear the sirens before anything else, wailing against a black screen. Emergency vehicles glide through the streets of Paris, and authority figures in riot gear patrol the streets, but nobody seems to notice. They’re shopping, eating at cafes, willfully blind that fascism is creeping up on them, more and more each day. They’re content that for the moment, at least, … [Read more...]
Prestige layout suffocates authenticity of ‘Never Look Away’
Never Look Away, the sweeping new Oscar bait from Germany’s Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, is never better than when it watches paint dry. Or, rather, when it watches its central character, modern artist Kurt Barnert (Tom Schilling), watch paint dry. I’m referring specifically to a segment near the home stretch of this 188-minute sprawl when, after years of replicating … [Read more...]