Doc Corner: 'Dawson City: Frozen Time' is a Masterpiece 100 Years in the Making

by Glenn Dunks

If you have ever watched a Bill Morrison film, then you will have surely remember him for the way his films appear as if they are deteriorating before your eyes. Best known for works such as Decasia that are assembled out of weathered, beaten and sometimes even partly destroyed reels of film celluloid, Morrison’s films often play with the concept that film – the physical, tactile product of film itself just as much as the broad term for motion pictures as we know them – is not something we should ever be flippant about.

His movies are made out of parts of other movies, its true -- clips and excerpts taken from decaying reels that most could consider at home in a rubbish tip. Many may find his aesthetic challenging, but there is something so delightfully classical about the way he repurposes any image that sits atop a filmstrip. His work breathes new life into old, unwanted, and unused works so that they may be seen anew in a new light, a new form and allow somebody’s hard work to prosper once more...

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September/October. It's a Wrap

Since the bulk of September and October are given over to festival life each year (here's all that business wrapped up for you) there's less time for randomness which is in some ways our favorite thing about blogging about the cinema. But since we haven't done an ICYMI best of since August, here are 16 things you might have missed that you should check out:

• This is Halloween Salim's cinematic evocation of the season
• The Furniture: The Beguiled Daniel gazes into the plaster haze
• Elizabeth Debicki as Virginia Woolf Murtada takes a first look
• Martyr Mothers of Aronofsky Jorge wonders if the director has mommy issues?
• Two for the Road (1967) Tim's fiftieth anniversary revisit
• Podcast 9.9 Battle of the Sexes, Beach Rats and mother! discussed
• Academy Expels Weinstein Nathaniel sees the end of an era
• Smackdown 85 The Color Purple, Agnes of God, and more
• 5 Takeaways from the Success of It Spencer lists it out
• 15 Oscar Hopeful Documentaries Glenn surveys the DOC NYC list
• Black Swan (2010) Visuals Ilich looks back at the balletic madness
• Joan Fontaine in Rebecca (1940) Eric sees it for the first time!
• Karen Allen Jose talks to the Raiders of the Lost Ark star
• Soundtracking: Rocky Horror Picture Show Chris does the "Time Warp" again

and Best Ofs...

• Fav Actresses of 2017 (thus far) excluding the Oct-Dec women
• Fav Actors of 2017 (thus far) excluding the Oct-Dec men
• Fav Films of 2017 (thus far) excluding the Oct-Dec releases

COMING IN NOVEMBER
The 1944 Smackdown, Call Me By Your Name, Coco, James Ivory interview, Greta Gerwig interview, Lois Smith interview, Thor: Ragnarok fun, Nathaniel in Los Angeles for AFI festivities, Lady Bird, Donald Sutherland and Agnes Varda's Honorary Oscars, Murder on the Orient Express, Three Billboards, and of course lots of Oscar talk as the race heats up while the temperature cools down. 

"Totally"

Happy Halloween!!!

When Laurie's fabulous but crap friends dumped her last minute, she got stuck watching The Thing. Are you watching anything scary tonight, readers?

London Film Festival: Roundup and Oscar Chances

Pivotally positioned in October, the BFI London Film Festival boasts the distinction of having some of the most feted films of the year, champions newcomers and not without its stalwart festival curiosities. On the ground this year was Film Experience contributor Seán McGovern who saw only a fraction of the films on offer, but nonetheless a taste of potential Oscar contenders.

Call Me By Your Name
Worried that I would be tranquillised by the hype, I nonetheless could not resist it. Yes, it's a film about gorgeous people of immense privilege, but who can dismiss how hard it is to successfully capture the furtive horniness and confused intensity of young love? Timothée Chalamet's Elio teeters between brazenness and vulnerability, and Armie Hammer captures a strange aloofness that is hard to do on screen. It actually made me want to have children - just so I could grow up and be Micheal Stuhlbarg.

Oscar chances: Director, Picture, Best Actor (Chalamet), Supporting Actor(s) (Hammer, Stuhlbarg), Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Original Score. Whether Academy voters embrace two LGBT films in a row is another thing.

 Six more films after the jump...

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Stranger Things 2: Does It Live Up to the Hype?

By Spencer Coile 

In 2016, the first season of Stranger Things premiered with little fanfare. Although critically well-received, it was not the cultural icon it is considered today. Roughly about one month after it dropped on Netflix, though, everyone (and I mean everyone) was buzzing about the sci-fi show that oozed 80's nostalgia. It was a total genre piece, one that many assumed the Television Academy would not honor, but that did not stop it from picking up steam throughout the television season. After its SAG win for Best Ensemble, it went on to pick up 19 Emmy nominations (winning 5).

And still, its momentum continued to build -- between merhandise, soundtracks, Halloween costumes in excess, and even a #JusticeForBarb movement that no one saw coming, Stranger Things solidified itself as a show that everyone needed to see.

This last Friday, Netflix premiered the second season of Stranger Things. Unlike the series' first season, many were holding their breath in anticipation, building yet more hype, and setting lofty expectations after such a stellar first outing from The Duffer Brothers. Would it be as good a second time around? 

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