Links: Moore Film History of the Damned, Bro

T Magazine on Julianne Moore as an "informer" of human nature
Elusive Lucidity "film history, bro"
Press Play a conversation about morality and religion in the filmography of the Coen Bros 
My New Plaid Pants I've been curious about this Kiss of the Damned movie -- I used to try to see every vampire flick (the only kind of horror you could always find me at) but then there were too many of them and the fascination wore off -- but Jason reviews it for us. 
My New Plaid Pants somehow I almost missed that JA wrote up his whole fascinating ballot on our...
"Best New Directors of the 21st Century"... in case you missed that whole talking point

Gothamist Stars. They're just like us. Julia Stiles rides the subway, too.
Observations on Film Art David Bordwell on Ebertfest regular C.O. "Doc" Erickson, eyewitness to classic film history with notes on Alfred Hitchcock, The Misfits and more...

Back to that T Magazine Juli profile again for a hot minute. a hot red minute.

Photograph by Inez and Vinoodh.

On a scale of 1-∞ how much do you love her? Whatever your answer is it's one degree less than my love at least! I claimed her in 1995 after [safe]! (Also she has the world's best publicist maybe, right? Even when her movies are On Demand - The English Teacher - she commands attention in the media)

My Easter Movie: The Wicker Man (1973)

[Editor's Note: My apologies to Deborah Lipp (and you!) Since I forgot to post her review of her favorite Easter movie this weekend. Pretend it's still Easter for us! Here's Deborah to sing that movie's praises. - Nathaniel R]
 

The Wicker Man is one of my favorite movies. There's a lot to be said about it, and I'm not going to say it all here. I'll start with the obvious: Different people perceive this film in very different ways. It's horror, it's a musical, it's kitsch, but it's also, quite blatantly, religious. Despite the fact that it takes place around the Pagan holiday of Beltane (May Day), I am going to argue that it's an Easter movie, dealing with sacrifice and resurrection.

May Morrison (to Sergeant Howie): You'll simply never understand the true nature of sacrifice.

The Wicker Man's horror centers on the conflict between two spiritual world views that are alien and opposite to one another. Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) is a pious, not to say priggish, Christian, while the residents of Summerisle are Pagan. (Spoilers aplenty once you proceed.)

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Curio: Film Devotionals

Alexa here.  This Easter/Passover time of year is always replete with biblical references; for me, most are tied to film.  For instance, my main understanding of the significance of Passover is through my repeated childhood viewings of The Ten Commandments.  As one of the heathen mob, I am more likely to light a candle to mourn the loss of Ryan Gosling from the screen than ask saints for intercession. Religious or not, I thought TFE readers would enjoy some curios that aid in the practice of film idolatry, like these devotional candles from this etsy shop.

Who would you light a candle for this year?

More false idols including Tim Burton, Steve Buscemi and The Avengers after the jump... 

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The Lady or The Tiger: Ambiguity and Life of Pi

Michael C. here. I hope everyone has had a chance to see Ang Lee’s adaptation of Yann Martel’s Life of Pi. I’ve been dying to dive into spoiler territory since the film’s premiere at the New York Film Festival. 

If you haven’t seen the film I recommend you do. Lee has created a visually magnificent fable that transfers the book’s expansive imagination to the screen better than I thought possible. It’s a terrific return to form for Lee following the face plant that was Taking Woodstock. 

But then there’s that nagging problem of that ending. I’ve struggled with it in the book and now I struggle with it in the film. Try as I might, I just can’t get behind it. 

Detailed SPOILERS follow… 

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The Masters of My Eyeballs

I like getting lost at the movies. I live for the moments when you dive into the blue box. Ever since Mulholland Drive, that's what I've called that delirius feeling. That's when a movie with a tractor beam size pull just sucks you in until you're fully immersed in its world. Sometimes it's only for a moment. Sometimes it happens in fits and starts. With masterpieces it can last for the whole running time once you've stopped resisting. In these moments we've left the movie theater behind; the projectionist isn't the only one projecting.

Paul Thomas Anderson movies usually give me just this blue box sensation. I ate at the diner in Hard Eight. I hung out on porn sets and called Julianne mommy while high on coke in Boogie Nights. In There Will Be Blood I fell right in the oil well with Daniel Day-Lewis but only one of us emerged again after that prologue. I even lost myself a time or two in Punch-Drunk Love flights of rage and whimsy. 

 THE MASTER and HOLY MOTORS after the jump

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