Author Archives: Alice Thirteen

A deep dive into Technicolor. The experiment inspired by The Love Witch – what can be learned about technicolor by watch back to back? Plus, how Technicolor became a powerful influence on the style of the 1950s and how it’s remembered today. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, a 1953 movie filmed on three strip technicolor film and processed using Technicolor’s dye imbibition development process. The Love Witch, a 2016 movie painstakingly recreating the feeling of 1950s cinema, using many of the same techniques of the 1950s, and shot on 35mm film – but importantly, without the ability to utility long-obsolete technicolor film or processing. Bonus theme for people who don’t care about any of this nonsense: decade separate contrasts on feminism! First up, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes provides an amazing example of spectacle technicolor Continue reading →

Independent, and maybe Independent As Fuck. One of the all-time greatest comic book adaptations, Ghost World. It seems illegal to watch these actors in this film. A debate on whether or not every single person in Ghost World is fucking boring. An extended exercise in writing a logline and what it can tell us about about films that refuse to be put in a box. Todd Solondz’s film Wiener Dog as a collection of stories connected to the presence of the eponymous doggo who goes from owner to owner. Alice refuses to speak french, even for Bresson. The impossibility of Dawn Wiener and the Todd Solondz multiverse. A case for every Solondz film’s gallery-quality. A whimsical anthology gets two wieners out of a possible five. In conversation: a twenty-first century meditation on dick jokes contained within podcast descriptions. In a special bonus chapter, a human continues writing lengthy descriptions for the purposes of robot organization based on outdated assumptions about search engines. Continue reading →

Enter the world of Wong Kar-wai with Chungking Express and the spiritual successor Fallen Angels. A day and night Hong Kong pair from a director who should have been on Double Feature a long time ago. The filmsboth explore themes of loneliness and isolation, as well as the search for connection and meaning in a fast-paced and often impersonal urban environment. Both films also employ unconventional narrative structures and use elements of fantasy and surrealism to portray the inner lives and emotional states of their characters. However, while Chungking Express is a romantic and dreamy exploration of love and loss, Fallen Angels is a darker and more cynical look at the dangers of desire and the corrupting influence of money and power. Both films are also notable for their innovative use of music, montage, and non-linear storytelling, as well as their visual and stylistic flourishes, which help to create a unique and immersive cinematic experience. Continue reading →

Bottle films where mad men (of various numbers) make one or more participants play a deadly children’s game. Bonus points: films that are very aesthetically of their moment (or maybe even more specifically, a moment that summarizes the most popular color grades of the prior decade). Ready or Not, a film that gets away with it by surpassing expectations. How the arc, character dynamics and overall writing make Ready or Not stand out from the usual suspects. Samara Weaving is out here winning hearts and minds and everyone knows it. Looking at Would You Rather as a midnight film, which is probably the best way to watch it today. The crushed contrast of the 2000’s hate-film. Torture, abuse, and other fun things we did in the cinemas for some reason. The particular challenges of this kind of high-concept film (and how each movie attempts to overcome them or even use them to their advantage). Continue reading →

The rough and tumble birds of existential cinema. Cockfighter as the rare Corman underdog. The drifter and the road film. Holding strong onto the extended bird metaphor. Don’t call Pigeons sky-rats. The composition of A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence. An easy look at obtuse arthouse that you can try at home. Using a logline to figure out what a film is about (when the film itself isn’t a lot of help). What it’s like to see The Pigeon with people and the strange ambivalence to cruelty when watching in isolation. On the ground reporting: New York City has something hopeful to offer. Continue reading →