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Most film criticism is historically divided into two eras: before the French New Wave and after the French New Wave. Until the ’60s, serious writing on film was hard to come by, but the passion, encyclopedic movie knowledge, and bountiful imagination of the Cahiers du cinÈma critics and others ushered in the world of film theory, academia, and a worldwide culture of cinephilic scribblers.

When Pauline Kael, an icon of the more popular latter era, died a couple years ago, there was a lot of press devoted to her career. Icons previous to the ’60s, however, tend to receive much …

Day
1 – Friday, September 26, 2003

By John
Torvi

It
is really quite advantageous if the city that you live in has an
international film festival. No airplane ticket. No hotel fees. It’s
really great to be able to easily watch 2-3 movies per day (with a few
more on the weekends), most of which would probably never even make to
art houses. So I took advantage of this opportunity and have been going
to the Calgary International Film Festival for
the past few days.

Many
of the film venues are situated pretty close together
within walking distance. And …

By J. Robert Parks

British director Michael Winterbottom is one of the most eclectic filmmakers I know. He’s done literary adaptations (Jude), political docudramas (Welcome to Sarajevo), wintery Westerns (The Claim), trippy pomo biopics (24-Hour Party People), and futuristic, sci-fi love stories (Code 46, to be released next year). But his bravest and most successful film to date, In This World (2003), is inspired by a country most Americans associate with the “axis of evil.”

As I’ve written many times in this space, the Iranian New Wave is one of …

So I saw Lost in Translation this weekend and, like the critics are saying, I enjoyed its witty charms and mature sensibilities regarding its unusual relationship between a middle-aged actor (Bill Murray) and a photographer’s disillusioned young wife (Scarlett Johansson) after they meet while dejectedly passing through Tokyo. I found Murray’s stoic sarcasm endearing and Johansson’s adorable frumpiness fetching, and Sofia Coppola‘s observant writing and direction was intensified by her exceptional aesthetic bond with Johansson’s every move.

However, throughout the film I had an uneasy feeling that arose every time the characters looked wistfully out of their highrise hotel …

Doing our best to perpetuate the world of Internet polling, the moderators over at Masters of Cinema will be seeking votes for DVD of the Year. We won’t be tallying actual votes for a couple of months, but you may wish to start thinking about which disc you’ll pick. The DVD can be from anywhere in the world but must have been released sometime in 2003, and note: this award is not for the DVD with the most extras, but for the most important DVD release of the year.

While you’re there be sure and take a look at Nick …

Jurgen Fauth and Marcy Dermansky over at About.com‘s Guide to Independent and World Film have just informed us that filmjourney.org has been selected as one of their top 15 Best Movie Blogs. (Additionally, a site that I co-admin, Masters of Cinema, also made the list.) We’d like to think of this as a challenge as much as a confirmation, and hope to continue offering informative and useful content in the days ahead.

Speaking of which, be sure to check out J. Robert’s latest Toronto update, which he termed “Good but Flawed” films.…