On Film

Songbook

In Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Still Walking, the briefly heard Japanese pop hit that inspired the film’s title is both a portal to long-buried memories and a minor detail that resists interpretation.

Did You See This?

This week we’re reading Greg Tate on MLK/FBI, Ian Christie on the decadence of early British cinema, and Reverse Shot’s 2020 top ten.

The witty and notoriously tempestuous Citizen Kane screenwriter comes into focus in this conversation between a Mankiewicz biographer and Fincher, whose new film Mank is remarkably faithful to the details of Hollywood history.

Film About a Father Who is the centerpiece of this month’s virtual retrospective.

With the future of film exhibition more uncertain than ever, several small-scale organizations with highly personal curation are proving they have what it takes to survive against the odds.

Bing Liu’s extraordinary debut feature was originally conceived as a documentary about skaters around the country and ultimately became an unflinching exploration of family, trauma, and the filmmaker’s own life.

Nomadland has triumphed on the first big night of awards season.

Apted’s lasting legacy will be the Up series, one of the most moving and influential works of nonfiction ever made.

Did You See This?

A new Cinema Scope is out, along with the first issue of Screening the Past in well over a year.

Luis Buñuel weaved together multiple strands of his artistry in his final film, which blends the surrealism of his early years, the melodrama of his 1950s work, and the elegant erotic comedy of his late career.

Luis Buñuel lays bare the amorality and illogic of human affairs in the slew of straight-faced absurdities that make up his penultimate film.

The director overcame anti-Semitism or misogyny to make such unique films as Hester Street and Chilly Scenes of Winter.

Crazy things keep happening in Luis Buñuel’s perverse comedy of manners, a film that coolly deconstructs itself at every turn.

Along with new features from Pedro Almodóvar, Lynne Ramsay, and Todd Haynes, the new year will bring series directed by Barry Jenkins, Sofia Coppola, and Wong Kar Wai.

Alongside the traditional top tens, critics are offering imaginative pairings and lists of the best audiovisual essays and title sequences of the year.

This month we’re reading David Bordwell on the Massive Auteur Monograph, Rachel Kushner on Marguerite Duras, and Adam Gopnik on early animation.

Before ringing in the new year, we’re taking a look back at some of the most memorable essays and interviews we published in 2020.

Did You See This?

From Marlene Dietrich to Tsai Ming-liang, it’s a varied and wide-ranging bunch this week.

Capturing the tense mood of a new millennium, Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s debut feature explores the hidden spaces of Mexico City at a moment of political turbulence and extreme social stratification.

Edgar Wright, Sion Sono, Nanfu Wang, Robin Wright, and Ben Wheatley are among the filmmakers premiering new work next month.

Steve McQueen’s Small Axe has emerged as one of the major cinematic events of the year.

With its thought-provoking structure, interweaving story lines, and saturated colors, Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s debut feature represented a quantum leap in the audiovisual grammar of Mexican cinema.

This year’s selection features a record number of films directed by women and people of color.

Did You See This?

A new Film Quarterly, a Reverse Shot symposium, and the return of Artavazd Pelechian are among this week’s highlights.