Antichrist
Film review by: Witney Seibold
I think the handle one needs to understand Lars von Trier’s new provocation “Antichrist,” is to realize that he was suffering from severe depression while making it. In interviews, von Trier has said that he made “Antichrist” as a form of (ultimately unsuccessful) therapy, and all the horrific concepts and images in his film spring from that struggle. (more…)
Oh God! Mother!
Film essay by: Witney Seibold
Warning: If you have not seen Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho,” and are unfamiliar with the story, do not read this essay. Most people are familiar with the plot twists at this point, so I feel fine discussing them openly. If you do not know the twists… well, first of all, it’s o.k. to come out from under that rock now, but also the twists should remain a surprise. (more…)
Halloween Costume Etiquette
By: Witney Seibold
Halloween is creeping up on us, and it’s been making me think of a list of rules I’ve been meaning to compile for a long time. (more…)
The Series Project: Star Trek
Film article by: Witney Seibold
I have admitted in these hallowed Internet pages that I am a hardcore Trekkie. So hardcore, in fact, that I say “Trekkie” and not “Trekker.” I feel “Trekkie” is reserved for the true, nerdy, diehard Trek fans, while “Trekker” is a revisionist term for nerds who are trying to deny their nerd-dom.
Good God, I’m uncool.
A Serious Man
Film review by: Witney Seibold
Dybbuk: The dislocated soul of a dead person in Jewish lore. If you invite a dybbuk into your house, you and your family will be cursed. (more…)
Believe: The Eddie Izzard Story
Film review by: Witney Seibold
Anyone who has seen Eddie Izzard’s standup will likely remember him. He’s the very, very British bloke wearing a frock and makeup, quietly ranting, almost off-the-cuff, about small things like beekeeping, groceries, and the British Empire. (more…)
Bright Star
Film review by: Witney Seibold
If I were to tell you, in a theoretical capacity, that Jane Campion was making a film about the romance between the doomed young John Keats and his one true love Fanny Brawne, you would instantly form a film in your head. The film that Campion ended up making is exactly the same as that film you pictured. It is melancholy, a touch melodramatic, had plenty of angsty moments of romantic chest-pounding, and overflowed reams of significant-sounding quotations. (more…)
The Informant!
Film review by: Witney Seibold
I love movies about people who behave compulsively. Gamblers, sex addicts, thieves, mysophobics (that’s fear of germs and filth). Mark Whitaker (Matt Damon), the main character of Steven Soderbergh’s “The Informant!,” is a compulsive liar. (more…)
We Live in Public
Film review by: Witney Seibold
Many people, on occasion myself included, have declared that the Nerd has taken over the world. With the proliferation of computer technology, the growing subculture of so-called “gamers,” and the popularity of comic book material in mainstream Hollywood blockbusters, what was once relegated to the socially awkward, unintentionally virginal, snickering marginalized specialist has become de rigueur, and even expected by the common man. The Nerd has become the rich hero, and, in the last decade, they have been granted a level of social and financial power unheard of in the late 1980s, when we Nerds were taping “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” and memorizing facts in our heads, rather than on our ‘blogs. (more…)
Singapore Sling (1990)
Film review by: Witney Seibold
Daddy mummy sodomy
“Singapore Sling” is one of the most brutal, sick, unpleasant, and stomach-churning films to be made. That it is artfully shot, well-acted, philosophically poignant, and mannered only seems to add to the discomfort levels. There are no films like this one, and, should you decide you have the stamina, I encourage you to seek it out. It plays like a combination of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” and “Grey Gardens,” with sexually torturous hints of “Last Tango in Paris,” with a few dashes of noir-ish “Sunset Boulevard” narration. (more…)
