By Davis Rivera

In her 2002 film Sex is Comedy, Catherine Breillat observed that the director’s job is to drag the emotion out of the actor and use that emotion as the film’s basic materials.  Watching The Immigrant, one can surmise that filmmaker James Gray shares this point of view and was able to cull remarkable, almost superhuman, performances from both Joaquin Phoenix and Marion Cotillard in a film that, while running a mere two hours, feels absolutely epic.

By Davis Rivera

While watching films I often ask myself, “What is it that compelled this filmmaker to tell this particular story?”  With his latest film Ida, it is obvious that Pawel Pawlikowski set out to insinuate himself into the viewer’s heart and take them on a deeply rewarding eighty-minute road trip replete with intense directorial focus, stunning cinematography, and the single best usage of John Coltrane I have ever seen in a film.

By Megan Reilly

Wondering how you’re going to pass the time this summer?  Well, it’s a perfect time to catch up on your movies, new and old.  Check out the suggestions we’ve assembled for you!

By Alex Gibson

Usually closed to the general public, the gate leading to the hospital wing of Eastern State Penitentiary is marked with a red cross. When I visited, the already creepy historic site was made even more unsettling by the rain dripping into the crumbling hallways and forming puddles amidst tangled, rust-covered hospital beds. It seemed perfect place to sit down with William Eubanks, director of The Signal.

By Davis Rivera

In his latest triumph Alejandro Jodorowsky travels back to his native Chile to bring us the “imaginary autobiography” The Dance of Reality.  As the film went on and the subject matter became more tragic, I knew I was watching the work of a filmmaker who promises nothing but fulfills everything.  An artist so ambitious that he demands no less of himself than to strive for a little immortality, even if it takes twenty-three years to do so.

This past weekend, the Philadelphia Film Society, in partnership with the New York International Children’s Film Festival, presented the Philadelphia International Children’s Film Festival (June 6-8).  Our little film-goers enjoyed healthy snacks from the Whole Foods Pop-Up Concessions Stand, engaging activities from Parent to Child Therapy Associates and the 10 Day Film Challenge, and of course renowned international children’s films.

By Davis Rivera 

Since Orson Welles first made his love of the Tarot known in the 1958 masterpiece Touch of Evil, there has been a calling to filmmakers everywhere to look to the cards and make something extraordinary.  Philadelphia filmmaker Hanna Hamilton has done just that with her latest work The Fool’s Journey, a visual experiment comprised of twenty-two short films devoted to the twenty-two cards of the Major Arcana.  I was able to interview Hamilton when her film screened at PhilaMOCA as part of their Tuesday Tune-Out, a weekly series that features local musicians performing live before introducing a film of their choice.

By John Smith

Action films may not be the most respected genre when it comes to film buffs. There are a lot of people that I know personally who believe that they exist solely for dumb, popcorn entertainment purposes. If that’s the case, how do you explain John Woo’s ultimate masterpiece, Hard Boiled? This film is iconic and funny, brutally stylistic and engagingly beautiful. It’s an action film that can also be considered a work of art.

By Ian Abell

Raunchy, loud, and consistently funny, Neighbors shows what happens when a young family trying to settle down meets with college kids looking to live it up. Rogen and Efron fight well against each other as rival neighbors, comically playing with their Pineapple Express and High School Musical pasts with the support of a solid cast across the board. If you want a steady stream of hilarious one-upmanship, Neighbors is a movie to catch.

By Davis Rivera

Jim Jarmusch is the rare filmmaker that is as enthusiastic about film as he is about music, literature, and numerous other arts.  This wide berth of knowledge provides the groundwork for his latest effort, Only Lovers Left Alive.  Overflowing with references to everyone from Rodney Dangerfield to Schubert, Jarmusch hypnotizes as often as he confounds in a film that praises the virtues of beauty and love at a time when they need it the most.