Author: Christian Tuckell
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Earthlings. Dir. Shaun Monson. Nation Earth. 2005.
Fig. 1 The original release poster for Earthlings, the film’s oft repeated challenge to the viewer to ‘make the connection’ features prominently alongside pictures of plants, animals and the evil emperor Commodus (representing humankind). ‘How do you know if someone is Vegan? Don’t worry, they’ll tell you’. So proclaims an increasingly popular meme. Type preachy into…
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Gates of Heaven. Dir. Errol Morris. New Yorker Films. 1978.
Figure 1: The original cinematic release poster for Gates of Heaven. Eighty-Five minutes of predominantly medium close-up shots without narration with a focus, superficially at least, on the pet cemetery business. You may think that the initial prognosis for Errol Morris’s 1978 debut Gates of Heaven is bleak; indeed you would be in good company.[1] Morris’s fleeting between concepts led…
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The Misfits. Dir. Arthur Miller. United Artists. 1961.
The Misfits (dir. Arthur Miller, 1961) The final two scenes in The Misfits (dir. Arthur Miller, 1961) epitomise the varied conflicts that underpin the changing zeitgeist narrative of the film.[1] The relationship between the bucking beast and the faded hunter is complex; the mustang and the cowboy are two of the most poignant and pervading symbols…
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The Elephant in the Living Room. Dir. Michael Webber. NightFly Entertainment. 2010.
The Elephant in the Living Room (2010, dir. Michael Webber) As The Elephant in the Living Room rolls towards a conclusion Webber appropriates a pair of Brumfield’s home videos to give a raw and powerful insight into a personal tragedy.[1] These juxtaposed excerpts represent the film’s climax and epitomise both the intense emotional relationship between Brumfield and Lambert as…