AMC+

ENTER THE VOID (2009)

September 24, 2020

(AMC+/VOD) One of the first modern films I can think of to assume the back-facing third-person perspective of videogames as the primary POV of a film. (Although, uh, it’s for different reasons. Also: strobe warning in advance for the following videos!)

Like all Gaspar Noe films, you’ll never want to re-watch it, you’ll probably regret having watched it in the first place, but you’ll never, ever, forget it.

If you want to skip the film itself, the title sequence is a goddamn typographical masterpiece:

(I miss the heyday of 90s/naughts design. Nowadays, all text design is flat, dull, character-less, meant to be readable regardless of device screen size. Scaling is overrated!)

LET THE CORPSES TAN (2017)

September 23, 2020

(AMC+/kanopy/Shudder/VOD) Amplified western giallo: you’ll hear every twist of leather, you’ll see every wisp of hair, taste every bit of grit, smell their sweat and gunpowder. It’s entirely about sensuality, and it’s so extraordinarily satisfying.

Also, it’s a damn thrilling heist film and, when shit goes sideways — as it always does — it becomes something astounding.

DEALT (2017)

August 21, 2020

(AMC+/Hulu/VOD) I have a penchant for films and documentaries about magicians and tricksters, and DEALT is about one of the king card mechanics. This doc could hit harder, but it’s a fascinating look at an unprecedented talent and how he can’t see himself.

THE FITS (2016)

August 13, 2020

(AMC+/fubo/kanopy/Showtime/VOD) A girl training to box joins a community cheerleading team and, suddenly, members of the squad start falling inexplicably ill. More of an intimate drama than it sounds like, reminding me of Megan Abbot’s — no, not DARE ME — THE FEVER.

LOW DOWN (2014)

August 4, 2020

A brutal account of growing up surrounded by addicts, some genius and some not, handled with a fair amount of grace and buoyed by a tremendous cast that includes John Hawkes, Elle Fanning, Peter Dinklage and, yes, FLEA.

STARFISH (2019)

July 26, 2020

I’ve been watching STARFISH (2019, AMC+/fubu/VOD) in intervals over the past week; it’s visually intense, with a haunting soundtrack, yet still hard to grasp. Has a melancholy that’s like catnip to me, and so goddamn relevant right now. “I wonder if the world still exists if I choose to ignore it.”

LIKE ME (2018)

July 25, 2020

(AMC+/kanopy/Shudder) Far more intriguing than the description — ‘A reckless loner sets out on a crime spree that she broadcasts on social media.’ — makes it to be. Visually inventive, and it’s nice to see Fessenden in a meaty role again.