The Master (2012) Review

Picture the following scene: In early 2008 I walked into a small theater in my hometown Rostock, going to see the new movie by Paul Thomas Anderson, director of such great films as "Boogie Nights" and "Magnolia". When I walked out about three hours later I was a changed person. "There Will Be Blood", the film I saw on that fateful night pretty much blew me away in a way no other movie has done it to me before or ever since. In my humble opinion "There Will Be Blood" might just be the best movie of the last decade. Just watch the following video and see how devoted fans of this masterpiece can be:

Citizen Ruth (1996) Review

Pop Quiz: Name a movie that focuses on the abortion issue. Go! .... Can't come up with anything? If you can, good for you, you're a movie nerd. If not, then you're also fine. There are countless taboo topics that have been tackled by American cinema, whether it's racism, child abuse, death penalty, euthanasia, etc. But interestingly, there hasn't really been a movie about the abortion issue. Well, that was until "Citizen Ruth" came along, Alexander Payne's feature film debut as a director from 1996.

Hard Candy (2005) Review

Consider this a warning but this film will haunt you if you're a dude. I'm serious. Think you're a tough guy? Watch this film and think again, I promise it'll make you squirm in your seat. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Happiness (1998) Review

And here we go again, after watching some fairly convenient and "nice" movies I encountered another one that is anything but. Happiness by Todd Solondz is a poisonous little film that, like so many others before, looks into the dark soul of suburban USA. But what makes this film stand out from many others is that it is not afraid to touch dark topics without being exploitative. While other films such as Harmony Korine's Ken Park are more interested in just blatantly showing the perversions that happen behind white picket fences without any sort of context, Solondz's film is anchored by characters that are actually drawn out. We might not sympathize with their actions but at least we are able to understand them.