Kanopy Recs

[dookeyXXX]

Wrath of Silence (also available on TUBI)
This is a nice, stark Mainland China thriller centered around a father, who is quick on the brawl, searching for his missing son.
The juxtaposing landscapes of mining stripped hills and smoke choked neon cityscapes is visually captivating.
There are a few hiccups surrounding the final act's reveal, but overall the story of the haves vs the have-nots is handled deftly.
The fight scenes are raw; no wire fu here, just brutal fisticuffs.
The hero is rough around the edges and the villain is a lamb eating dandy for the ages.

RIYL
Ash Is The Purest White
The Wild Goose Lake
Marlina The Murderer In Four Acts
Theeb

[dookeyXXX]

HAVE A NICE DAY - also streaming on TUBI

This irreverent offering from Jian Liu is an animated, hard-boiled neon noir following a day in the life of an aimless, low level gangster flunky.
Great 2D animation of the clear line variety.
Definite nods to Pulp Fiction, but ultimately it is its own unique beast.

RIYL
Fritz The Cat
Pulp Fiction

[dookeyXXX]

IN THE EARTH

Pandemic guerilla filmmaking at its finest!
Apparently this nifty little psychedelic horror offering was filmed in 15 days at the height of Covid quarantine (August 2020).
Ben Wheatley's latest is a blast of folk horror and isolation hysteria.
Recommended if you have seen and enjoyed his films The Kill List and A Field In England.

[fomofo]

This documentary tells the inspiring story of the pop culture explosion in 1960s through the eyes of Britain's greatest living movie actor. Michael Caine introduces the film in the buttoned up, monochrome heart of London at the start of the 1960s, in a world blighted by economic hardship with WWII rationing having ended only six years earlier. In 1960s London a new generation has come of age. They're energized, rebellious and hopeful.

https://www.kanopy.com/product/my-generation

[dookeyXXX]

How To Eat Your Watermelon In White Company (And Enjoy It)
[Also streaming on Tubi]

I highly recommend this doc about the life, times, and fascinating career of Melvin Van Peebles.
Dude was seriously deep and a true legend of the Renaissance Man variety.

[dookeyXXX]

Wrinkles

I've been on an animated features kick lately.
Watched this Spanish gem the other night.
It's a bittersweet rumination on the inevitability of growing old.
Poignant, funny, and sad all at once.

I watched the original Spanish version with subtitles, but Kanopy offers both versions (Amazon Prime also offers the English dub).

[dookeyXXX]

The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926)

If you are a fan of animation, this is a wonderful glimpse into Old School technique. The amount of time and effort it must have taken to create this film in the 1920s is mind-boggling.

[bobz]

I liked it; first animated feature film ever!

[dookeyXXX]

Lottsa really cool animated films lurking on Kanopy.

Jacob, Mimmi, and the Talking Dogs



The Girl Without Hands



Son of the White Mare



Johnny Corncob



The Painting



A Cat In Paris



A Town Called Panic

[dookeyXXX]

You, The Living
Roy Andersson's film is a series of interconnected vignettes showing us the other side of Sweden. Instead of blonde haired, blue eyed beauties, Andersson focuses on the other half: over-weight schlubs, insecure individuals, emo-goths, and marching band members. The film is rife with a detached, deadpan absurdism and every frame has myriad things going on in addition to the main action.
Droll and hilarious.

RIYL
The films of Alex van Warmerdam, Wes Anderson, Todd Solondz, Jim Jarmusch, and Neil Labute

[dookeyXXX]

A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence
The third film in Swedish writer/director Roy Andersson's trilogy ruminating on human behavior follows suit with his previous effort, You, The Living, in that it is comprised of droll, deadpan vignettes laced with bursts of WTF absurdity.
The segment on Limping Lotta brought a smile to my face and some tears to my eyes and the Charles XII bit was bonkers.
A wry and wonderful cinematic excursion.

[fomofo]

Perdita Durango (aka Dance With the Devil) is one of my all-time favorites. Delighted to find it on Kanopy; watched it again last night. Chock full of funny/sexy/weird shit and performances. Stick with it - you just might like it too.



Always thought it would be a great double bill in an old time movie palace with the second film being From Dusk Till Dawn.

[dookeyXXX]

Perdita Durango (aka Dance With the Devil) is one of my all-time favorites. Delighted to find it on Kanopy; watched it again last night. Chock full of funny/sexy/weird shit and performances. Stick with it - you just might like it too.



Always thought it would be a great double bill in an old time movie palace with the second film being From Dusk Till Dawn.

Man, I haven't seen that film in years.

Gonna nerd out a bit here and mention that it is part of the Wild At Heart universe. The film is based on a novella by Barry Gifford, which is actually an installment from his literary series revolving around the characters of Sailor and Lula
(https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/...la-ride-again/).
FWIW, Gifford co-wrote the screenplay for Perdita Durango.

In addition to the short novel and the film, the story was also turned into a graphic novel: https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-380-77109-7

Also, I highly recommend checking out some of the director's (Alex de la Iglesia) other films, specifically The Last Circus and Witching and Bitching

[dookeyXXX]

Undergods
In a bleak and desolate future, two "garbage men" drive around in their truck delivering strange tales of dystopian dysfunction.
Visually arresting and thematically abstract.

RIYL
Vivarium; City Of Lost Children

[charlesj]

Bronzés Font du Ski is worth it. If you laugh at New Yorkers and Texans remember that foolishness exists partout

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYNVsajWGv4

[dookeyXXX]

Bronzés Font du Ski is worth it. If you laugh at New Yorkers and Texans remember that foolishness exists partout

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYNVsajWGv4

+1 on this.
I watched it earlier this week.
The ski fashions alone are worth the watch.

Also, if you work in the snowsports industry, especially as an instructor, some of the skiing segments and lesson skits are priceless.

[dookeyXXX]

Genius Party Beyond
This animated anthology is actually the second part of a 2-part series (the first was simply titled Genius Party).
I actually enjoyed this collection much more than the first (oh yeah, it's not necessary for you to have seen the previous anthology to get into this one, either).
The animation styles contained in the various short films run the gamut from traditional anime style to gonzo caricature, neo-abstract water colors, and just plain trippy visuals.

RIYL
Love Death + Robots; Allegro non Troppo; Robot Carnival

[dookeyXXX]

LISA AND THE DEVIL
I watched this Mario Bava joint the other night.
What a gothic psychedelic trip.
Telly Savalas chewing scenery in the most assured and subdued manner.
Opulent sets, costumes, and colors.
A confusing and creepy, but no less engrossing, narrative.

RIYL: Dead and Buried; Don't Look Now; Carnival of Souls

[dookeyXXX]

BELLADONNA OF SADNESS
This psychededelically enhanced erotic anime is teeming with phallic and yonic imagery, rich pastels, and gonzo Yellow Submarine-styled visual freak-outs.
Alternating between still and moving images, it tells the tale of a woman scorned and straddles the line between porn and art-house pretense.

[dookeyXXX]

The Giants
This Belgian coming-of-age film turns the genre on its head, embracing yet tweaking rote tropes and never really going where you think it's headed. Poignant and quietly funny it's augmented by fantastic cinematography which fully utilizes the rich landscape of the Ardennes.

RIYL
Stand By Me; I Declare War;

[dookeyXXX]

The Mission
This 1999 Johnnie To directed film is a mish-mash of triad drama, male buddy bravado, and HK gun-fu. Considerably more subdued than the films of John Woo and Ringo Lam, it nevertheless is teeming with style and features one of the suavest standoffs ever filmed (a brilliant shootout in a mall).

[dookeyXXX]

Exiled
Another Johnnie To joint and perhaps his magnum opus.
Drawing heavily from spaghetti Westerns and gangster films and rife with wonderful visual motifs, this is is a slick, cool, and violent rumination on brotherhood and honor.

RIYL
The Wild Bunch, The Killer, The Mission

[dookeyXXX]

HAGAZUSSA
This strange and enigmatic folk horror effort is a slow-burn exercise in visual nuance accompanied by an immersive score and hypnotically detached acting. While slow in pace, it's deliberate in its eeriness and succeed due to a tilted sense of brooding and an abstract air of dread.
Strange and beguiling and downright creepy.

RIYL
The Witch; Antichrist`; Censor; The Duke of Burgundy

[dookeyXXX]

PIRANHAS
This is a coming-of-age/teenaged mafia story that under the surface of its macho facade is actually kind of sad and poignant, hi-liting that all too often one can become a product of their environment.
The way the film unfolds, it's hard to tell if it is merely meant as a slice of real life drama or as blunt social commentary. Regardless, it's captivating and brutal.

RIYL
Gomorrah; Bad Boys (the Sean Penn film); Mean Streets; A Prophet

[dookeyXXX]

THEY CALL ME JEEG
Reluctant hero? Check.
Creepy, narcissistic villain? Check.
Cool action sequences? Check.
Solid quirk to seriousness ratio? Check.
The folks at Marvel and DC could learn a thing or two about crafting an engaging and intelligent superhero movie by watching this plucky Italian offering.
Sure, it's derivative as hell, but it's streamlined, well acted, has great pacing, and is crisply directed. The FX are pretty seamless, too, especially for a non-Hollywood film.

RIYL
Hancock; Kick-Ass