In Kazuo Hara’s shocking Japanese documentary, “The Emperor’s Naked Army Marches On”, Kenzo Okuzaki will do anything to get WWII veterans to confess to the barbaric atrocities committed in New Guinea towards the end of the war. When the conversation doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, Okuzaki resorts to violence. He punches, kicks, and wrestlesContinue reading “The Pursuit of Justice in “The Emperor’s Naked Army Marches On””
Author Archives: Wael Khairy
Making Connections in Kieślowski’s “Three Colours: Red”
Kieślowski’s “Red” is the most philosophically dense film in the Three Colours trilogy. In his final entry, Kieślowski effortlessly weaves everything together- very fitting for a film about making connections. An opening scene is often a film’s first shot at conveying its main themes and ideas. Here, the camera follows a telephone wire from aContinue reading “Making Connections in Kieślowski’s “Three Colours: Red””
Emotional Freedom in Kieślowski’s “Three Colours: Blue”
Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Three Colours trilogy, “Blue”, White”, and “Red”, named after the colors of the French flag is themed on the French Revolutionary ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity. The first of the three films, “Blue”, tackles the concept of liberty in the everyday life of Julie, the wife of a composer, who must copeContinue reading “Emotional Freedom in Kieślowski’s “Three Colours: Blue””
Nostalgia in Federico Fellini’s “Amarcord”
In Federico Fellini’s nostalgic time capsule, “Amarcord”, we are introduced to the director’s birthplace, the seaside town of Rimini, and the colorful characters that reside in it. Only it feels like Fellini is showing us how he wants to remember this town as opposed to how it actually was. We are seeing the world throughContinue reading “Nostalgia in Federico Fellini’s “Amarcord””
Making Contact in the “Land of Silence and Darkness”
“If there were another World War, I wouldn’t even notice it.” “Land of Silence and Darkness” concerns itself with a very specific demographic of the population, the people who suffer from the unfortunate fate of simultaneously being deaf and blind. Without these two key senses, they are cut off from the reality of the worldContinue reading “Making Contact in the “Land of Silence and Darkness””
Werner Herzog’s “Lessons of Darkness”
Werner Herzog once referred to “Lessons of Darkness” as a science fiction film, and I can see why. The hellish landscapes of pitch-black oil fields interrupted by fountains of fire look like something straight out of a post-apocalyptic future where man orchestrated his own demise. Strangely enough, the subject matter is not that far off;Continue reading “Werner Herzog’s “Lessons of Darkness””
The Grand Illusion in “Koyaanisqatsi”
Godfrey Reggio’s “Koyaanisqatsi” is a documentary that has been imitated countless times but never surpassed, and maybe never quite equaled either. Ron Fricke, the cinematographer of this important piece of filmmaking, went on to direct his own films like “Baraka” and “Samsara”, but for some reason they lacked the philosophical depth that a mind likeContinue reading “The Grand Illusion in “Koyaanisqatsi””
Short-Lived Moments In Steve McQueen’s “Shame”
Our days are filled with simple little interactions with complete strangers, a nod at someone passing by, a sympathetic look towards someone you may never see again, a shared smirk with some random bystander. These short-lived moments may signify the smallest measurable unit of human connection, but occasionally, they can trigger an avalanche of emotions.Continue reading “Short-Lived Moments In Steve McQueen’s “Shame””
Miscommunication in “Where is the Friend’s House?”
Few films have captured the difficulty of growing up like Abbas Kiarostami’s “Where is the Friend’s House”. In this underseen Iranian masterpiece, Babek Ahmed Poor plays an eight-year-old schoolboy running around a neighbouring village in search for his classmate’s home to return a notebook. Although, very little takes place in terms of plot, KiarostamiContinue reading “Miscommunication in “Where is the Friend’s House?””
The Sublime Cinema of Yasujirō Ozu
Yasujiro Ozu expressed grand philosophical ideas through little moments of everyday life. He is in my humble opinion, the most sensitive and disciplined director to ever hold a camera. Ozu disregarded how the rest of the world shot films and created his own cinematic language. He broke every rule there was and did it the most subtle way possible. Ozu’s films exercised the most discreetContinue reading “The Sublime Cinema of Yasujirō Ozu”
The Cinephile Fix 