Or How to Review an Archetypal Movie, Again By John Lobell A while back, I did a review of Phantom of the Opera in which I took reviewers to task for not knowing what the movie was about. (See https://www.cinemadiscourse.com/the-phantom-of-the-opera/ ) As those who make movies move to explore archetypal themes, they are leaving the […]
Archives for 2009
Looking back at Apocalypse Now
APOCALYPSE NOW Directed and produced by Francis Ford Coppola A movie review by John Lobell Apocalypse Now is number five on Ebert’s list on this site of visionary movies (2001 is number 1). He writes: “Coppola’s epic retelling of The Odyssey combined with Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is a totally unique, absolutely original cinematic vision. Again, […]
On Technology
The Rise of the Machines: A Contrarian View By John Lobell Many, including John Ebert, have been seeing movies like Terminator: Salvation as growing out of our unease, perhaps even fear of the intrusion of machines into our lives. And, as Ebert points out, the far out science fiction of these movies is fast becoming […]
On Star Trek
Star Trek: A Movie Review By John Lobell The new Star Trek movie is so highly satisfying because it introduces a richness of back-story into a franchise we know so well, and because it adds a mythological depth. This depth does not approach that of Star Wars, but it is there. And since we now […]