The shape of things to come
Due to my increasing workload I have decided to take a drastic step for the immediate future of Hope Lies at 24 Frames Per Second. Put simply, I don’t really have the time to keep the site running in the same manner as it has in the past. So, from today onwards I will be … Read more
L’Enfance-Nue (1968)
What follows is the fourth in a series of essays produced in conjunction with The Cineastes. This month’s article in conjunction with The Cineastes revolves around a film chosen by yours truly. Maurice Pialat’s L’Enfance-Nue is a long held favourite of mine, so I took the opportunity as an attempt to spread the word as … Read more
Adventureland (2009)
From Greg Mottola, director of better-than-usual Judd Apatow-fest Superbad, Adventureland marks a step in the right direction for the fimmaker. The story of a college graduate that takes a job at a local amusement park, Adventureland sees Mottola bring a sense of heart to a genre generally overwrought with genitalia gags, crass language and easy cracks. … Read more
Fish Tank (2009)
This weekend threw up a bizarre combination of “teen” dramas for this viewer. It started with Greg Mottola’s Adventureland yesterday afternoon, and culminated with Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank this evening. And while both couldn’t be further apart if they actively tried, they both share a sense of alienation and attitude towards expectations towards life. I … Read more
Key Largo (1948)
John Huston is a filmmaker that constantly amazes me, with every piece of his work that I see bringing something new to the table. It’s worth noting that the film of his that I watched most recently prior to Key Largo was 1979′s Wise Blood, a film, or indeed a difference in film that displays … Read more
Red Dawn (1984)
John Milius’ follow up to Conan the Barbarian marked quite the departure for the filmmaker, and in turn produced a film that would stand the test of time as the ultimate afternoon guilty pleasure. Patrick Swayze leads a group of high school kids into the mountains of mid-west America, as World War 3 begins in … Read more
(500) Days of Summer
Joseph Gordon-Levitt might just be this writers favourite US talent of 2009. Not only did his bizarre appearance ensure that the presumed terrible G.I. Joe – The Rise of Cobra was a thoroughly entertaining piece of popcorn action cinema, but in (500) Days of Summer he has given the world it’s most likeable romance protagonist … Read more
District 9 (2009)
Mainstream cinema has found a powerful new talent in Neil Blomkamp. Born out of the ashes of his development-hell-stricken Halo adaptation, District 9 might just prove to be the shot in the arm that the stale blockbuster genre needed. District 9 details a world in which an alien race have sought refuge on Earth. Pushed … Read more
Passe Ton Bac d’Abord (1979)
In advance of this months article in conjunction with The Cineastes on Maurice Pialat’s L’Enfance-Nue I have written a brief piece on that films spiritual follow-up, Passe Ton Bac d’Abord. Its not as long an essay as I would usually produce for a film of this quality, but I have decided to incorporate a big … Read more
The HopeLiesList (August and September 2009)
Herein lies the latest edition of the HopeLiesList. This update sees two months worth of films incorporated into the list, so its almost a summary of the summers events. 1. pierrot le fou (jean-luc godard) 2. the 400 blows (francois truffaut) * 3. the passenger (michelangelo antonioni) 4. au hasard balthazar (robert bresson) 5. sunrise … Read more
