#criterion
My holiday sale is ON! All month, enjoy 15% off every item and get a FREE 4x6" print with any purchase (no minimum spend) at my Etsy shop. Specify the title of the artwork at checkout. But that’s not all!
For TWO days only, use your American Express card to spend $20 or more on Etsy and receive a $10 credit towards your next purchase. Ends December 5 at 11:59 PM ET. Etsy credit expires Dec 31, 2018. *U.S. only.
Happy Holidays! Shown here is my illustration of Tippi Hedren in Hitchcock’s film THE BIRDS, part of my 13 Hitchcock Blondes series (limited edition prints available in two colors and multiple sizes and types of paper).
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My Black Friday sale is live! 20% off every item. Prints, tote bags, magnets, and original art available at my Etsy shop. My painting of Françoise Hardy, Moira Shearer in The Red Shoes, and Nastassja Kinski in Paris, Texas
– Elizabeth Yoo
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la notte, 1961
michelangelo antonioni
INGMAR BERGMAN’S CINEMA by Criterion
“In honor of the Swedish master’s 100th birthday, we’re thrilled to announce the centerpiece of our yearlong celebration: a 39-film box set, featuring classics and rarities, new restorations, hours of supplemental features, and a 248-page book. Arriving this November, INGMAR BERGMAN’S CINEMA is the most comprehensive collection of the director’s work ever released on home video.”
Nurturing genius.
The Killing (1956) is a film by Stanley Kubrick. It has the makings of a classic, but held back only because of the time period in which the film was released, but nevertheless it’s still a prolific look into the minutia of Kubrick.
An ex-convict, finally free from Alcatraz has planned a heist down to the ’t.’ He has gathered all the right pieces that he must need to make it succeed as he brings together a team of people all necessary for the success of the heist. However, the one thing he could not calculate were each person’s motives as well as their personal lives; as the story unfurls so does the universe’s uncertainty as the otherwise perfect plan slowly unravels due to the unpredictable nature of the human condition.
This is a very enjoyable film, for its narration creates the momentum for the film as the ominous narrator pushes the story along in the form of a cautionary tale. The narration also gives clue to the fact that this heist had already happened and that as the audience what we are watching is a re-telling of it, giving the film a superlative feel for the audience as we get to be spoiled with Kubrick’s relatively genius and innovative screenplay.
It’s amazing how much “fat-trimming” is done to the film, as each character isn’t developed by their individuality, for it seemed like the decade in which it takes place defines the characters, for all the roles were seemingly cliche. Yet their intentions for taking the job are all highlighted in their respective categories, which allows the audience to realize why it’s so difficult managing people, because everyone has problems of their own, but will place them on the “back burner” in order to make capital, and to maintain a level of professionalism. Characters need not apply in heist films, only their skill sets, because the success and failure of a heist film lie within the details of the film’s writing.
Kubrick indeed captures the violence in the film with great shock, relative to its time period, as its shaky movements makes its rounds, carefully framing each shot to emphasize the actions of the individuals involved in the caper.
Stanley Kubrick even gives a nod to the game of chess. He alludes to the fact that like chess even the smallest movement of its pieces can completely alter the outcome of the game. This is a great metaphor for the plot as a lot of emphasis is placed upon the precision of the people involved in the heist, and how important each of their roles are to the overall success of the job.
The Killing was an absolute privilege to watch. It shows the makings of a genius filmmaker who will later move on to make 2001, Dr. Strangelove, Barry Lyndon etc. It’s not an depth character study like Clockwork, nor is it revolutionary like 2001, but The Killing is a solid heist film that is created with careful detail
3.5/4
-DK
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) - Curtis Hanson
Listen to the podcast here: LINK
Yellowjackets director and producer Jamie Travis joins me to talk about the 1992 “lady thriller” The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. Annabella Sciorra, Rebecca De Mornay, Ernie Hudson, Matt McCoy, and Julianne Moore star in this wild, upsetting, and incredibly entertaining movie about a psychotic usurping nanny.
Adventures in Babysitting (1987) - Chris Columbus
This week on The Criterinot Podcast I’m joined by New Yorker staff writer and prolific Twitter user Naomi Fry to talk about Adventures in Babysitting, Elvis crapping to death, Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, Matthew Modine, and why young people looked so old in the 80s.
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This week on The Criterinot Podcast: Strangers in Good Company AKA The Company of Strangers (1990) - Cynthia Scott
Strangers in Good Company is my favourite Canadian film (full disclosure, I haven’t seen the unauthorized Céline Dion biopic Aline yet…so, that could change).
I’m joined by actor, comedian, and fellow Stranger-head John Early (Search Party, I Think You Should Leave, and an IMDb STARmeter score of 13,959) to laugh and cry together about this fabulous gang of eight women who get stranded in the middle of nowhere in Québec.
Watch the movie in Canada for FREE here: THE COMPANY OF STRANGERS
Watch the movie on Amazon Prime in America here: STRANGERS IN GOOD COMPANY
Listen to the podcast here: LINK
“I’m your number one fan.”
This week on The Criterinot Podcast: Misery (1990) - Rob Reiner
Director and writer Craig Johnson (The Skeleton Twins, Special, Gossip Girl) joins me to talk about Kathy Bates’s introduction to the wider world in Rob Reiner and William Goldman’s adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery (1990).
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This week on The Criterinot Podcast: Beetlejuice (1988) - Tim Burton
This movie is a magic trick of a film and nobody knows that better than comedian Liza Dye, my guest on the latest episode of The Criterinot Podcast.
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Cruel Intentions (1999) - Roger Kumble
The Season 2 Premiere of The Criterinot Podcast is live now! Nancy Jo Sales (journalist, contributing editor at Vanity Fair, writer of Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring, director of Swiped on HBO) joins me to talk about Roger Kumble’s interpretation of Dangerous Liaisons: Cruel Intentions (1999).
Listen here: LINK
We get into the good and the bad, the unparalleled soundtrack, the incredible performances of Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and of course…the ass that launched a thousand gays.
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The Season 2 Premiere of The Criterinot Podcast is live now! Nancy Jo Sales (journalist, contributing editor at Vanity Fair, writer of Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring, director of Swiped on HBO) joins me to talk about Roger Kumble’s interpretation of Dangerous Liaisons: Cruel Intentions (1999).
Listen here: LINK
We get into the good and the bad, the unparalleled soundtrack, the incredible performances of Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and of course…the ass that launched a thousand gays.
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Postcards from the Edge (1990) - Mike Nichols
Kirsten “Kiwi” Smith, co-writer of Legally Blonde, 10 Things I Hate About You, The House Bunny, and Trinkets on Netflix joins me to talk about Postcards from the Edge on this week’s episode of The Criterinot Podcast. Listen here: apple.co/2mttfAf
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La La Land (2016) - Damien Chazelle
Listen to the La La Land episode of The Criterinot Podcast here:
apple.co/2BHdV7m
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Addams Family Values (1993) - Barry Sonnenfeld
Listen to the Addams Family Values episode of The Criterinot Podcast here: apple.co/2OXfeai
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Now Playing
Black Narcissus (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, 1947)
After opening a convent in the Himalayas, five nuns encounter conflict and tension - both with the natives and also within their own group - as they attempt to adapt to their remote, exotic surroundings.
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‘重慶森林’ (Chungking Express), Wong Kar-wai (1994)
We split up on April Fool’s Day. So I decided to let the joke run for a month. Every day I buy a can of pineapple with a sell-by date of May 1. May loves pineapple, and May 1 is my birthday. If May hasn’t changed her mind by the time I’ve bought thirty cans, then our love will also expire.
Follow my work on: Instagram|Cargo
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Check out some of the artwork i made for the @criterioncollection for The Princess Bride! In stores now! Select prints available in my shops. #theprincessbride #art #artistsofinstagram #artistsoninstagram #illustratorsoninstagram #illustratorsofinstagram #illustration #drawing #movieart #fairytale #childrensbooks #angelarizza #buttercup #westley #criterion #drawing #painting #ink #inktober #artist #art_spotlight #arte #artwork #artofinstagram
https://www.instagram.com/p/BqsgNYSB7mQ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=nog3gr6izj0e
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Why did I watch it?
- Criterion Collection.
- James Salter wrote the screenplay.
Random IMDB Trivia:
- This was going to be Roman Polanski’s first American film. Robert Evans of Paramount needed someone to direct Rosemary’s Baby so Polanski was given that project due to the nature of some of his recent films. Robert Redford was also considered for the male lead in that film.
- The movie’s poster was ranked #4 on “The 25 Best Movie Posters Ever” by Premiere.
Netflix Rating: 3 out of 5
Very subdued performances, subdued material. I remember liking it OK, but thinking it could have been a lot better with the talent attached.
Why did I watch it?
Random IMDB Trivia:
- Robert De Niro turned down the Mantle twins roles because he felt uncomfortable playing a gynecologist.
Netflix Rating: 2 out of 5
I keep thinking David Cronenberg is one of my favorite directors, but here’s something I’m slowly realizing: for as many of his films that I love (Videodrome, The Fly, Scanners, Eastern Promises), there are a growing number I feel ambivalent about (A Dangerous Method, eXistenZ). We can throw Dead Ringers in the latter pile.
