Kate (Charlotte Rampling) and Geoff (Tom Courtenay) are six days away from celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary, when Geoff receives a letter informing him that the corpse of an ex-lover has been finally been found after her tragic fall in the Swiss Alps over fifty years prior. It’s a truly grizzly, melodramatic death for…
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The alienation of the immigrant experience is a common narrative device in cinema. Whether it’s a young Vito Corleone glimpsing the Statue of Liberty for the first time in The Godfather: Part II or the Mexican illegal immigrants at the center of A Better Life, the prospect of finding a future in a far away…
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Journalists can change the world. At least that was once true, when in 2001 the “Spotlight” team of The Boston Globe – through months of investigation – exposed the systematic child abuse of over 70 priests in the highly Catholic Boston area. If true stories of Pulitzer-winning journalism are your cup of tea, you’ll find…
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Sticky: A (Self) Love Story, is a documentary by freelance writer and director, Nicholas Tana, about a topic that, as his film addresses, is engaged in by nearly ninety percent of people, but is talked about by almost none: masturbation. The film asks kindergarten teachers, rabbis, porn stars and everyone in between to talk about…
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It’s difficult to think of a recent film more exquisite and more perfect than Carol. It may seem too soon to call the film a masterpiece, but I can confidently say that it is truly up there with some of the greatest movies of recent times. More importantly, it takes its place alongside Brokeback Mountain…
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Set sometime after the Civil War, and apparently contained within the same universe as 2012’s Django Unchained, Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight introduces us to Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), a bounty hunter on route to the town of Red Rock to cash in on his deadly efforts. But on this cold day in…
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After first watching the trailer for Joy, I had little idea of what the film was about, except that it starred Jennifer Lawrence as Joy—a strong, successful woman who, at some point, cuts her hair. And since its release, the debate as to what this film is really about has not settled, with reviewers each…
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There are literally thousands of historical films that document the tragedies and triumphs of men. From war epics to biopics about world leaders, scientists and rock stars, according to the cinema the history of mankind is considered to be more important than the history of womankind. That’s not to say that there aren’t a…
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The highly anticipated The Force Awakens, the seventh film in the Star Wars franchise, introduces its viewer two new lead characters. and a new era for the cult sci-fi hit. Set thirty years after the defeat of the Galatic Empire in Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens follows Finn (John Boyega) and Rey (Daisy…
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Fans of the James Bond franchise have spent years eagerly awaiting Spectre, the latest installment in the perennially-beloved spy film series. Currently the second-highest-grossing film in the Bond franchise, Spectre revives the action-packed fun of the Roger Moore era. Though the film struggles to match the brilliance of Skyfall (2012), the film’s strong cast, visual…
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Every day in Australia, police face 657 cases of violence against women. Every week, 2 women are murdered, often by somebody they know. While watching Hitting Home, Sarah Ferguson’s new documentary on Australian domestic violence, my friend wonders aloud, ‘Has it always been this bad?’ I answer: ‘Yes.’ It’s just that this year, we’re paying…
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With the latest instalment now in cinemas, Kate Voss takes a look at the history and evolution of the Bond girl, and what it means to be a woman in James Bond’s universe. Very few film franchises over the past fifty years have been more packed with more pure masculinity than the James Bond films. While these…
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Writing a memoir is a monumental task. And I write that as someone who has never attempted to do so. Consolidating decades of one’s life into a work small enough to be held in one hand seems titanic, especially given the complexity of its primary source: memory. The subtle art of memoir has been beautifully…
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In honour of Halloween 2015, Lip’s Arts editor and film critic Bridget Conway takes a look at Guillermo Del Toro’s latest offering: the delightfully gothic, super creepy, and surprisingly deep Crimson Peak. Happy Halloween, Lipsters! Crimsom Peak is the brainchild of acclaimed writer and director Guillermo Del Toro. In true Del Toro style, the film…
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