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Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011, Dir. Tomas Alfredson): Arthur Conan-Doyle, Agatha Christie, Ian Fleming — does John le Carré now join the ranks of this august company when it comes…
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Arabesque (1965, Dir. Stanley Donen): Once upon a time, froth was not only a fun thing but a good thing. You know, back before diets, back when silly could be…
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Certified Copy (2010, Dir. Abbas Kiarostami): “The movie started when he invited me to Tehran and one night he started talking about a story that happened to him in Italy,…
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When Love Comes (2010, Dir. Chang Tso-chi): The family drama may be a staple of cinema the world over, but thanks to the likes of director Edward Yang and his…
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Shutter Island (2010, Martin Scorcese): Martin Scorcese is cinema’s answer to U2 — both like to do things grand and often teeter on the thin line between operatic and overweening,…
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Chinatown (Dir. Roman Polanski, 1974): Chinatown opens with photos of a tawdry wife getting it on with an adulterer in the bushes, the visual equivalent of a dirty joke. By…
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Most people my age grew up with rock ‘n’ roll, or classical music, or even jazz. I grew up on James Bond soundtracks. Certain childhood preoccupations are withered by the…
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I’ve Loved You For So Long (Il y a longtemps que je t’aime, Dir. Philippe Claudel, 2008): With her porcelain looks and tensed-up, acrid delivery, Kristin Scott Thomas is a…
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Obsession (Dir. Brian DePalma, 1976): Hitchcock’s Vertigo has been deconstructed from just about every angle of filmic and literary criticism over the years, and through it all it’s remained an…
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Where Danger Lives (1950, Dir. John Farrow): Noir can be hit-and-miss, but even minor noir films such as Where Danger Lives have their pleasures — and there’s nothing minor about…
