Review: the sprawling staccato "Eternals"

by Nathaniel R

Why am I here? What is my purpose? Who am I… really? These are essential questions in life and if you stop to think about it, they’re also the backbone of practically every superhero origin story. A hero discovers their gift. Grapples with how to use it and what kind of person they are and what kind of hero they can be.  With great power comes great responsibility. Etcetera. The reaction to Marvel’s Eternals suggests that it’s the first “spiritual” or “existential” superhero film which is, quite frankly, the opposite of the truth. 

Where did this impression come from? Perhaps it’s only that most superhero films asks these questions in a less “I’m asking these questions!” kind of way. Or, even when they're obvious about the questions, they quickly jump back into the action setpieces. Eternals wants to be more of a sober meditation but it can’t reconcile the weightiness of contemplation with the weightlessness of frequent CGI action setpieces...

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Locarno Diary #5: "Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash" wins the Golden Leopard

by Elisa Giudici

"Vengeance is Mind, All Others Pay Cash" won the Golden Leopard

I did it. With your help! 

I am always so happy when the winner of something-d'Or at a Festival I attended is a movie I was able to see and review. Sometimes seeing all of the competition entries is next to impossible (though I managed at Cannes this year!) and, festival after festival, I discover it requires a special talent to sense which film you should not miss, no matter what. It's a talent/skill I am trying to develop. This time I was lucky. Not only did I see the Golden Leopard winner Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash but I scheduled it thanks to a comment I read right here on The Film Experience!  I was not able to attend the first press screenings but because of the hype generated by that comment and a little research among some Locarno connaisseurs I go to for help, I booked a ticket at the very last projection, late at night

After the first scene I knew it was the right choice, even if some major construction sites on my way home meant I wasn't able to sleep until 3 AM. After the credits I wrote this very note on my notebook: "A winner for sure, if the Jury is brave enough". It was!

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How Had I Never Seen..."Independence Day"?

by Cláudio Alves

Some of my recent choices for the "How Had I Never Seen" series may have leaned towards the esoteric. Probably most people don't wonder why or how they have never set eyes on Valley of the Dolls or Girlfriends. This time around, however, I've decided to fix a pretty deep lacuna in my movie-watching, one that's firmly in the mainstream rather than an arthouse curio. Today marks the 25th anniversary of Roland Emmerich's 1996 Oscar-winning mega-blockbuster Independence Day. To commemorate the date, I finally watched the flick that turned Will Smith into a star of the silver screen, redefined the effects-driven summer movie, and birthed a new era of Hollywood entertainment… 

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Train of Thought. If Harrison Ford can star in an action flick at 79...

by Nathaniel R

You've probably heard the report that 78 year old Harrison Ford has suffered a shoulder injury prepping for a scene in the as yet untitled Indiana Jones 5. We've already heard his age mentioned in a joking manner around the web but we're not going to join in the ageism of that. We would just like to point out that if Harrison Ford is going to do this at 79 (his birthday is in a couple of weeks) why can't actresses get action roles at that age? Well, okay, they let Helen Mirren do it a couple of times but we can never have enough actressy action and James Cameron takes decades off between movies. 

Herewith a list of women who are similar age to Harrison Ford who we'd love to see in an action flick. Sorry not sorry...

• Joanna Cassidy (75) still popping up on TV and always fun to watch. Plus she has classic Harrions Ford sci-fi on her resume already
• Goldie Hawn (75) nobody wants The Christmas Chronicles to be her last film!
• Jacqueline Bissett (76) still gorgeous. Why not a comeback?
• Wai Ching Ho (77) already proved she could do action scenes with aplomb in Daredevil
• Blythe Danner (78) you know she's versatile with genre
• Leslie Uggams (78) because that bit in the Deadpool franchise is not enough
• Holland Taylor (78) still so fabulous and funny. Plus authoritative!
• Faye Dunaway (80) she has rage she needs to work out
• Tina Turner (81) somebody coax her out of retirement with a role as good as "Auntie Entity" again
• Jane Fonda (83) still has the body and fierceness for it!

Just thinking out loud. 

Review: "Infinite" on Paramount+

By Abe Friedtanzer

There are those who believe in reincarnation, the idea that, when people die, they return eventually in another life. If, somehow, those who had lived before were able to recall what they had been through, they might be able to take lessons from it and create a better world. Yet it’s just as likely that, given the opportunity to dwell on centuries or millennia of knowledge about how society functions, many would attempt to exploit or destroy it for their own aims. That’s the setup of Infinite, a film with a bold concept that relies very little on logic to play out its all-too-familiar story.

To explain the premise of this film shouldn’t be all that difficult, but I’m not sure I can offer a coherent breakdown of how it’s all supposed to work. Basically, people called Infinites are able to recall their past lives, but they have to be reminded of everything they’ve experienced before...

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