All articles by Peg Aloi
It is difficult to think of a harder-working actor or one more devoted to his craft.
The post Arts Remembrance: Christopher Plummer, 1929-2021 appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
Marianne is one of the slickest horror series I've seen on Netflix.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: "Marianne" " Pure, Artful Evil appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
If Castle Rock is intended to be a commentary on Trump's not-so-great America, well, what better genre than horror to spread the angst?
The post WATCH CLOSELY: Stephen King is My Boyfriend "…
Like Breaking Bad, El Camino subtly suggests that justice is a relative concept.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: "El Camino" " Epilogue for an Anti-Hero appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
Jake Brennan's unique blend of humor and horror generates very entertaining stories about some of the most shocking crimes committed by various icons of rock, pop, and punk music.
The post B…
This clever Japanese zombie film is a spirited attempt to blow up and reinvigorate the genre.
The post Film Review: "One Cut of the Dead" " Meta Gonzo Zombie Horror appeared first on The Art…
Linda Ronstadt was every young female singer's aspirational goddess: if you could nail "You're No Good" or "Blue Bayou" in the car or the shower, you had practiced a lot.
The post Film Revie…
Satanic Panic is a crazy ride, managing along the way to poke fun at the lifestyles of the rich and bored, reminding us that decadence among the upper classes is very scary indeed.
The post …
William McGregor has crafted a remarkable debut feature, a notable addition to the burgeoning crop of indie folk horror offerings.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: "Gwen" is Moody, Moving Folk Horror…
The Nightingale serves as both a powerful exploration of the past (from the perspective of the exploited) and a gripping vision of resilience in the face of unfathomable hate, greed, and cru…
feels both cautionary and elegiac; it is obviously relevant in these times of extremism and the rise of small town tyrannies.
The post Film Review: "Them That Follow" " Of Serpents and Sect…
Following a very compelling second season, the series seems to be losing its edge, slightly, though only intermittently.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: Resistance and Revenge in Season 3 of "The Ha…
A genre debut as self-assured as Luz is always exciting.
The post Film Review: "Luz" " Strangely Compelling Retro Horror appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
Despite Dark's complicated structure, the characters are motivated by utterly realistic desires and emotions, which balance the show's more abstract elements.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: Season …
People versed in modern witchcraft or paganism may recognize some of the themes examined in Midsommar, but what I found most fascinating was the pronounced emphasis on female sexuality.
The …
Ophelia is moving, intoxicating, haunting: the most visually pleasurable film I've seen so far this year.
The post Film Review: "Ophelia" is Revisionist, Romantic, Ravishing appeared first o…
Jamestown is a vividly timely reminder that anyone who calls themselves an "American" is actually descended from immigrants.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: PBS' "Jamestown" " Glossy Heritage TV ap…
All three episodes have intriguing storylines, with plenty of human pathos and drama: but I admit to finding the first and third episodes a bit too digitally-focused for my taste.
The post W…
Killing Eve is a smart, funny, and often shocking exploration of the complex psychologies of women leading dangerous lives, for whom killing comes much easier than it ought to.
The post WATC…
In space, no one can hear you go extinct.
The post Film Review: "High Life" " Messy, Earthy Existentialism, In Outer Space appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
Most of the films selected will be shown in 35mm, making the visual experience as invigorating to watch as the music will be to listen to.
The post Film Preview: At Somerville Theatre " Fak…
The Wind explores the fears that beset even strong, capable women stuck struggling for survival without community or social contact.
The post Film Review: "The Wind" " Horror on the Prairie …
The series presents plausible, relatable social situations within a weird, dark, quasi-magical framework.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" " Coming of Age Cauldron ap…
These satanists are far less concerned with organizing decadent ceremonies (though there is a fair bit of that, and it's thrilling to behold) than they are with exposing corruption and hypoc…
In Transit, Christian Petzold explores why the ghosts of Europe's troubled past are stirring once more.
The post Film Review: "Transit" " Europe's Unburied Past appeared first on The Arts F…
Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria is a landscape of the shadowy feminine, steeped in ancient magic, willful evil, and the cyclical round-de-lay of death and rebirth.
The post Film Review: A Pair of…
This is a finely-selected sampling of what some accomplished women filmmakers offered in 2018.
The post Film Review: 5 Women Filmmakers " A Sampling of the Superb appeared first on The Arts …
On an elemental level, Stanley Donen's films epitomize what we think of when we think of the best of Hollywood cinema.
The post Film Homage: Stanley Donen is Why You Love the Movies appeared…
This season of True Detective explores the figure of the cop as a permanently haunted man.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: “True Detective” — Mysteries of Mind and Soul appeared fi…
Russian Doll is television made to be savored.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: The Dark Depths of “Russian Doll” appeared first on The Arts Fuse.
Arctic avoids existential symbolism for the sake of expressing authentic emotions, most of them thanks to Mads Mikkelsen's performance, a quiet tour de force.
The post Film Review: “A…
What is admirable about Conversations with a Killer is that it is as compelling an exploration of the monster's victims as it is of Ted Bundy.
The post WATCH CLOSELY: Ted Bundy, Archetypal …
These films will no doubt raise your spirits in the dead of winter.
The post Film Preview: The Brattle Theatre’s Dead of Winter — Time for Tales of the Beast appeared first on Th…
Cold War is a timeless story of romantic love, and its persistence in the face of upheaval.
The post Film Review: “Cold War” — Love, Etched by Art appeared first on The Art…
This hardscrabble crime thriller is also a powerfully subtle character study.
Here is what a smart, savvy viewer who likes high-quality entertainment is looking forward to on TV this year.
Where do you go once you've watched the classic Xmas films? Some suggestions.
Films like Ben is Back will not foster an understanding of how drug addiction ravages the lives of the poor, the incarcerated, the uneducated, and the less fortunate.
This blistering new documentary manages to offer a fairly balanced portrait of a man who, at the end of his life, was widely demonized.
This is one of the year's most heartwarming films; not sentimental, but projecting a profound sense of resilient joy at its heart.
The Other Side of the Wind may inspire brooding melancholy in some, but it's also pretty damned fine.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs demonstrates the Coens' consummate skill for reinventing classic genre tropes, dovetailing deep affection with inspired re-interpretation.
William Goldman was known as a consummate Hollywood insider, who nevertheless maintained a reputation as a literary-minded purveyor of exceptional cinema.
Maniac is mind-bending entertainment that's also an invitation to muse on infinite possibilities.
A handpicked list of cinematic horror gems for you to watch over the next 26 days.
Indie filmmaker Josephine Decker has come up with a brilliant showcase for Helena Howard, whose performance is electrifying.
The film is full of salacious details from Hollywood's heyday, but it is also a tender look at an elderly man whose current existence would be seen by many as difficult.
Dark is not a German version of Stranger Things; its historical vision is distinctive.
Nico, 1988 lays bare the ravaged body and brooding soul of a woman who may yet be remembered as among the most iconic musicians of the twentieth century.
The most compelling reason to tune in to this series is the jaw-droppingly great cast, led by Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw.
