Seth Recommends . . . August 2023 Edition

Most of my content over the last few years on this blog has been solely dedicated to reviewing new films. I started this blog with the hope of spending more time writing essays about film as opposed to more review-style content, but that direction has drifted significantly as time has gone by. Now, I watch a lot of movies and most of my engagement with film on a week-to-week basis is not through new releases, but through watching movies at home — older films which I often don’t provide myself with chances to write about on my blog. 

I’ve created a solution to this problem I’ve made: a series that allows me to briefly mention a few older (as in, anything released before the present year — I’m using “older” very loosely) films that I’ve been enjoying recently. Behold, “Seth Recommends,” a brand new monthly series dedicated to recommending a handful of good films (and maybe a TV show or two if I’m feeling so inclined) I saw in the past few months that you can watch at home, right now. Less ambitious than any previous attempt at a monthly series, this is designed to highlight a few recent favourites of mine that you might want to check out.

You can read the September edition here.

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Blood and Black Lace (1964)

“Perhaps the sight of beauty makes him lose control of himself, so he kills.”

Although it went largely unnoticed when it was first released in the mid-1960s, Blood and Black Lace has gone on to become a quintessential member of the Giallo genre. The film is about a killer stalking the models of a Roman fashion house, a string of killings which quickly gets the attention of the police. The narrative, with its ensemble cast of characters, spins into a tricky web of secrets and lies, twists and surprises, and hidden identities and murder most foul. The film is an excellent blend of fear and style, making it an excellent frightful mystery while also being a lot of fun to watch. The film plays with spectacle, making the murders both grizzly affairs as well as moments of enjoyment for the audience. The film also contains some very interesting comments about the fashion industry, internalized misogyny, and the self-destructive power of envy. If you’re a fan of Giallo, Blood and Black Lace is going to be a hit for you.

Blood and Black Lace is available to rent on digital platforms.

Directed by Mario Bava.

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Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

“I’m a Catholic, I don’t want to hurt anybody.”

Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon is one of those movies that has been on my radar for a very long time, but I am just getting around to seeing it. Dog Day Afternoon was a pretty big smash when it first appeared in cinemas in 1975. It was a box office success and was nominated for six Academy Awards (including Best Picture), winning one (Best Original Screenplay). Thankfully, the film holds up very well. Based on a true story of a bank heist-turned-media sensation, Dog Day Afternoon is a combination of tense, comic, and strange, with the stakes of the bank heist slowly raising as the true nature of the robbers’ motivations are revealed. Al Pacino plays the lead, Sonny, in a truly stellar performance — one that combines bravura and showmanship, with a deeply insecure underbelly to the character. There are plenty of other killer performances here and some very memorable scenes and one hell of an ending. If 12 Angry Men (1957) and Network (1976) weren’t enough to show it, this is another example of why Sidney Lumet is such a gifted filmmaker.  It’s also one of the sweatiest movies I’ve seen in recent memory. If you like heists, true stories, and/or Al Pacino, don’t miss this film.

Dog Day Afternoon is now available to stream on the Criterion Channel.

Directed by Sidney Lumet.

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The Abyss (1989)

“It was like a dance of light.”

Made years before Titanic (1997) and Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), The Abyss demonstrates that James Cameron has enjoyed playing with water since the very earliest days of his career. Coming in hot off of major hits The Terminator (1984) and Aliens (1986), The Abyss made headlines for its state-of-the-art special effects and absolutely dreadful working conditions. If you get some time, you should read a bit about the production of this film. That story features psychologically damaging underwater filmmaking, emotional breakdowns, chemical burns, and more. The film itself is one of those first-contact stories where the sci-fi plot points are secondary to exploring the internal world of the characters and how they react to extreme circumstances — it’s more Close Encounters than Aliens. It’s a very enjoyable deep-sea adventure, where the tension is palpable in every single frame. It comes with all of the anxiety of the best oceanographic adventures with some alien action in the mix. The special effects are marvelous and the performances are excellent. Cameron’s dedication to practicality makes the film all the more memorable and the (early) CGI images feel all the more spectacular because of it. Deep in the depths, The Abyss is a cold, tense, and pressurized sci-fi thriller. It’s not my favourite Cameron film, but it’s certainly a showcase of the filmmaker’s prowess.

Directed by James Cameron.

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The Handmaiden (2016)

“Reading can be learned, and I don’t care if you curse or steal. But don’t ever lie to me. Understood?”

Style, mood, and texture drip from every frame of Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden. I had a great time revisiting this favourite of mine this month. The Handmaiden is a film that seems to surprise me every time I watch it. While I don’t want to dig too far into the film for fear of exposing one too many spoilers (and surprise is a big part of this film), I can safely say that this isn’t the movie you think it’s going to be going in. The Handmaiden is ready to outsmart you at every move, with an emotionally intense story about power imbalance, the male gaze, and exploitation. Park’s direction is absolutely masterful with so many well-constructed sequences and moments of blocking. The performances are razor sharp, packing double meanings and complicated emotions into every line reading and every gesture. This movie also has one of the best final lines ever. The movie isn’t for the faint of heart 0 — it features some disgusting characters, intense thematic content, and some explicit violence — but the narrative execution makes the whole endeavour so rewarding. Personally, I find The Handmaiden to be one of the best films of the last ten years.

The Handmaiden is now available to rent on digital platforms.

Directed by Park Chan-wook.

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No Bears (2022)

“There are no bears.”

In 2010, Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi was arrested, sentenced to six years in prison (later reduced to one year), and given a 20-year ban on making movies, conducting any interviews, or leaving Iran. Since 2010, Panahi has illegally made six movies which have garnered him popularity in international circles. No Bears, Panahi’s latest, stars the director as himself trying to make a movie in Turkey while being stuck across the border in Iran. It’s a dryly comedic venture about cultural misunderstanding, the desperation for escape, and the purpose of filmmaking. It’s a delightful blend of fiction and reality that is unafraid of asking big questions. Like his predecessors in the Iranian filmmaking movement, such as master Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi’s No Bears finds itself on the fringes of reality, making a film that is at once highly specific and highly universal. It’s quiet, reserved, and profoundly human.

No Bears is available to stream via the Criterion Channel.

Directed by Jafar Panahi.

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (season 2)

“The last thing anyone wants is singing Klingons.”

The second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds recently came to a close. Spinning off of Star Trek: Discovery, Strange New Worlds is about the original crew of the USS Enterprise in the years before Captain Kirk took command of the ship. The show is a fun expansion upon the mythology of Starfleet, deepens the lore of the 23rd century, and creates memorable stories for the younger versions of many classic Star Trek characters like Spock, Uhura, Kirk, and Nurse Chapel. Despite only having ten episodes a season, Strange New Worlds is able to work in a lot of story beats in very little time. Each episode allows for different characters in the ensemble to shine with the tone often wildly pivoting from story to story. Season two features a time travelling adventure in 21st-century Toronto, a crossover with Star Trek’s animated comedy Lower Decks, characters processing war trauma, an emotionally moving trial, Spock briefly becoming fully human, and a musical episode. The most surprising thing about the series is that it all manages to work really well together. Whether you’re a long-time Trek fan or new to the franchise, you’ll have a great time with Strange New Worlds.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is available to stream on Crave (Canada) and on Paramount Plus (USA).

Created by Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, and Jenny Lumet.