Look for the Signs: Christy Salters Martin and Lisa Holewyne on “Christy”
I went into David Michôd’s biopic “Christy” knowing nothing about its titular boxer. I knew I would be interviewing the film’s real-life subject, Christy Salters Martin, the following morning, and was delighted to see her in attendance at the press screening. She was accompanied by her wife, Lisa Holewyne, who had formerly been her adversary […]
Shelter from the World: Iliana Zabeth on “House of Pleasures,” #MeToo in France and More
One of the finest female ensembles in recent years can be found in Bertrand Bonello’s 2011 masterwork, “House of Pleasures,” originally titled “L’Apollonide” in France, the name of the Parisian brothel where nearly every scene in the film takes place. “In a way, Bonello’s film is about the end of an era in turn-of-the-century France, […]
Lara Jean Gallagher heightens visual storytelling in her first feature “Clementine”
You can’t watch Lara Jean Gallagher’s film without thinking of the 1966 classic “Persona”, directed by Ingmar Bergman, especially one scene, when Bibi Andersson is talking to Liv Ullmann about a sexual experience on the beach. The description is so vivid that you’re hanging on her every word. You find yourself sharing her feelings as […]