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Parasite Review

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   Douglas Smith Biz of Film 002   Parasite Review Bong Joon-Ho’s 2019 film Parasite tells a particularly interesting story through a dependable cast of characters set in polarized locations, all while utilizing heavy suspense, shock and intrigue.             Set in modern day South Korea, the story follows a lower class family who work as pizza box folders. They get it into their heads that they’d like to start earning more money and discover an in road to work for a wealthy family, who seem to be particularly clueless. As the story continues, highjinks ensue such as faking tuberculosis, living as a hermit under the building, and outright murder. These elements of the story help bring it quickly from a more or less simple tale to a shocking tale of drama and awe. This reflects a certain tie in to the Korean and east Asian culture as a whole, which in centuries past was rather involved with such similar plo...
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Selma Review

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   Douglas Smith Biz of Film 002 11.23.20 Selma Review Ava DuVernay’s 2014 film Selma transfixes the audience through its retelling of historical events with the use of reconstructions, temporal techniques, and impressive acting. Due to the brutal nature of many of the events depicted, the story has an especially added weight to it when watched today as the US still faces such desperate racial divisions.                                                                   Set in the 1960’s across the US but often in Alabama and Washington D.C, Selma        follows the story of Martin Luther King in many of his most important...
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Pan's Labyrinth Review

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   Douglas Smith Biz of Film 002 10.20.20   Guillermo De Toro’s 2006 fantasy film Pan’s Labyrinth amazes with its practical spectacle, brutal violence, and impressive historical reconstruction. The set and costume design, cgi, and acting all contribute to a fascinatingly unique work that takes place in a relatively obscure area of history. For these reasons, the film accomplishes a momentary reinvigoration and reworking of the fairytale genre.                                                                                           ...
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Lonesome Dove, Witliff and suggestions

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 Douglas Smith Biz of Film 002 10.20.20   Simon Wincer's 1989 Western  Lonesome Dove  is a story that seems to come right out of history and onto the screen. While the acting, set design and cinematography may seem to reflect the craft of the 1980's in an obvious way, it becomes clear that what really matters about this piece is the characters and locations themselves. Set in a world that feels familiar yet has long ceased to exist,  Lonesome Dove  stands on its own as a uniquely Southwestern epic built upon stylistic realism, movement, and studied characterization.                                                                   ...
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Roma Review

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  Douglas Smith Biz of Film 002 Roma Review 9.21.20   Alfonso Cuaron’s 2018 film Roma not only artistically captures the raw essence of !970’s Mexico City, but it also tells a realistically emotional story of class and the human condition through strong characterization, incredible cinematography, and an impressive sense of world space. For a good many people this film probably did not seem incredibly relatable, but it is for those who can identify with it that a true triumph of cinema is achieved. Through its centralization of the indigenous working class experience, Roma brings into focus a telling part of reality which in most entertainment is still yet largely unrecognized today despite the millennia of people who have lived lives closely similar to Cleo’s.                                    ...
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Queen and Slim Review

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Melina Matsoukas’ Crime and Romance Drama Queen and Slim addresses issues of modern-day racism and police brutality by plunging viewers into an American landscape defined by its people, values, and judgments. A somewhat rare portrayal of African Americans and their frequent societal treatment as outsiders, the film forges a telling narrative reminiscent of the past, present, and possible future. Though critics may describe the film as lacking realism in certain aspects, the piece overall does not exhibit a great deal of hubris in regard to itself. Rather, the directing and acting techniques used within usher the story along to its seemingly inevitable conclusion far from its origin geographically and emotionally.                                               ...
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Apollo 13 Review

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Douglas Smith Business of Film 002 Apollo 13 Review August 30 th , 2020   Ron Howard’s 1995 space docudrama film Apollo 13 provides audiences with a big budget technical marvel that through its drama and sentimentality seeks not only to entertain viewers but also to emotionally invest them in its theatrically adapted historical plot. Overall, it largely accomplishes this goal, though perhaps at the risk of putting off some viewers who are not as into the “gushiness” they may interpret in some scenes. Aided by points of moral seriousness and brief comedy, as in Kevin Bacon’s character, the film levels out emotionally enough to form a decent representation of the human condition, which while not specifically dwelled on all that much still comes to light through small gestures in moments of crisis.                          The film, taking place largely ei...
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