Pithy Reviews (9)

No, let's not take five... Let's go again!

Manhunter (Michael Mann, 1986)

The first movie to feature Hannibal Lecktor/Lecter (here played by Brian Cox) is a very suspensful and often scary(-ish) thriller. A bunch of amazing performances (Joan Allen and Tom Noonan, among others) and director Michael Mann's firm hand not only make this a definite must-see, but also make the remake ("Red Dragon") useless.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Gimme Shelter (Albert & David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin, 1970)

The best documentary ever made featuring The Rolling Stones (and there are quite a few of them) begins as a normal concert film with inter-cut scenes of the Stones goofing around in the studio or in drag, but it climaxes with their disastrous Altamont concert, symbolizing the disappointing ending to an ideal-filled decade. Just a shot away, indeed.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Cléo de 5 à 7 (Agnès Varda, 1962)

Varda crafts a visually mesmerizing film, in which the protagonist is surrounded by mirrors and supporting characters that endlessly reflect her own vision of herself. The action moves in real time (as we are constantly reminded with the help of subtitles). "Cléo de 5 à 7" is one of the best movies of the French New Wave.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5