Extras Archives - Bright Wall/Dark Room

There’s something special about taking part in a treasure hunt at the heart of a hidden gem of a festival. True/False Film Festival feels special because it’s so intimate, populated by cinephiles who love the underestimated and misunderstood genre of documentary features.

Prosopagnosia: On Skinamarink and the Distortions of Fear

Nicholas Russell·

Extras

Skinamarink presents a case of found memory, the scratches and wear of time on one’s recollection disfiguring—yet never wholly obscuring—foundational apprehensions.

Honeyland (2019): A Seed for Our Time

Leah Hedberg·

Extras

Through the care and tending of bees, Honeyland reminds us of the sweet yet tenuous power of planting generosity and nurturing relationships, even (and especially) in the face of great fear.

Christmas in Nevada

Claire Rudy Foster·

Extras

Desert Hearts may not be a holiday movie, but it is wrapped in a lavender ribbon, and what’s inside can warm up even the chilliest winter heart.

The Hours’s Queer Chronologies

Robert Stinner·

Extras

The Hours suggested to me that queerness could be fluid, mysterious, neither hidden nor announced.

The Lifespan of a Film

B.C. Wallin·

Extras

In 2017, I saw or listened to the movie Steve Jobs some 20 or 30 times.

Episode #18: The 60th New York Film Festival

Bright Wall/Dark Room·

Extras Podcast

On this very special episode of the pod, Veronica sits down with beloved critic Fran Hoepfner to talk highlights of the 60th New York Film Festival, which they both attended last month, including Tar, Triangle of Sadness, Armageddon Time, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, Decision to Leave, Stars at Noon, Showing Up, and more.

Societal Collapse Is In The Air: Dispatches from NYFF60

Fran Hoepfner·

Festivals

That so many of the films at the New York Film Festival this year focused on ugly and stressful subjects feels not like a demerit, but rather a catharsis—a healing that can only be done in a dark room, surrounded by others.

Act Like You’re in a Movie

Matthew Eng·

Extras

Spring Breakers can still be enjoyed as a pure hallucinatory trip, devoid of any real-world relevance. But looks are deceiving, even limiting.

The Color of Money: Himself, on Purpose

Veronica Fitzpatrick·

Extras

For months I’ve been thinking about sequels and second chances, about Paul Newman but also, increasingly, Tom Cruise.

Just One Look

Calvin McMillin·

Extras

The Crimson Kimono is not a typical mystery; instead, it uses the conventional trappings of the hardboiled detective story to explore a taboo topic for its time.

“But At That Moment, I Felt Such Warmth”

Kate Blowers·

Extras

I’ve seen Drive My Car four times now, and with each viewing, smaller and smaller details have brought me to the verge of tears.