Anyone familiar with Plato’s Analogy of the Cave will find themselves looking for a way to connect it to Werner Herzog’s compelling new documentary, Cave of Forgotten Dreams. The only connection I could find (based on a single viewing) is a somewhat inverted one: all art is science fiction; all art is intended to be consumed and interpreted in the future; to enlighten in retrospect; to change upon reflection; and returning to the cave, we find the cave-dwellers are casting the shadows for us, the "enlightened" ones.

Midnight in Paris is so gorgeous to look at, and Owen Wilson is so easy to love, it makes Mr. Allen’s keen-as-ever one-liners melt on contact; not to mention his most moving character insight since the wonderful Duck Soup-life-is-worth-living revelation in Hannah and Her Sisters. Of course, for fans, to watch one Woody Allen film is to concurrently watch them all; and to see Gil come to grips with lost and found love in a bygone era is to once again hear Tracy’s advice to a demoralized Issac in Manhattan: “Not everybody gets corrupted. You have to have a little faith in people.”

“Whom God wishes to destroy he first makes mad.” -Euripides, 425 B.C.; quotes Sam Fuller in his opening and closing of Shock Corridor; a sentiment that surely could have been the mantra of Fuller’s predecessors, Conrad and Hemingway; leading men, equal parts brave and naive, into the darkest corners, in search of something, material and/or spiritual; only to be irreparably damaged.

Hands down Mr. Castle's best film. No matter the caricature most people see her as, Joan Crawford is actually very good in this film; sympathetic, creepy, and sad.

It's SHOCKING, Catfish is lovely and moving.

Very Antonioni.

Great concept. Deathly boring. If we learned anything from Bergman, it is that its not enough to simply place characters in a compelling psychological drama and hope the audience will read between the lines, one must derive some excitement and suspense from set pieces.

I greatly admired the effort. The filmmakers attempted to encapsulate a complex life story in a palpable melodrama. But, ultimately I believe I would much rather see a well-made documentary covering the same territory.

Better than expected.

Cinematic elixir! On the worst days; when I'm feeling down and depressed; I put Plan 9 in: I am instantly happy.

A work of art.

Just about every comedy made over the last 10 years owes a debt to this film, and to Blake Edwards.

If nothing else, The Hit proves that an action film need not be mindless to be exciting and entertaining. An argument that could be made, that Stephen Frears' The Hit is not only one of the most unusual and original action films of the 1980's, but one of the very best action films, period. Read more: http://british-films.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_hit_1984

One of the reasons I tend to dislike Top 10 lists (yet, I continue to make them) is the fact that I invariably leave a title off the list. Case in point, I have been reminded by recent blog postings by Roger Ebert and Jim Emerson how much I love Michael Haneke's mystery, Cache (2005); and how it is without a doubt one of the best films of the 2000's. http://mgwoodwriter.blogspot.com/2010/01/cache-my-best-of-list-goes-to-11.html

First movie I ever saw. At a drive-in, as a wee lad.

Okay, so Gerard Butler has starred in two of the worst films I've seen in the last 10 years, 300, and now, Gamer.

Why isn't Wyler's Wuthering Heights available on DVD? It's the only really good interpretation of the book; as the kids say, WTF?

From the beautiful autumn color palate to the lovely jazz-inspired soundtrack, to the biting humor (pun fully intended), not to mention a cute romance and some fantastic food sequences, I think its the best "family" film of the decade (yes, I'll take Ratatouille over Wall-E and Up; this of course excludes Miyazaki's masterpiece, Spirited Away, which I consider more mature film fare).

Watching Withnail and I for the first time is a bit like watching an auto race in anticipation of the car crashes to come; the two luckless lads encounter one mishap after another, compelling the viewer forward through a strange sort of slapstick comedy of errors. Read more: http://movie-dvds.suite101.com/article.cfm/withnail_and_i_criterion_dvd_review

I am on a one man crusade to convince someone, anyone, to remember American Splendor and/or Wonder Boys for their Best of 00's list.

Entertaining film, but I agree with most, Julia Childs as played by Meryl Streep is the reason. The film only hints at the fascinating depths of her character. It would be cool to see Streep revise her role in a complete bio-pic.

Snow angels is a hauntingly beautiful film, that delivers a frightening and potent insight into the anguish of lonely, desolate souls. Read more about David Gordon Green's recent films: http://indie-film-actors-directors.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_films_of_david_gordon_green_part_2#ixzz0Xj13NAUf

It's perfect that the powers that be here at The Auteurs chose to place Pink Flamingos as a related film; because, Bruno really reminded me of John Waters, probably more than any other film I've seen.

One of the great films of the last 20 years. Someone (Criterion) please release this masterpiece in a set with the follow-up film.

Many complain that muckraking documentaries can be detrimental; while exposing serious and pressing concerns, films like Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story and Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, offer little hope; and often leave the viewer with a sense of impotence and powerlessness. This is not the case with Food, Inc. http://documentary-dvds.suite101.com/article.cfm/food_inc_dvd_review#ixzz0VrPvpzYB

Inglourious Basterds perfectly balances bloody, red meat action sequences with rich, full-bodied, red wine conversation pieces. http://film-directors.suite101.com/article.cfm/quentin_tarantinos_conversation_pieces#ixzz0PPr2tpW4

I would imagine if there was a way to extract the most often used word from the hundreds of reviews of Ponyo; that word would be magical. And for good reason. Ponyo, while not perfect, is a beautiful film, and yes, magical.

Larry David is God! Whatever Works is Woody Allen's starkest comedy since Deconstructing Harry (1997), and one of his best in over a decade; thanks to another sharp turn by Larry David. Read more: http://comic-films.suite101.com/article.cfm/whatever_works_2009#ixzz0KP4rujNK&C

Creepy and poignant. One of the best. Don't Look Now – A 1973 Horror Classic In Review Directed by Nicolas Roeg – Based on a Daphne du Maurier Short Story http://horrorfilms.suite101.com/article.cfm/dont_look_now_a_1973_horror_classic_in_review#ixzz0KGBPxAVf&D

Thanks to The Auteurs for the opportunity to rate this movie 1 star. I don't think I've seen a worse film, with such a rabid fan base, since Armageddon. As if anyone would care, I wrote a piece when this film was released, theorizing that if Ed Wood had been given 100 million dollars to make a movie, this would be it. The title of the piece? Plan 300 From Outer Space.