Tag / 1963

by Jaime Rebanal

8½ – Review

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Within every work of art, there is always a sense of creativity among the artist’s intention, whether it be a painting, a piece of literature, or a film. Yet there comes the occasion when creativity is hindered by something in life, it’s happened to someone like myself a lot. You have one idea that you think is so perfect, then suddenly you dismiss it. This is a very feeling that Federico Fellini captures in 8½, for the love letter it is to the freedom of creativity in general. There is no limit to any of it, as Fellini insists, and it simply could not have been any more truthful than what he captures in here. A film that deconstructs the artistic process and at the same time pays such a loving tribute to it, 8½ truly is a special kind of film that comes only once in a lifetime. Continue reading →

by Jaime Rebanal

High and Low – Review

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As much as I love the films of Akira Kurosawa I admit that outside of Ikiru it is actually rather difficult to go ahead and pinpoint every last thing about his work that continues to reaffirm why I love spending time with cinema in the first place. High and Low was one that I found rather difficult to talk about on one viewing alone, and I would have thought on another visit it would be easier to pinpoint everything but instead it was actually a more difficult task as the thoughts kept shrouding my head as I was falling in love with the film even more. In fact, I’ve already grown to convince myself that alongside Ikiru, Seven Samurai, and Rashomon, High and Low belongs on such high a level as it is easily one of the director’s most undervalued masterpieces. Continue reading →