'The Shape of Water': on love that roars in silence
Set amid rising tensions with the Russians in the 1960s, Guillermo Del Toro's The Shape of Water follows a relationship that buds between Elisa Esposito, a mute janitor at an American Research facility, and an amphibious creature held in captivity by the facility's head, Richard Strickland (Michael Shannon). Risking their lives, Elisa and her friends… Read More 'The Shape of Water': on love that roars in silence
February 6, 2018 Reel Rambler2 Comments
'Lady Bird': Greta Gerwig's ode to mothers, daughters, and Sacramento
In a year that will chiefly be remembered as the year that began an equality movement in Hollywood, it is important to underscore the significance of these auteurs' achievements. From Dee Rees's success with Mudbound, to Rachel Morrison's historic Oscar nomination for cinematography (making her the first and only woman nominated for the category), to… Read More 'Lady Bird': Greta Gerwig's ode to mothers, daughters, and Sacramento
'Call Me By Your Name': on the unforgiving pain of first love
Set against the backdrop of a charming town 'somewhere in northern Italy,' Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino's newest film Call Me By Your Name tells the story of a romance that buds over a period of six weeks in the summer of 1983 between Elio Perlman (Timothée Chalamet), a precocious, 17-year-old musical prodigy and bookworm; and Oliver… Read More 'Call Me By Your Name': on the unforgiving pain of first love
December 25, 2017 Reel Rambler2 Comments
When I saw the trailer for Call Me By Your Name, the newest film by Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, a car scene popped up that seemed all too familiar: a woman caresses the hair of her teary-eyed son, and they drive in silence as he whimpers. It immediately became clear to me that this was… Read More 'Call Me By Your Name': on the unforgiving pain of first love
December 25, 2017 January 14, 2018 Reel Rambler1 Comment
On a year of blogging: lessons learned on movie blogging, the internet, and its population
Thousands of hits, thousands of visitors, almost 140 countries reached, and 365 days of blogging. Life As Told By Film started out as a New Year's resolution I thought I wouldn't keep up with, and for a second there, it became yet another thing left undone (then again, I can't ever finish this, can I?), but here we are.… Read More On a year of blogging: lessons learned on movie blogging, the internet, and its population
January 10, 2016 April 16, 2017 Reel RamblerLeave a comment