Mike Goes To Movies

Cinema Paradiso (1988) Cinema Paradiso is a film that has been on my watchlist for as long as I can remember. A short while ago, I finally had the chance to watch it and, what I can say is that, for any true movie lovers and those looking for an utterly heartwarming story, this is a film to watch. Writer/director, Giuseppe Tornatore's classic is a poignant ode to the magic of cinema and the nostalgic and important place it holds in so many of our lives.  The film is told in a series of flashbacks, depicting the early days of the young and troublesome Salvatore 'Toto' in a small town in Italy shortly after the end of WWII. In the town of Giancaldo the main place of entertainment is the Cinema Paradiso - a local movie theatre, that shows classic films from all around the world. It is clear that the theatre holds a special place for the town, when, every evening, the building is backed to the brim with the town's residents and, across the board - from young childre...

The Lighthouse (2019) Though his style likely isn't for everyone, I must say that to me writer/director, Robert Eggers, is a pretty fucking cool guy. The Lighthouse is Eggers follow up to his fantastic, family-driven, nightmarish folk tale, The Witch (a must-see for all horror fans). In a similar vein, The Lighthouse is another psychological horror/thriller period piece that is about two lighthouse keepers, or wickies , as they're called, who work on an isolated lighthouse that sits atop a rocky outcrop constantly battered by poor conditions and extreme storms. Like the best psychological horror, The Lighthouse is a downward spiral: it starts off normal enough but, like the psyches of our wickies, things slowly begin to derail as forces both natural and unnatural seep into their lives and haunt them from the inside out. Willem Dafoe plays the veteran keeper; the nature of the job has clearly taken its toll over the years and he may be hiding some insider knowledge of the ...