Throughout the 1960s-early 1970s, a combination of financial desperation, creative daring, and an adventurous movie-going public had produced a creative detonation in mainstream American movies not seen before or since. Each year of the period seemed to bring at least one mightily ambitious visual experiment by a new contributor to the commercial movie scene, the …
The Conversation is a new feature at Sound on Sight bringing together Drew Morton and Landon Palmer in a passionate debate about cinema new and old. For their second piece, they will discuss Stanley Kubrick’s film The Killing (1956). Drew’s Take Stanley Kubrick’s The Killing (1956) is not my favorite work by the visionary director. In …
A fourth season of The Killing seemed unlikely, to say the least, after the show was canceled. Fortunately for fans, Netflix stepped in and the series’ change in venue will likely shape the final season (it should, for example, allow Joel Kinnaman to drop an f-bomb, which I’ve been waiting for Holder to do since he was introduced back in the first season). What hasn’t changed is the series’ murder-mystery core. The premiere introduces two intertwining plots: the massacre of the Stansbury family (save for one survivor, son Kyle Stansbury, who does not remember the night of the murder), and whether Linden and Holder will be able to successfully cover up Linden’s shooting of Lt. Skinner from last season’s finale. The whodunit of who killed the family looks like the most interesting central mystery in the show’s history, or at least one of the better plotted. It takes less time to find a plausible prime suspect for the murder than it has in past seasons, so maybe Sud has taken to heart some of the harsh reviews of the show’s meandering pace, or maybe that’s just the reality of having a shortened season. Plus, most cop shows would be unconcerned with continuity and the series deserves plaudits for continuing the cover up plot, which is one of The Killing’s best arguments for existing; the other, of course, is the partnership of Linden and Holder.
(Note: I only considered nominees for the categories to which they were actually submitted. For example, I could not select Alan Cumming for The Good Wife, since he did not submit himself as a Best Supporting Actor in a Drama.) Best Drama Series: The Killing After it controversially failed to resolve its storyline in its …
There are few auteurs as instantly recognizable and divisive as Stanley Kubrick, few filmmakers as idiosyncratic or groundbreaking. His work spans the entirety of life itself–sometimes in the same film–and has inspired almost as much derision as hosannas. There is no easy consensus on Kubrick’s films–though you may not be terribly surprised by our writers’ …
“Has it ever occurred to you what would happen to my future, if I were to fail to live up to my responsibilities?” – Jack Torrance, before telling his wife that he’s going to bash her brains in. Jack Torrance has responsibilities that were given given to him in good faith by the manager …
RoboCop Written by Joshua Zetumer & Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner Directed by José Padilha USA, 2014 Paul Verhoeven’s science-fiction films RoboCop and Total Recall take place in different environments and eras, but share a similarly raucous, ramshackle, satiric attitude. These films are products of their time, filled with garishly practical effects and grimy, tactile …
The first half of the year may have had more standout episodes, but those that came in the second half were just as memorable, if not more so. Kate Kulzick, Simon Howell, Ricky D, and Randy Dankievitch finish their list of 2013’s best TV episodes with their picks for July through December.
The Killing, Season 3: Episode 8 – “Try” Directed by Lodge Kerrigan Written by Nic Sheff and Aaron Slavik Airs Sunday nights at 9 on AMC For viewers who don’t mind – or even like – how The Killing introduces a new red herring at the end of every episode, there is a lot of rewarding material …
Anyone who stopped watching The Killing after the first two seasons is missing out on seeing the great ideas behind the show being executed well. In a recent podcast discussion about the new FX series The Bridge, Dan Fienberg rightfully pointed out that there was never anything wrong with the structure of The Killing or the choice to not solve the Larsen case at the end of the first season – it’s just that the story that was being told wasn’t good enough. In season three, the story of The Killing is hitting all the right marks as its three parallel stories are all playing off each other well.
The Killing, Season 3: Episode 6 – “Eminent Domain” Directed by Keith Gordon Written by David Wiener Airs Sunday nights at 9 on AMC As much as I found the first two seasons of The Killing interesting if just for how they tweaked with the first season of Forbrydelsen, I probably wouldn’t have found it a …
The Killing, Season 3: Episodes 4 and 5 – “Head Shots” and “Scared and Running” Directed by Michael Rymer (4) and Dan Attias (5) Written by Dawn Prestwich and Nicole Yorkin (4) and Coleman Herbert (5) Airs Sunday nights at 9 on AMC Apologies for missing last week due to technical difficulties. As The Killing …
AMC’s current original lineup is incredibly diverse in tone. There’s the action-first approach of The Walking Dead and the slow, methodical movement of shows like Mad Men and The Killing (Hell on Wheels and Breaking Bad are somewhere between those two extremes, a little closer to The Walking Dead’s pace). When pace is purposeful and established, it’s hard to criticize it on any grounds other than personal taste. So, when people talk about The Killing being boring, I’m inclined to say they’re reacting based off their personal expectations as TV viewers and are not basing that criticism on anything substantial that has to do with the quality of the show itself. And to reiterate: The Killing is a quality show – one that doesn’t have aspirations higher than what it achieves.
The Killing, Season 3: Episodes 1 & 2 – “The Jungle” and “That You Fear the Most” Directed by Ed Bianchi (E1) and Lodge Kerrigan (E2) Written by Veena Sud (E1) and Dan Nowak (E2) Airs Sunday nights at 9 on AMC Even the reviews that have been cautiously optimistic of the The Killing‘s third …
Bruno Dumont is joining the ranks of acclaimed filmmakers trading in the big screen for the home screen. Set to develop a police drama for French network ARTE, this will be his first foray into television. Dumont’s work, which includes L’humanité (1999) and Hors Satan (2011), has long been controversial and his filmmaking practises have …
The Killing Directed by Stanley Kubrick Written by Stanley Kubrick and Jim Thompson U.S.A., 1956 Stanley Kubrick, now there is a name evocative of so many immediate thoughts and emotions for movie buffs everywhere. Infuriating, coldly mechanical in his depiction of people, difficult to comprehend. He was also an intelligent screenwriter, deeply profound in the …
Rudie Obias of the AuteurCast was nice enough to invite me on to participate in a review of Stanley Kubrick’s The Killing. I highly recommend our readers to take a listen. Here is the info. In 1956, Stanley Kubrick joined with longtime producing partner, James B. Harris to make a film noir for the ages. …
The Broadcast Television Journalists Association has just announced their nominations for the first Critics’ Choice Television Awards. Modern Family leads the comedoes with six nominations, while Boardwalk Empire, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones and The Killing dominate the drama series. We’ve been focussing more and more on television here at Sound On Sight and …
Throughout the 1960s-early 1970s, a combination of financial desperation, creative daring, and an adventurous movie-going public had produced a creative detonation in mainstream American movies not seen before or since. Each year of the period seemed to bring at least one mightily ambitious visual experiment by a new contributor to the commercial movie scene, the …