271 Anomalisa

Matt and Mark are back... to back! this week with our review of the 2015 Charlie Kaufman film Anomalisa. Using stop-motion puppetry to enhance the Fregoli syndrome metaphor, Anomalisa dissects the ubiquity and transactional nature of the protagonist Michael Stone. When he meets Lisa a momentary emergence of beauty invigorates Michael, but it's ephemeral and more of self-illusion than authentic. Anomalisa paints middle-aged human interaction as a desert of intimacy with its perceived oasis nothing more than mirages. Not a "feel good" movie by any stretch, it does attempt a level honesty most likely unattainable with live actors.

Download: 271 Anomalisa

270 Assault on Precinct 13

We near completion of our Carpenter box set this week with our review of the sophomore cult classic Assault on Precinct 13. A mash-up of Western tropes and a little Zombie Romero thrown in for good measure, Carpenter works up an atmosphere of claustrophobic doom despite the seeming implausibility of the story line. It's almost as if we don't really care. Why? Because Assault is a fun B-movie action film which is Carpenter's stock-and-trade. Strangely as Carpenter's budgets bloomed in the 90's/00's his films somehow suffered. A more-with-less artist, Carpenter begins to refine his directorial chops with Assault, a cult classic if there ever was one.

Download: 270 Assault on Precinct 13