Motion Pictures of the 21st Century Selection

Posted: August 25, 2021 at 11:22 AM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Movie Selections Text only version: Mark Whelan’s Motion Pictures of the 21st Century Selection Adaptation (2002) dir. Spike Jones The Barbarian Invasions (2003) dir. Denys Arcand Black Hawk Down (2001) dir. Ridley Scott Blue Is The Warmest Color (2013) dir. Abdellatif Kechiche Children Of Men (2006) dir. Alfonso Cuaron City Of God (2003) dir. Fernando … [Read More]

Best Films of the Decade 2010-2020: A Separation

Posted: June 24, 2021 at 12:35 PM in Mark Whelan Best of the Decade Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Text only version available below image. Best Of The Decade A Separation (2011) There is a laborious level of intensity creeping beneath the surface of A Separation (2011). From its haunting opening sequence–a voyeuristic first-person-view concentrated directly on a married couple in dispute lamenting their grievances to a magistrate–Asghar Farhadi’s potent family drama starts out … [Read More]

Promising Young Woman & The Climb

Posted: April 13, 2021 at 3:18 PM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Text only version below PDF view. FilmReviews Apr13 Promising Young Woman (2020) [113m] **1/2 D: Emerald Fennel. C: Carey Mulligan, Clancy Brown, Jennifer Coolidge, Laverne Cox, Bo Burnham, Allison Brie, Gabriel Olivia, Molly Shannon, Chris Lowell, Max Greenfield, Alfred Molina. A med-student dropout (Mulligan) tends a coffee shop by day, but in the twilight hours … [Read More]

The Room & Hana-Bi

Posted: March 25, 2021 at 10:16 AM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Text only version below PDF view. FilmReviews Mar16 Text only version below. The Room (2003) [99m] * D: Tommy Wiseau. C: Tommy Wiseau, Juliette Danielle, Greg Sestero, Phillip Haldiman, Carolyn Minnott, Robyn Paris, Mike Holmes, Kyle Vogt, Greg Ellery. A bizarre (putting it mildly) banker uncovers the infidelity of his true love which initiates a … [Read More]

Portrait Of A Lady On Fire & Departures

Posted: March 2, 2021 at 1:22 PM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Text only version below image. Film Picks by Mark: Portrait Of A Lady On Fire & Departures Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (2019) [122m] *** D: Celine Sciamma, C: Noemie Merlant, Adele Haenel, Luana Bajrami, Valeria Golino, Armande Boulanger, Guy Delemarche, Clement Bouyssou. A painter (a statuesque Merlant) is commissioned to portrait a young … [Read More]

Hereditary & Tag

Posted: April 15, 2020 at 3:27 PM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Hereditary (2018) [127m] D: Ari Aster. C: Tony Collette, Gabriel Byrne, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd. Grief-stricken by the demise of her mother, Collette contends not only in mourning but also grappling demons forwarded to her by family of which there is a history of mental illness. Coincidentally, supernatural happenings begin to disclose centering … [Read More]

2019 Library Movie Collection Essay

Posted: April 15, 2020 at 3:03 PM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
In the earlier part of the 1990s, when video cassettes finally became available for circulation at the Decorah Public Library, it was a modest assortment mostly comprised of NOVA educational features. They were safely stashed behind the circulation desk and fitted with clamshell cases. This preceded any computer cataloging system, therefore obtainability of films was … [Read More]

Burning & Paradise Now

Posted: April 15, 2020 at 2:43 PM in Mark Whelan Film Picks and Essays
Burning (2018) [148m] D: Chang-dong Lee. C: Ah-in Yoo, Steven Yeun, Jong-seo Jun, Soo-Kyung Kim. Darkly ethereal thriller casts Yoo as hapless youth smitten by an aspiring dancer (Jun). His obsession for her deepens after she introduces him to a handsome aristocrat (Yeun) who appears to have the upper hand, yet holds a troubling secret. … [Read More]