Mini-Review: Linklater wasted no time. Here immediately is his penchant for a large cast of near-caricatures, drawn with bold outlines but colored with believability. He depicts them honestly, making no excuse for their naive and immature flaws, but with love and sympathy. It's comedic, pensive, quirky, and treats its own bit of pretentiousness with self-aware irony. A film for the young and young-at-heart.

Mini-Review: Despite apparent budget problems and a messy post-production, this is an engaging mystery. The photography stands out immediately with baroque, gothic qualities worthy of film noir. Unfortunate that Arden is limp in the lead, but Welles compensates with his own dominating presence as the mythical Arkadin character. I like the parallels drawn in J Hoberman's essay on the film, in which he compares the Arkadin character to Welles as director, enticing the viewer into a cinematic labyrinth.

Mini-Review: An interesting break in character for Keaton, in which he plays a thieving, murdering, womanizing villain, though of course he's as buffoonish and clumsy as ever. It's got a memorable setting, and the ending is a nice meta-twist. Hilarious, and possibly my favorite of all his shorts, even if it is incomplete.

Mini-Review: A film that holds immense power over me. Practical futurism offset by great imagination, elements of expressionism, the ambiguity of spiritualism, wonderment at space and all things beyond human capacity. Visual and aural euphoria; a feast for the senses full of memorable and iconic moments to stimulate your brain and tingle your spine. It can be considered both chronicle of evolution and quest for God. The mythic centerpiece of Stanley Kubrick's filmography, and my own personal favorite movie.

Mini-Review: Despite its crude production values, Shadows packs a decent dramatic punch. The acting is bad, but the characters project vitality. The camerawork and editing are sloppy, but Cassavetes displays an eye for interesting compositions. Its improvisational elements often feel like wasted time, but there is something pensive in its stray progression. Its rough edges give it a raw poignancy that helps me to appreciate this film, even if it is very simple and flawed.