What is Cinema?

For my part, it isn't really much of an issue if a film is something that we've already seen countless times before (because after all and whether we like it or not, repetition is part of the nature of cinema). As long as the film is impeccably entertaining or manages to be bold and revolutionary in its own way or perhaps both, I can still regard it as something that can hold on its own, despite treading a familiar and common theme or plot. Antoine Fuqua's " The Magnificent Seven " (2016, USA) mostly leans towards the former. Essentially a "remake of a remake", it may lack the grit of the John Sturges Western pic or the depth of the Akira Kurosawa classic, but it is entertaining nevertheless, which is something that primarily counts in a popcorn flick, especially if it's the kind churned out by Hollywood. If there are dashes of inspired auteurism here and there (which Fuqua's film thankfully has), then it might be regarded as a welcome blessing. ...

While watching " Blair Witch " (2016, USA), directed by Adam Wingard and written by Simon Barrett (the two are frequent collaborators), one can't help asking if it's a sequel or a remake. Or if it's going to put a new, "post-modern" twist on a horror sub-genre which was already deemed as new and post-modern when the original film first graced the screens about seventeen years ago. Or if the film was even necessary at all, given how the "found-footage" conceit has been followed, imitated, rehashed or even mangled by various directors since " The Blair Witch Project " (a prominent example is the " Paranormal Activity " franchise). But considering how Wingard and Barrett have managed to make the 80s-horror tropes exciting, intriguing and surprising in " You're Next " (home invasion-cum-slasher) and " The Guest " (the mysterious stranger), coming up with another "Blair Witch" might not really be...

" Don't Breathe " (2016, USA), the new film by " Evil Dead " re-creator Fede Alvarez, is one little tricky and subversive animal. How are we supposed to hate a blind man (in the film, played by Stephen Lang) who is just protecting his house from a trio of young burglars (Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette and Daniel Zovatto)? How is it that the helpless victim has all of a sudden become a murderous villain? And the supposed-to-be criminals are the ones who are gaining our sympathy? In this another specimen of the home invasion sub-genre, the tables are actually turned, somewhat recalling " Shut In ", released earlier this year.  This is where the charm and intrigue of the film lie. What was initially a home invasion set-up for the three burglars becomes an escape plan for them, as they have to make sure that they get out of the veritable house of horrors alive, something that the blind owner is hellbent on not allowing to happen. This might not work if the so-c...

How do you make your zombie film a cut above the rest? Turn it into a thrill-ride (even literally) that never lets up from start to finish. Or, draw characters whom the audience can actually care for, in one way or another. Or, make it into something of a social critique in disguise. Or perhaps, all of the above. More probably than not, you will have an indelible piece of genre cinema. Such characteristics apply to " Train to Busan " (2016, South Korea), directed by Yeon Sang-ho, the guy behind " The King of Pigs ," a brutal and unflinching animated feature about the long-term repercussions of school bullying.  Yeon's zombie flick is likewise brutal and unflinching. An inexplicable viral outbreak suddenly turns South Koreans into hordes of rampaging and murderous flesh-eaters, which has left the country in total chaos and destruction, something that nearly approximates an apocalyptic scenario. The focal point of the massive brunt are the passengers of a hi-speed...