Seventh Row is a nonprofit Canadian film criticism publication and publishing house. We're dedicated to helping you expand your horizons by curating the best socially progressive films from around the world and helping you think deeply about them. This newsletter is run by Seventh Row (http://seventh-row.com) but features exclusive content not found on the website.
Black Bag and the pleasures of Soderbergh's thrillers for grownups
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Hello Reader, It’s not very often that we get a movie for adults that’s smart and fun and screening theatrically. But Steven Soderbergh’s London-set spy thriller Black Bag fits this bill and opened in North American cinemas last weekend. The film features major stars like Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender, who play the married couple around whose relationship the film pivots, and major lesser-known talents like Tom Burke and Naomie Harris in key supporting roles. As a card-carrying Soderbergh fan for 25 years — if you met me when I was 15, you might have gotten a dissertation on his entire filmography — Black Bag has so much of what I love in Soderbergh's films. And I say this as someone who wasn't a big fan of his last two films, Presence or Kimi! Episode 164: Steven Soderbergh's Black BagToday on the podcast, I talk about why I recommend Black Bag (it's fun! and smart!) and what has kept me watching every new Soderbergh film for two decades, even though not all of them hit. Happy watching/listening! Alex
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Seventh Row
Seventh Row is a nonprofit Canadian film criticism publication and publishing house. We're dedicated to helping you expand your horizons by curating the best socially progressive films from around the world and helping you think deeply about them. This newsletter is run by Seventh Row (http://seventh-row.com) but features exclusive content not found on the website.
Hello Reader, Joan Micklin Silver was writing and directing movies in 1970s America when very few women were. Elaine May’s A New Leaf came a few years before Silver’s first feature, but Silver pre-dated filmmakers like Claudia Weill, Nora Ephron, and more who followed in her footsteps. Her four features are all excellent, and a great B Side to the era's films — the Jewishness of a Woody Allen movie without all the creepiness, the emancipated women of Mazursky but told by a woman. But what...
Hello Reader, You are receiving this as a paying subscriber to The Globetrotting Watchlist (which includes Film Adventurer and Cinephile Members), a monthly newsletter that helps you expand your cinematic horizons through streaming recommendations for the best socially progressive under-the-radar films worldwide. Your support helps us pay our expenses to keep Seventh Row, a non-profit, ad-free and online. What's Inside the Globetrotting Newsletter This month, I'm recommending: Winter in...
Hello Reader, Today, I want to take you behind the scenes of Nurri’s journey with Reel Ruminators. Before we dive in, you should know that Nurri started exactly where you might be right now: ❌ Unexcited about mainstream cinema, which doesn’t reflect her eclectic tastes ❌ Frustrated that it’s impossible to attend every film festival to discover the best under-the-radar international films ❌ Overwhelmed by the sheer number of films out there, between classics and new releases, and unsure where...