Nonstop Pictures

Just signed with Beast Media in Tokyo for representation in Asia.
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Nonstop Movie of the Week: Fish Tank (UK, 2009)

Andrea Arnold opens her jagged portrayal of angry and friendless 15 year old Mia in somewhat familiar troubled youth/urban blight territory, but quickly strays from the predictable (and comfortable). The mostly hand-held camera work and moments of purposefully awkward pacing create a tension that is left undispersed thoughout the film.

This, added to the impeccable cast (with a special nod to Kierston Wareing as Joanne, Mia's self-absorbed and unprepared mother), would be enough to warrant a view, but it is the authentic, stunning performance by Katie Jarvis that truly sets this film apart from other down-and-out youth dramas. She effortlessly handles Mia's shifts between bristling anger and sweet shyness, developing her portrayal consistently with the slow undoing of her character's self-imposed isolation through her relationship with her mother's new boyfriend.

Nonstop Movie of the Week: 12 Angry Men (USA, 1957)

Sidney Lumet's engrossing first feature film is as pure as filmmaking can be. Stripped bare, with one set, no special effect or explosions, the film is a powerful character study rarely seen today. In a seemingly open-shut murder case, juror number 8 raises the question of reasonable doubt, setting off the emotionally charged and constantly tense interaction between the 12 members of the jury.

A few years ago, a screening of Lumet's film immediately following 12 Angry Men on Broadway felt like the perfect way to experience the brilliantly written play - it felt as if Lumet transported me from my seat in the theater right onto the stage, involving me in a way a play alone could not hope to do. The camera work of Boris Kaufman is nothing short of brilliant. In the confined space of a single room, he moves carefully, without being noticed, yet capturing every emotion expressed by the men throughout their discussion.

It is a film that can (and should) be enjoyed over and over again. Its peeling away of layers of emotions from each character creates a different set of nuances in our perception of their personality with each viewing.