Contributor Justine Smith

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The Oscar Goes To...

Why Tár should win the Best Original Screenplay Academy Award

by Justine Smith

Todd Field's script for the classical music psychodrama is a meticulously crafted exercise in form.
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Interviews

Paul Verhoeven: ‘I identify far more with the “female” part of my brain’

by Justine Smith

The Dutch provocateur chats lesbian nuns, alternate realities and his undying love for Quentin Tarantino.
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In Praise Of

Why I love Joan Crawford’s performance in Daisy Kenyon

by Justine Smith

Otto Preminger’s 1947 love triangle with a postwar twist sees the Hollywood star at her bristling best.
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In Praise Of

How Russ Meyer changed the face of American film

by Justine Smith

The sleaze king of Hollywood cinema paved the way for a generation of filmmakers, evading post-Code censors with his “nudie-cuties”.
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The complicated cinematic legacy of Ned Kelly

by Justine Smith

A fabled Australian outlaw has been portrayed by everyone from Mick Jagger to Heath Ledger – with wildly varying results.
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In Praise Of

How Sam Peckinpah transformed the TV western

by Justine Smith

Before he moved into films, the director conceived a bold, unromanticised vision of the American frontier.
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Women In Film

Why should we care who writes film history?

by Justine Smith

Reflections on director Mark Cousins’ latest cinematic road trip, Women Make Film.
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Festivals

Exploring indigenous Canadian films at the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma

by Justine Smith

This year’s edition of the Montreal-based festival showed the value of giving marginalised native filmmakers a platform.
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Festivals

Meet the Guy Maddin-esque gonzo filmmaker challenging Canadian identity

by Justine Smith

Director Matthew Rankin discusses his experimental debut feature The Twentieth Century.
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How the Hollywood sign became a monument to LA mythology

by Justine Smith

Seventy years ago, a long-neglected real estate ad was rebuilt and an iconic cultural landmark was born.
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Festivals

The rising women of genre cinema

by Justine Smith

This year’s Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal showcased an exciting emerging crop of boundary-pushing directors.
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Festivals

The self-taught filmmaking family shaking up the horror genre

by Justine Smith

Along with their daughters, co-directors John Adams and Toby Poser are winning fans with their alternative, homespun approach.

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