Daniel Goldhaber concocts quite the incendiary eco-terrorist thriller with his sophomore effort, How To Blow Up A Pipeline. Based off the book of the same name penned by Andreas Malm, Goldhaber takes Malm’s message of sabotage as a valid and justified form of climate activism and puts it into compelling — and exciting — practice.
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Writer/director Paul Schrader returns with another solid Bressonian thriller that explores solitary men consumed by their occupation. Cool, confident, and calculated, but at times askew, The Card Counter is an exciting new riff on the familiar Paul Schrader tale full of his signature hallmarks and surprises. Bolstered by Oscar Isaac’s performance, Schrader’s bold style, and Robert Levon Been’s moody score, this compellingly mysterious revenge thriller takes you for a dark and twisted ride that only Schrader could cook up. Make no mistake, this is not your typical poker film.
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Everything in Paul Schrader's life has led him to this moment; all his time spent in the seminary, his adoration (brought on by his brief career in film criticism) for the directors Yasujiro Ozu, Robert Bresson, and Carl Th. Dreyer, as well as his own prolific career as a screenwriter and filmmaker (particularly Taxi Driver and his solitary man films) culminate to a beautiful, albeit ominous head with his stunning modern masterpiece, First Reformed. The film is a thoroughly engrossing slow burn that gives you much to chew on, including its momentous final moments, and it has the potential to quite literally leave you shaken.
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