Vicente, a seventeen year-old, lives with his brother Nino, a ten year-old, and his dying father in a decrepit home on the outskirts of the city.  Their father isn't a great man by any stretch of the imagination, owing money to the wrong people but Vincente and Nino care for him deeply.  When their father finally succumbs to his ailments, Vincent and Clara, a primary school assistant who Vincente is romantically involved with,  cover up his death in an effort to ease Nino's sorrow.  This leads to visits from various individuals, most notably their uncle and the group of men in which their father owes money, both of whom in very different ways threaten to separate Vincente and Nino.  Pedro Costa's Blood is a magnificently photographed exploration of what it means to be family, dealing with themes Costa would further explore in his later work.  The film centers around the trauma and inevitable violence which displacement can have on an individual, capturing the isolation associated with longing.  This is a film thats narrative is intentionally a bit murky, with the intentions of many characters throughout the film unclear, intensifying the isolation and trauma felt by Vincente after the death of his father.  One cannot talk about Blood without mentioning the beautifully stark black and white cinematography, that uses contrast, shadows, and lighting that is visionary, reminiscent of the films of Carl Dreyer.  This isn't just a pretty film but a film that uses lighting to illicit mood, with blacks that devour and whites that burn into the characters' souls.  While some of his later films are far more mature thematically, Pedro Costa's Blood is an incredible first feature that only hinted at the type of filmmaker the man would become.

Walter Hill's The Long Riders chronicles the origins, exploits, and ultimate fate  of the James Gang during the late 1800s.  Casting real life brothers to make up the James-Younger gang (Dennis & Randy Quaid, and Keith & David Carrandine and Stacey & James Keach), Hill creates a sympathetic portrayal of the legendary outlaws.  Hill's lean and mean style is a perfect fit for the material, as he covers a ton of ground in very little time, never all that interested in capturing a specific character's point-of-view.  I believe this was an intentional decision of the directors, wanting to capture these men as a unit more so then as individuals.   This is a film much more interested in the personal lives of  the James-Young Gang, giving very little screen time to the various heists they commit along the way.  Brotherhood, family, and most of all survival are central themes to the story, with Hill showing how their legendary bank raids began as an act of revenge.  Reminiscent of the time in cinema, the action scenes in The Long Riders use an abundance of slow-motion, with Walter Hill intent on capturing the carnage of these gun-fights in gruesome detail.  This use of slow-motion combined with kinetic editing make the few action scenes of the film chaotic and intense, particularly during the final shootout which is quite memorable.  Walter Hill's The Long Rider's is a lesser film in the director's canon but its sympathetic portrayal of these legendary outlaws make it worth a watch. 

Taking place ten years after the events of its predecessor, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes picks up in the post-apocalyptic future where nearly all humans have been wiped out by the man-made virus.  Caeser, the leader of the apes, grows his "family" of genetically superior apes in peace until a band of human survivors wanders into the area they consider home.  With tensions running high between the humans and the apes, Caeser forms a fragile peace that is short-lived, as the darker-side of humans and apes unleashes a war over who is Earth's most dominant species.  Featuring some of the most impressive computer effects and face-recognition technology, Matt Reeves' Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is an intelligent, thrilling blockbuster that manages to thrill and stimulate the audience.  The film's message and/or theme touts the franchise-line, capturing how humans and apes are much more similar than different, each having large flaws but also the capability to show compassion and empathy. This is a film that manages to keep the tension high throughout its entire running time, keeping the viewer on the edge of their seat as it pertains to the ape and human's ongoing diplomatic relationship.   Caeser is the main character of this film, an ape who only wants the best for his fellow brethren, understanding that peace is the only way to guarantee safety.  For a CGI performance, Andy Serkis delivers impressive work, though I still must admit I struggle to get fully invested with a CGI character regardless.  Compared to most typical blockbuster fair, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes features some of the most intellectually complex characters of the summer, delivering a fun, relatively intelligent bit of entertainment. 

Taking place in a small rural town, Carter Smith's Jamie Marks is Dead tells the story of Adam, a high school cross country star, who becomes infatuated with Jamie, a recently deceased fellow student whose body was found down by the river.  Bullied, Jamie was a boy with slim to no friends, who no one knew.  When Jamie's ghost begins to appear to Adam, he finds himself caught between his burgeoning romance with Gracie, a female classmate, and his deep connection with Jamie, who introduces him to the world of the undead.  Carter Smith's Jamie Marks is Dead is an interesting, albeit messy ghost story that's overall message comes off a little muddled.  From what I gathered, Jamie Marks is an allegory about homosexuality, with Marks' dead character representing the loneliness and isolation one could feel when surrounded by individuals not open to accepting all types of people.  While the film is artfully done from a cinematography and direction standpoint, the writing leaves something to be desired, consisting of way too many eye-roll inducing moments  The story itself was far more convoluted than it needed to be too, with supporting performances by Liv Tyler and Judi Greer that feel completely unnecessary and quite frankly slow down the pacing of the film.  I understand that these characters are there to push Adam's character into a more isolated state, capturing how him and Jamie can relate, but the way it's done is terribly inefficient.  Featuring some solid performances from its lead actors, Jamie Marks is Dead is a slightly more intelligent version of the Young Adult supernatural genre, that is full of emotion but never quite reaches the desired poignancy it was hoping for. 

Apichatpong Weersasethakul's films are not the most accessible experiences to the casual viewer and Mekong Hotel isn't any different.  Similar to most of his work, Mekon Hotel is a film of great ambiguity, dealing with Weerasethakul's usual ruminations on Thai folklore, spiritualism, and the current sociopolitical conditions of Thailand.  Almost the entire film takes place on the balconies of the hotel, overlooking the vast Mekong River with characters engaged in both profound and commonplace discussions.  When it comes to Apichatpong Weerasethakul's films I tend to struggle grasping everything he wants to say, but in Mekong River, the zen-like expose on spiritualism and reincarnation stood out.  The characters of Mekong Hotel talk about various political issues like the governments poor handling of the flood in Bangkook, as well as spiritual discussions like reincarnation but the way Apichatpong Weerasethakul juxtaposes the imagery of jet-skiers and floating trees on the grand river as a way to symbolize a human's journey through life and death is fascinating and slightly off-putting.  The off-shoot of a failed feature, Mekong Hotel is more a smattering of Weerasethakul's typical ideas than a feature film that will most likely only be appreciated by the most astute art-house patrons.

Shot exclusively in the small space of a cable car, Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez's Manakamana is a unique, and quite frankly mesmerizing documentary.    Similar to some of Andy Warhol's films, Manakmana attempts to capture life itself as it observes the various pilgrims as they make the journey high above the jungle in Nepal to the ancient mountaintop temple.  Compromised of 11 seperate rides,  Manakamana is basically the definition of an art film, in documentary form, a film that is bound to test the patience of some viewers but for those willing, it offers a rich sensory experience that invigorates the viewer's imagination as to the past, present, and future of the indivduals making up  the film.  The various individuals captured throughout Manakamana come from all different walks of life, ranging from young boy's to old women, yet Manakamana captures how similiar they are on this journey through their observations, body language, and conversations.   There are lots of interesting observations to be made in Manakamana but the central ideal seems to revolve around presenting a country in transition, going from ancient tradition to modernity and how the film juxtaposes this ideal is truly fascinating.  Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez's Manakamana is a tender, poignant film which presents a window into the world of a group of strangers with fascinating results.