FilmCatcher

Revealing, in More Ways than One: "The Crying Game" (1992)

             The mark of a good thriller is that the moment you think you know where the story is going, everything gets turned on its head. 

             Based on this criterion alone, “The Crying Game” fires on all cylinders. This little-Irish-movie-that-could (it cost a measly $5 million to make) launched a cultural phenomenon in 1992 with one of the greatest reveals (pun semi-intended) in the history of cinema – and one that endures in pop-culture until this day. But even after the cat is out of the bag (and I’ll try not to spoil it for those who haven’t seen it), this deeply emotional film tells a beautiful story about love, loss, and everything in between.

            Oh, and did I mention that Boy George sings the theme song?

The Paranoids (Los Paranoicos)

 

From the initial surreal image of a toy ape falling through the credits, it’s clear that (along with cinematographer Lucio Bonelli) Gabriel Medina, the director of The Paranoids (Los Paranoicos, 2008), has an eye for colorful detail.

The protagonist of this stylish, Argentinian indie, Luciano Guana (Daniel Hendler), is a number of things. In his job, he is Cachito, the purple, googly-eyed entertainer of birthday party children, and the saddest of all things--the comic smiling on the outside and crying on the inside.  In his childhood friend Manuel’s (Walter Jakob) successful, new television show, “The Paranoids," he is the inspiration for all the paranoia.