The Killing of a Chinese Bookie1976
Paired by the Criterion Channel, both on Top 10 lists by Aki Kaurismäki, Alex Ross Perry and 5 others, both directed by John Cassavetes, and both starring Seymour Cassel
- Criterion Collection
- Spine №252
- Connections
- View Connections
Synopsis
John Cassavetes puts a disintegrating marriage under the microscope in the searing FACES. Shot in high-contrast 16 mm black and white, the film follows the futile attempts of the captain of industry Richard (John Marley) and his wife, Maria (Lynn Carlin), to escape the anguish of their empty relationship in the arms of others. Featuring astonishingly nervy performances from Marley, Carlin, and Cassavetes regulars Gena Rowlands and Seymour Cassel, FACES confronts modern alienation and the battle of the sexes with a brutal honesty and compassion rarely matched in cinema.
