Occupied Territories

One of the reasons Little Murders works, and is indeed a definitive reflection of America’s darker moods, is that it breaks audiences down into isolated individuals, vulnerable and uncertain. Most movies create a temporary sort of democracy, a community of strangers there in the darkened theater. Not this one. The movie seems to be saying that New York City has a similar effect on its citizens, and that it will get you if you don’t watch out.

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Roger Ebert, “Little Murders” (1971)

Maybe it’s because of the recent spate of Ebert reviews that have enraged me in some way or another—I don’t usually read him, but when I have lately, he’s always made me upset—but I guess I’d forgotten that his quintessential approach to criticism, a kind of guileless and humble grappling with the film before him, can sometimes result in gems like this one.