"Between Opening Night and A Woman Under the Influence, Cassavetes. I still dream, to this day, of having an experience. I thought the borderline guys are the modern version of this, of creating a really intimate, truly intimate environment, without any kind of producers with creative control, or any kind of desire of a specific distribution, but to just make stories that you want to make because they are close to you and personal and interesting and character-driven. Gena Rowlands, to me, is so amazing to watch. That’s something I discovered more in my early 20s, Cassavetes movies.#"

"This might be the next best thing to placing I Am Cuba on the list, which totally makes the cut if we’re including Criterion laserdiscs. Gillo Pontecorvo took real people and showed how real guerilla warfare goes down. Even more powerful is how he did it, and modern-day “documentary-style” filmmakers could take a page out of his book on restraint. The camera is not all over the map; it stays where it needs to and still grabs the immediate, important points in a way that feels involved and true. Then Ennio Morricone boxes your ears with flair and bravado."

"I saw this film in its original run, with foley artists, a live orchestra, and live narration by Crispin Glover, which was a profoundly unique cinematic experience. It is not often you see modern filmmakers experimenting with older techniques and to such great effect. Seeing it again on DVD, I found it equally incredible; its story about a fictional Guy Maddin is compelling. Guy has been a real influence on my film work, and his films just seem to get better and better. As a fellow Winnipegger, I can truly say that Canadians are very lucky to have him."