About Benjamin Crabtree
I am Benjamin Crabtree, and I am a Feature Writer for Collider. I am also the creator of CrabtreeCinema.com and cohost of the upcoming Celluloid Noise Podcast. Beyond writing and talking about cinema, I love curating mini film festivals of cult favorites for friends and family, collecting the latest releases from the Criterion Collection and Arrow Video, and drinking too much coffee.
Latest Articles
Kathryn Bigelow’s 'Near Dark' Is the Acid-Soaked Vampire Western You Need to See
Much like the film's monsters, Kathryn Bigelow’s 1987 vampire classic seems to be hiding in plain sight.
The Meaning Behind 'The Darjeeling Limited' Goes Way Deeper Than You Think
'The Darjeeling Limited' is more than just a movie about three brothers travelling through India.
When William Friedkin Used a Truck Full of Explosives to Make a Point About Vietnam
'Sorcerer' towers above its peers as a cathartic sociocultural text from the late 1970s.
This Steamy Denzel Washington Romance Redefined the Cross-Cultural Drama
Let Denzel lead more romances!
This Harry Belafonte and Sidney Poitier Western Was Revisionism Done Right
'Buck and the Preacher' maintains its power as an essential statement of Black heroism as well as positive racial and historical representation.
7 Snowy Westerns to Watch This Winter
Better hurry and check out these wintry Westerns, because Spring starts March 20!
Why Pam Grier’s Jackie Brown Is Quentin Tarantino’s Most Important Character
Jackie Brown both inhabits and subverts the traditional Tarantino protagonist through the historical reflexivity of Pam Grier’s performance.
From 'Velvet Vampires' to 'Student Nurses': Stephanie Rothman's Unsung Cult Power
The diverse output of filmmaker Stephanie Rothman’s career deserves to be celebrated as an essential piece in the puzzle of cult cinema.
Why 'The Harder They Come' Remains a Definitive Reggae Film, 50 Years Later
'The Harder They Come' continues to illuminate the vitality of Jamaican arts and culture within the landscape of cult cinema 50 years later.
Why John Waters’ 'Pink Flamingos' Continues to Shock and Delight
'Pink Flamingos' remains a shocking Midnight masterpiece and delightfully subversive expression of queer freedom.
Baz Luhrman Gives Maximalism Meaning in ‘Elvis’ & ‘The Great Gatsby’
Luhrmann’s stylistic excess throughout 'The Great Gatsby' and 'Elvis' is essential to each film’s storytelling substance.
Dreams of Berlin: The Feminist Fantasies of German Icon Ulrike Ottinger
Ottinger’s Berlin Trilogy offers a near-perfect perspective into the Cold War critique and feminist liberation.
In 'King Creole,' Michael Curtiz Captured Elvis Presley's Subversive Charm
'King Creole' sees Elvis’s Danny Fisher navigate the consequences of self-expression through music and rebellion.
'Elvis on Tour' Captured The King of Rock as an Actual Human Being
Elvis on Tour pushes beyond the typical concert film formula to encapsulate a multi-perspective meditation on the man behind The King.
How Christian Petzold's Films Recreate Hitchcockian Tropes
Petzold provides a haunting contemporary analog to the iconic suspense-driven cinema of Alfred Hitchcock.
'Rafiki' Is Wanuri Kahiu's Ambiguously Joyful Queer Coming-of-Age Masterpiece
'Rafiki' boldly demonstrates the possibility of queer joy and happy endings in the midst of the ambiguities of cultural progression.
How Susan Seidelman’s 'Smithereens' Helped Redefine 1980s Punk Cinema
Even as Seidelman settled into her aesthetic within the zeitgeist set by Sex Pistols and The Ramones, Smithereens allowed punk to become personal.
In Les Blank's Documentaries, Unsung Musicians Were Superstars
Blank’s gleaning allows the audience to zoom in to the vibrant intricacies of self-expression and self-representation.
How Todd Haynes’ 'Velvet Goldmine' Reimagines 'Citizen Kane' as a Queer Spectacle
Haynes creatively shakes the foundations of cinematic storytelling by transforming Kane into a queer spectacle.