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All Along the… Film Movement Find Companionship with Pelin Esmer’s Watchtower
Turkish filmmaker Pelin Esmer made her narrative feature debut in 2009 with 10 to 11, a meditative drama about a man and his collections, which was well received in the festival circuit earning several
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My Worst Nightmare | Review
A charming, Gallic comedy featuring one of France’s greatest actresses. Anne Fontaine’s latest confection, My Worst Nightmare, is a delightful vehicle for the awesome talent of Isabelle Huppert. Fontaine, while not the strongest director/writer,
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Special Forces | Review
Rybojad’s Fictional Debut an Empty Husk Director Stephane Rybojad, previously known for his work with French television documentaries, makes his fictional feature debut with Special Forces, a superfluous, timely message movie that flails itself
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Sister | Review
The Kid with the Skis: Ursula Meier’s Latest Hits Emotional Summit Swiss director Ursula Meier returns after her solid 2008 debut, Home, with Sister (or L’enfant d’en haut), a powerful survival tale of a
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Thy Womb | TIFF 2012 Review
Womb Doom: Mendoza Gives Us Another Poverty Stricken Filipino Narrative Quickly assuming the stature of one of the most important directors from the Philippines, Brillante Mendoza churns out another macabre narrative of the hard knock
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God Loves Caviar | TIFF 2012 Review
And Hates the Proletariat: Greek Costume Drama Stinks to High Heaven Greek director Yannis Smaragdis began his career in the mid 1970’s as a writer/director, making only a handful of feature films since. Some
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The Fifth Season | TIFF 2012 Review
If Spring Never Comes: Woodworth and Brosens Expertly Conclude Their Trilogy Directors Jessica Woodworth and Peter Brosens didn’t set out to conclude their trilogy of man’s relationship with nature, that includes their first two
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Dormant Beauty | TIFF 2012 Review
Sleepytime Drama: Bellocchio Messy Message Movie After yet another career peak with his 2009 film Vincere, Italian auteur Marco Bellocchio continues his examination of Italian society with Dormant Beauty, a treatise on Italy’s hot
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Everybody Has a Plan | TIFF 2012 Review
Best Laid Plans: Piterbarg Gets Double the Mortensen in Debut Argentinean director Ana Piterbarg nabs Viggo Mortensen for dual roles in her debut, a slow burn identity thriller, Everybody Has a Plan. Mortensen, having
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Byzantium | TIFF 2012 Review
My Favorite Sister Daughter: Jordan Hits Up the Lady Vamps Boy it’s hard to add anything new to the vampire genre, once a horror staple and breeding ground for some delightful, classic thrills, now
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Criterion Collection: Umberto D. | Blu-ray Review
Perhaps remembered foremost for directing what is considered by many to be one of the best films of all time, Bicycle Thieves (1948), one of Italy’s forefathers of neorealism, Vittorio De Sica is arguably
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Criterion Collection: Les Visiteurs Du Soir | Blu-ray Review
Known for creating some of the most important films in French history, and during Nazi Occupation, no less, Criterion issues two of Marcel Carne’s most widely acclaimed masterpieces, his crowning achievement, Children of Paradise
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Twice Born | TIFF 2012 Review
Emulating Almodóvar: Castellitto Employs Cruz To Pull Heartstrings The renowned Italian actor turned middling director Sergio Castellitto returns to his place on both sides of the camera with Twice Born, this time playing the
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In the House | TIFF 2012 Review
Write On: Ozon’s Latest an Exercise in Authorial Manipulation The steadily working Francois Ozon continues with his playful dark comic streak in his latest, In the House, an adaptation of a play by Juan
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Here Comes the Devil | TIFF 2012 Review
Lock Your Souls Up: Bogliano’s Latest a Decent But Frayed Exercise Adrian Garcia Bogliano’s tenth feature film, Here Comes the Devil finally shows the Argentinean horrormeister beginning to hone his craft to create something
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Zaytoun | TIFF 2012 Review
Pitted Olive: Riklis’ Period Piece Adventure a Sappy Fantasy Israeli director Eran Riklis returns to familiar territory with Zaytoun, using another unlikely friendship scenario between a Palestinian and Israeli which he used to great
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The Land of Hope | TIFF 2012 Review
The Japan Syndrome: Sono Puts Human Face to Tsunami Tragedy The prolific and insanely busy Sion Sono returns with another tale centered on the aftermath of Japan’s devastating tsunami, The Land of Hope. While
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All That Matters Is Past | TIFF 2012 Review
Weirdness In the Woods: Johnsen’s Latest an Intriguing, Complicated Love Triangle Norwegian filmmaker Sara Johnsen’s latest film, All That Matters Is Past is a curiously maddening film about star crossed lovers mixed with a
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Motorway | TIFF 2012 Review
Need for Speed: Professor Teaches Student New Tricks in Cheang’s Goofy Chase Actioner Utilizing the both tried, and tired formula of the hours away from retirement cop staying in the game for one last
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White Elephant | TIFF 2012 Review
Sisyphus Complex: Trapero’s Latest Argentinean Melodrama Ironically Titled Argentinean auteur Pablo Trapero returns with his latest, White Elephant, the last in what caps a trilogy depicting dire straights in Buenos Aires. With wife and
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Dead Europe | TIFF 2012 Review
Sins of the Father: Krawitz’s Adaptation Promises More Than It Delivers You can’t escape the past, and if your family has demons haunting it from bad karma dating back to World War II, someone’s
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Peddlers | TIFF 2012 Review
Pedal to the Medal: Death and Drugs Intermingle on the Street of Mumbai in Bala’s Impressive Debut Vasan Bala, previously casting director and protégé of Anurag Kashyap, makes his directorial debut with Peddlers, an
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Crimes of Mike Recket | TIFF 2012 Review
I’m Gonna Wreck It: Sweeney’s Latest a Meek Exercise In Neo Noir Canadian filmmaker Bruce Sweeney returns with his latest, Crimes of Mike Recket, a police procedural neo-noir black comedy that attempts to use
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Tower | TIFF 2012 Review
Tour d’ivoire: Radwanski’s Debut a Character Study Of Discontent and Disconnection Canadian filmmaker Kazik Radwanski has created a conflicted character study with Tower, a film about a socially challenged man that seems to be
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Out in the Dark | TIFF 2012 Review
Nobody Knows: Mayer’s Debut Explores Personal is Political with Tragic Gay Love Story For his screen debut, Israeli born director Michael Mayer’s Out in the Dark further complicates the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by giving us
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