Tag: Foreign Film Review
Der Nachtmahr | 2015 TIFF Review
Angst von der Angst: Concept Overrides Construction in Weak Psychological Metaphor
It’s evident a majority of the artistry that went into the conceptualization of Der Nachtmahr...
Hellions | 2015 TIFF Review
Invasion of the Baby Snatchers: McDonald’s Stillborn Halloween Horror
Starting off with a customary flourish of genre staples to set the mood, we gloss over...
Magallanes | 2015 TIFF Review
On the Horizon of Redemption: Del Solar’s Impressive Debut a Historically Relevant Neo-Noir
The sins of the recent past infect Peruvian actor Salvador del Solar’s...
The Cut | Review
Third Cut is the Deepest: Akin’s Barren Examination of Armenian Genocide
Turkish-German director Fatih Akin concludes his decade in the making ‘Love, Death, and the...
The Ones Below | 2015 TIFF Review
Changeling Chronicles: Farr’s Eerie Debut a Duel of Deserving Motherhood
Screenwriter and playwright David Farr makes his directorial debut with The Ones Below, a psychological...
3000 Nights | 2015 TIFF Review
Samaritan Subterfuge: Masri’s Aggrandized Portrait of Political Metaphor
Portraits of women-in-prison have a long winding history in the annals of grindhouse and various exploitation cinema,...
The Danish Girl | 2015 TIFF Review
Danish Modern: Hooper’s Painterly Costume Drama Mounted on a Glossy Stage
Much as last year’s The Imitation Game served to honor the memory and legacy...
Urban Hymn | 2015 TIFF Review
Can a Song Save Your Life?: Caton-Jones’ Modest Return to Filmmaking
Scottish film director Michael Caton-Jones had a very prolific filmography in the 1990s thanks...
Un plus Une | 2015 TIFF Review
Passage Over India: Lelouch’s Romantic Dramedy an Overstuffed Pilgrimage
French auteur Claude Lelouch, now well into his seventies, maintains a prolific career, striding through a...
Goodnight Mommy | Review
Mom Without a Face: Fiala/Franz’s Fiction Debut a Mesmerizing Slice of Psychological Horror
Once you’re made aware that Goodnight Mommy is the fictional directorial debut...
Coming Home | Review
Things Not Forgotten: Zhimou Returns to Period Tragedy with Middling Results
Chinese auteur Zhang Yimou, known recently for elaborate adventure films like House of Flying Daggers...
Wenders Retrospective: Until the End of the World | Review
Pray for the Wounded Planet: Wenders’ Belabored Road Trip to the Apocalypse
The troubled production and following critical ambivalence towards Wim Wenders’ 1991 film Until...
The Second Mother | Review
An Other Mother: Muylaert Scores International Breakout with Class Conscious Character Study
Brazilian director Anna Muylaert gets her first crack at international renown with her...
Turbo Kid | Review
Kid Dangerous: Trio of Directors Craft Endearing 80’s Retro Flick
Operating comfortably within the lines of the well-tread grooves of genre paths explored before than...
Guidance | Review
Life Coach: Mills’ Debut a Showcase for Own Multi-talents
Toronto based filmmaker Pat Mills makes his directorial debut with Guidance, a dark hearted comedy that...
Prince | Review
It Takes a Muscle: De Jong’s Debut a Vibrant Entry in Familiar Genre
So perhaps there is a room for a bit of inventiveness in...
Tag | 2015 Fantasia Film Festival Review
Female of the Species: Sono’s Pseudo-Allegory Reifies the Male Gaze
Superficially, there’s not too much new on hand in Sion Sono’s Tag, credited as the...
Tom at the Farm | Review
I Need a Lover with a Farm Hand: Dolan’s Latest a Filet of Self Loathing
For his fourth feature, Xavier Dolan adapts the material of...
Seashore | VOD Review
The Sea Will Tell: Titillation and Vague Angst Tease Substance in Tepid Gay Tinged Drama
Though there’s still a great need to tell vibrant, meaningful...
Catch Me Daddy | Review
Family Matters: Wolfe’s Unsettling Debut a Thriller with a Mean Streak
Premiering in the Directors' Fortnight sidebar at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, director Daniel...
Dark Places | Review
Grim Girl: Pacquet-Brenner’s Adaptation Brandishes Relentlessly Contrived Twists
“I have a meanness in me,” warns the omniscient narrator of Dark Places, as voiced by a...
The Kindergarten Teacher | Review
Dangerous Minds: Lapid’s Sophomore Film a Bizarre, Engrossing Character Study
Repressed desires find an unexpected outlet in Israeli director Nadav Lapid’s sophomore film, The Kindergarten...
Phoenix | Review
Return From the Ashes: Petzold’s Compelling Resurrection of WWII Aftermath
At the head of the cinematic movement referred to as the Berlin School of filmmaking...
Cesar and Rosalie (1972) | Review
Love’s Connections: Sautet’s Frustrating, Savvy Love Story
Out of the many representations of cinematic emotional complexities French filmmakers master over most is the messy actuality...
Max and the Junkmen (1971) | Review
Crime and Punishment: Sautet’s Enthralling Policier an Obscure Neo-Noir
Following the international acclaim of his 1970 film The Things of Life, Claude Sautet re-teamed with...
Nelly & Monsieur Arnaud (1995) | Review
Lonely Hearts: Sautet’s Elegant Final Film on Passionate Restraint
Winning Best Director as well as Best Actor for Michel Serrault at the 1995 Cesars, Nelly...
A Hard Day | Review
Long Day’s Journey: Seong-hoon Reaches Amoral High Ground with Spry Action Flick
If anything, South Korean director Kim Seong-hoon’s sophomore film A Hard Day certainly...
Court | Review
Legal Ease: Tamhane’s Frustrating, Numbing Portrait of India’s Legal System
Director Chaitanya Tamhane won Best Film in the Horizons program at the 2014 Venice Film...
Mr. Holmes | Review
Unsolved Mysteries: Condon Recreates the Last Days of Sherlock Holmes
Director Bill Condon reunites with elements from several of his most critically acclaimed titles for...
Alleluia | Review
In the Mood For Love: Du Welz Returns With Gloriously Dark Rendering of Insatiable Passion
His first film since 2008’s underappreciated Vinyan, Belgian director Fabrice...
Strangerland | Review
Cry in the Dark: Farrant’s Debut an Unnerving Exploration of Carnal Knowledge
Recent critically acclaimed imports from Australia tend to glorify more aggressive genre trends,...
Stations of the Cross | Review
The Road to Hell: Brueggemann’s Apprehensive Examination of Blind Faith
Premiering at the 2014 Berlin Film Festival, where it snagged the Ecumenical Jury Prize as...
10,000 KM | Review
Going the Distance: Marques-Marcet Explores the Strain of Separation
An exploration of the effects an extended period of long distance has on the stability of...
Big Game | Review
Rules of the Game: Helander’s Schlocky English Language Debut
Even though the film seems perfectly well aware of its own silliness as it recapitulates formulaic...
The Little Death | Review
Lust, Actually: Lawson’s Sexually Charged Debut Struggles with What Women Want
Taking home the audience prize at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival, Australian director Josh...
Eden | Review
In The Garden Of Garage: Hansen-Løve Recounts Brother's Coming of Age During the Rise of House Music
Thanks to her brother Sven’s involvement in the popularization...
The Tribe | Review
Get the Picture: Slaboshpitsky’s Excellent, Memorably Pronounced Debut
In a sea of derivative cinematic components, wholly original ideas seem few and far between. In a...
Madame Bovary | Review
Good Time Gal: Barthes’ Sensible Remake of Flaubert’s Classic Novel
Few literary protagonists have reached the heights of notability as the infamous Madame Bovary, from...
Set Fire to the Stars | Review
Suffer the First Vision: Goddard’s Debut Anchored in Episode of Literary Distress
Doomed Welsh poet Dylan Thomas gets a contemporary biopic treatment in Set Fire...
Chagall-Malevich | Review
Painter Man: Mitta’s Return to Filmmaking a Lofty, Honeycombed History Lesson
Ungainly and distractingly saccharine, Russian auteur Aleksandr Mitta returns with Chagall-Malevich, a whimsical biopic...
Hungry Hearts | Review
Heart of Glass: Costanzo’s Uncomfortable, Emotional Glance at Madness
Must every cinematic portrait of mental illness be ‘illuminating?’ Your answer to that question may gauge...
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence | Review
Familiar Tune: Andersson Completes Trilogy With Enjoyable, Familiar Chapter
Prolific Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson tends to work infrequently, taking years, if not decades, between film...
Alias Maria | 2015 Cannes Film Festival Review
Guerillas in the Mist: Rugeles Explores the Jungles in Labored Sophomore Effort
An intriguing perspective within a terrifying environment initially makes for a compelling scenario...
Tu dors Nicole | Review
Sleep, Perchance to Dream: Lafleur’s Eccentric Portrait of One Hazy Summer
Quebecois filmmaker Stephane Lafleur’s third film, Tu dors Nicole (“You’re Sleeping Nicole) unfolds over...
Güeros | Review
Like it’s 1999: Ruizpalacios’ Sprightly Directorial Debut
There’s something in the air of Alonso Ruizpalacios’ directorial debut, Güeros, a beautifully shot period piece examining a...
The Japanese Dog | Review
Echoes of Autumn: Jurgiu’s Understated Debut Tender, Unmemorable
Inevitably, it’s difficult to consider the merits of Romanian director Tudor Cristian Jurgiu’s directorial debut The Japanese...
Love at First Fight | Review
Once Bitten: Cailley’s Unique Exploration of Summer Lovin’
Since premiering at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, where it picked up the FIPRESCI Prize in the...
Chronic | 2015 Cannes Film Festival Review
Prognosis Negative: Franco’s English Language Dance with Death
After winning the Un Certain Regard Award for his 2012 sophomore feature After Lucia, Mexican director Michel...
Cemetery of Splendour | 2015 Cannes Film Festival Review
Syndromes And A Cemetery: Thai Joe Returns With A Familiar Stunner
An elementary school-cum-hospital built atop a "cemetery of kings," ancient spaces reactivated the present,...
In the Shadow of Women | 2015 Cannes Film Festival Review
Masculine/Feminine: Garrel Offers Yet Another Take On A Romantic Rift
As we see with many so-called auteurs, Philippe Garrel has been making the same film...
