Tag: Foreign Film Review
Belgica | 2016 Sundance Film Festival Review
Bar None: Van Groeningen Returns to Musical Inclinations for Vibrant Sibling Portrait
Belgian auteur Felix Van Groeningen, the front runner of the Belgian New Wave,...
A Perfect Day | Review
All’s Well, End’s Well: Leon de Aranoa’s Benevolent English Debut
Fernando Leon de Aranoa makes his English language debut with A Perfect Day, a period...
El Movimiento | Review
Birth of No Nation: Naishtat’s Compelling, Experimental History Lesson
Argentinean director Benjamin Naishtat’s sophomore effort, El Movimiento is a disturbing and inventive account of national...
The Treasure | Review
Porumboiu, The Treasure Hunter: Yet Another Romanian Gem
As far as we're aware, no Romanian director has yet made a movie about staring at a stark,...
Son of Saul | Review
Hell on Earth: Nemes’ Impressive, Unsettling Debut Plunges into the Darkness of WWII
Hungarian director Laszlo Nemes makes an impressive debut with Son of Saul,...
The Girl King | Review
The Throne of Loneliness: Kaurismaki Cartoons Christina
Considering it’s been forty years since her last notable on screen incarnation, the time has come for a...
Arabian Nights Trilogy | Review
Tales of a Tale of Tales: Gomes's Three-Part Epic Is A Monument To The Plight Of Portugal's Working Class
There may be more traditionally successful...
Youth | Review
Oh, Youth and Beauty!: Sorrentino’s Shows Softer Side in Switzerland
Following the success of the snide yet undeniably eloquent 2013 title The Great Beauty, which...
The Summer of Sangaile | Review
The Wind Beneath Her Wings: Kavaite’s Sapphic Sophomore Sighs
Sophomore is an adjective that serves as a pun to describe Alante Kavaite’s latest film, The...
Casa Grande | Review
The Kids Are All Right: Barbosa Explores Brazil’s Class Fissures in Evenhanded Debut
Familiar dramatic conflicts are elevated by strong performances and astute characterizations in...
Queen of the Desert | AFI Film Festival Review
Hey, Queen: Herzog Can’t Convey Passion in the Desert
Acclaim does not seem to be the fate of Werner Herzog’s latest film, the long gestating...
Criterion Collection: Code Unknown | Blu-ray Review
Over the past two decades, Austrian auteur Michael Haneke has grown into one of the most formidable cinematic titans currently working today. Winning five...
The Mask (Eyes of Hell) | Review
Circus of the Face: A Delectable Restoration of Obscure Canadian Horror Film
The 1961 horror film The Mask owns several notable distinctions. Not only was...
The Hallow | Review
Hollow’s Eve: Hardy’s Creature Feature Debut Has Superficial Roots
It was announced that Irish director Corin Hardy would be heading up The Crow reboot for...
Brooklyn | Review
A Brooklyn Baby: Crowley’s Simple Immigration Tale Buoyed by Strong Emotional Core
Director John Crowley returns with Brooklyn, his strongest film in years, based on...
Hard Labor (Trabalhar Cansa) | Review
There’s a Ghost in Me: Dutra and Rojas Explore the Reductive State of Capitalism
The changing socioeconomic landscape in Brazil has had a direct impact...
Marshland (La Isla Mínima) | Review
Caught in the Quagmire: Rodriguez’s Satisfying Period Neo-Noir
Having swept the 2014 Goya Awards back home (winning ten of its sixteen nominations, including Best Film),...
Love | Review
Scorpio Becomes Electra: Noé's Sex Scenes from a Marriage
The last time we were caught in provocateur Gaspar Noé’s crosshairs it was back in 2009...
Tokyo Tribe | Review
Why Don’t You Play in the Streets?: Sono’s Overblown Street War Musical
Many consider Sion Sono to be Takashi Miike’s succeeding enfant terrible, both in...
Suffragette | Review
Female Misbehavior: Gavron’s Noble Depiction of British Women’s Suffrage Movement
There’s much to admire in Sarah Gavron’s sophomore directorial effort, Suffragette, a turn-of-the-century snapshot of...
The Russian Woodpecker | Review
Signals Over The Air: First Time Filmmaker Chad Gracia Sees Russian Conspiracy Theory Transform Into Truth
At the dark heart of director Chad Gracia’s messy,...
Jane B. par Agnes V. | Varda Retrospective Review
She’s Not There: Varda’s Lovely, Refracted Portrait of Iconic Birkin
The other obscure Agnes Varda title treated to a digital restoration courtesy of Cinelicious Pics...
Kung Fu Master! (Le petit amour) | Varda Retrospective Review
Oedipus at the Arcade: Varda’s Empathetic Exploration of Taboo
Invariably, most conversations concerning Agnes Varda, the sole female auteur amongst the prized clutch of men...
Under Electric Clouds | Review
Syndromes and a Century: German Jr.’s Existentialist State of Things
Aleksey German Jr., son of famed Russian auteur Aleksey German, comes into his own prominence...
Victoria | Review
Sleepless Night: Schipper’s Audacious, Single Take Heist Thriller
Actor turned director Sebastian Schipper makes major headway with his fourth effort behind the camera, Victoria. Premiering...
Trash | Review
Another Man’s Treasure: Daldry Revisits Themes of Childhood Lost
The muted reception behind the latest film from thrice Oscar nominated director Stephen Daldry seems curious,...
Dukhtar | Review
Not Without My Dukhtar: Nathaniel’s Debut a Sobering Drama
On paper, the premise of director Afia Nathaniel’s debut, Dukhtar (Daughter), sounds like it has the...
Jafar Panahi’s Taxi | Review
Riding in Cars with Directors: Panahi’s Continued Cinema of Resistance
Sanctioned Iranian auteur Jafar Panahi’s Taxi took home the 2015 Berlin Film Festival’s top prize,...
Maurice Pialat Retrospective: Under the Sun of Satan | Review
Soak up the Sun: Pialat’s Palme d’Or Winning Spiritual Anguish
As part of Cohen Media Group’s Maurice Pialat retrospective, perhaps the most significant title showcased...
Les êtres chers | 2015 TIFF Review
Sowing the Seed of Love: Émond Prescribes Depression Medicine for Two
In Zizekian logic, there are the unknown knowns, that is to say, there are...
Maurice Pialat Retrospective: The Mouth Agape | Review
A Death in the Family: Pialat’s Subtle Masterpiece of Familial Anguish
French auteur Maurice Pialat, the famed Palme d’Or winner who resisted being defined by...
Parisienne (Peur de rien) | 2015 TIFF Review
A Girl in the World: Arbid’s Coming of Age Portrait Enhanced by Generous Lead
French director Danielle Arbid returns with Parisienne, her first feature since...
Stonewall | Review
Hole in the Wall: Emmerich Butchers Historical Moment with Whitewashed Overcoat
On June 28, 1969, a group of gay men and women took a stand...
High-Rise | 2015 TIFF Review
Closer to the Gods: Cult Author Meets Cult Director in Wheatley’s Latest Dish
Destined to be overlooked as a visually impressive but significant creative failure,...
The New Girlfriend | Review
The Skin I Live In: Ozon’s Exquisite New Exploration of Gender Subversion
For his most playful and delightfully creepy film in years, Francois Ozon adapts...
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...
