“Within the context of a cinema that is high-strung and often defined by its over-the-top, spectacle-driven family dramas, ‘Ribbon’ and its smallness (and everydayness) is not just a refreshing break but an extremely well-timed breaking of the mold.”
“Renzu’s film gives a face to the thousands of women featured in the papers, disturbingly called ‘half widows’ — not just defined by the lack of a husband, but also by this ‘half,’ not full, not a complete status of being.”
“If Murphy’s Law were to be made into a film, it’d look a lot like Nikhil Nagesh Bhat’s ‘Long Live Brij Mohan!’ His production, in more ways than one, is also a metaphor for the city of Delhi.”
“In a country whose cinema is often just classified under the homogenous canopy of ‘Bollywood,’ a film in Sikkimese is not only a welcome change but also a political reversal of existing canons. It is a small but eventful beginning, a small step towards a more inclusive ‘Indian’ cinema.”
“Horror fans may need to adjust their expectations if they’re looking for more frights than laughs.”
“The multi-hyphenate filmmaker’s latest seems to anticipate dissection: its formal austerity belies a haphazard, literary-minded indulgence.”
“‘Four Hands’ is sublime and arresting in its imagery.”
“‘Mon Mon Mon Monsters’ actually inspires and entertains while pointedly dealing with a subject that hits close to home for many.”
“Dare I say it, but ‘Jeune Femme’ is as ripe for an American remake as any film I’ve seen on this year’s festival circuit.”
“Shot beautifully, with an imposing yet wholly appropriate classical soundtrack to match, ‘I Am Not a Witch’ is worth the watch.”
“Much like ‘Leviathan,’ the film is oppressively bleak.”
“Vivian Qu’s ‘Angels Wear White’ is another realist, slow cinema meditation on the social troubles in China.”
“‘Mudbound’ plays the game and begins with a white man, but, throughout the course of an epic tale, it arrives at a moving destination.”
“This kind of world recreation doesn’t come cheap, and it’s a delight to see a filmmaker of Haynes’ caliber given such a worthy budget.”
“‘Lean on Pete’ hits the mark emotionally and reveals itself to be a poised, moving film.”
“‘Madame Hyde’ crystallizes its views about the absurd limitations in trying to communicate the abstract gift of knowledge.”
TIFF 2017: ‘Dark River,’ ‘Jeannette: The Childhood of Joan of Arc,’ ‘Alanis,’ ‘Beast,’ ‘Occidental’
“Step aside, LBJ, your time in the spotlight is done.”
“‘Zama’ is the kind of historical film that refuses to concede even the smallest positivity to the history in question.”
“Guillermo del Toro may very well be cinema’s reigning master of monster mythology.”