Review: Amjad Al Rasheed’s ‘Inshallah a Boy’
“Al Rasheed’s feature directorial debut succeeds through its cultural specificities, enlightening cinematography and authentic performances.”
Crime Scene #12: ‘Amores Perros’ and Gringo Cinema
“‘Amores Perros’ is almost entirely disinterested in its central location. It feels like a film made not to speak truth to Mexican audiences, but to present a hyperreal version of Mexico for international audiences.”
Sundance Film Festival Review: Aaron Schimberg’s ‘A Different Man’
“‘A Different Man’ is a bold, unsettling psychological drama, showing Sebastian Stan at his most chaotically unhinged…”
Sundance Film Festival Review: Megan Park’s ‘My Old Ass’
“Bittersweet and deeply poignant, ‘My Old Ass’ is one of the most emotionally affecting dramedies in quite some time.”
An Interview with ‘Rapture’ Filmmaker Dominic Sangma
‘Rapture’ Interview: Dipankar Sarkar discusses the 2023 movie with filmmaker Dominic Sangma.
Review: Hong Sang-Soo’s ‘In Our Day’
“‘In Our Day’ shows that even a smaller Hong Sang-soo film, like the smaller moments of life that it portrays, can be just as rich with drama, sadness and beauty as any other, and that every fragment contains so much of the whole.”
Apocalypse Through the Ages: Reimagining in ‘The End We Start From’
“‘The End We Start From’ is a contained version of the violent, end-of-world tales we have grown accustomed to. In its quiet examination of a woman’s journey to motherhood, the questions that surround the subject are writ large on the story.”
Review: Roman Polanski’s ‘The Palace’
“With all the surfaces of style, wit and entertainment stripped away, ‘The Palace’ lays the director’s ideology bare in all its unflinching bleakness and petty emptiness.”
Review: ‘Monsieur Spade’ (Season 1, Episode 1)
“One of first signs of trouble in Monsieur Spade’s first episode is the overall lack of antagonists – the slow burn feels ill-suited for the title character and the genre at large.”
Review: Cassius Michael Kim’s ‘Man on the Run’
“Kim mostly hits the mark with ‘Man on the Run,’ even if some of the Adam McKay-style filmmaking choices don’t land particularly well.”
Review: Kimani Ray Smith’s ‘The Painter’
“‘The Painter’ seems destined for Tubi, where it may indeed earn a fanbase. The film clearly sets up a sequel, so a second franchise installment might be more creatively ambitious, even if its existence on paper doesn’t feel earned.”
Review: Ilker Çatak’s ‘The Teachers’ Lounge’
“With dashes of dark humor, unnerving tension and a striking lead performance centering it all, ‘The Teachers’ Lounge’ uncomfortably builds to claustrophobia in a real domino effect.”
Crime Scene #11: ‘Case of the Naves Brothers’ and a Sertão Mentality
“‘Case of the Naves Brothers’ is hardly in the annals of great Brazilian cinema, like the works of Rocha, but it absolutely deserves to be seen in the same breath.”
Review: Arthur Musah’s ‘Brief Tender Light’
“‘Brief Tender Light,’ with all its cultural complexities, offers an access point for worldwide viewers willing to look beyond lazy stereotypes and reductive interpretations of not just Africans but fellow humans in general.”
Review: The Adams Family’s ‘Where the Devil Roams’
“General audiences can access and appreciate The Adams Family’s ‘Where the Devil Roams’ from various perspectives – the mark of an enduring film.”
An Interview with ‘Agra’ Filmmaker Kanu Behl
‘Agra’ Interview: Dipankar Sarkar discusses the 2023 movie with filmmaker Kanu Behl.
Grief Is the Key to Getting ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’
“Grief is a quiet but unrelenting presence within ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ that gradually reveals itself the more viewers learn about the death of Mike Timlin, the protagonist’s friend and singing partner.”
London Film Festival Review: Andrew Haigh’s ‘All of Us Strangers’
“‘All of Us Strangers’ is a film that becomes all the more haunting the further from it you get.”
London Film Festival Review: Hirokazu Koreeda’s ‘Monster’
“Children and adults are complex; they behave differently depending on who they are with, performing various roles to survive. ‘Monster’ underlines this lesson by masterfully harmonizing writing, performance, cinematography, sound and more.”
London Film Festival Review: Martin Scorsese’s ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
“I much prefer DiCaprio’s more comedic performances to his dramatic ones, but ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ feels like career-best dramatic work from the actor…”