Las Palmas Film Festival Reviews: ‘Still Life’ and ‘Knife in the Clear Water’
“These allegorical films remind of the original connections that we have lost.”
Las Palmas Film Festival Review: Kôji Fukada’s ‘Harmonium’
“It’s the demons within that Kôji Fukada astutely brings to life in ‘Harmonium.'”
DIFF 2017 Review: Wong Chun’s ‘Mad World’
“Its megaphone messaging is lost in the noise of its own desperation.”
DIFF 2017 Review: James Gray’s ‘The Lost City of Z’
‘It cannot be understated: ‘The Lost City of Z’ is a revelation.’
DIFF 2017 Review: Feng Xiaogang’s ‘I Am Not Madame Bovary’
“‘I Am Not Madame Bovary’ brilliantly executes its high-concept, formal experimentation perfectly. In doing so, it embodies a vision that harmonizes the theoretical with the actual.”
Las Palmas Film Festival Review: Wang Bing’s ‘Ku Qian (Bitter Money)’
“Ultimately, ‘Bitter Money’ points out that accumulating money doesn’t necessarily bring wealth, and that slaving away isn’t necessarily a solution for the Chinese subjects — it’s their only option.”
DIFF 2017 Review: Noël Wells’ ‘Mr. Roosevelt’
“Despite its over-moralizing and trite narrative, the film’s sweetness and Noël Wells’ promise make ‘Mr. Roosevelt’ a comedy worth spending 90 minutes with.”
DIFF 2017 Reviews: ‘Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl’ and ‘Los Presentes’
“The ambition and concept are good to have, it just takes a lot more work to match the craft and care of Bergman, Altman or Lynch.”
DIFF 2017 Review: Peter Bratt’s ‘Dolores’
“In a time such as ours, ‘Dolores’ delivers a vision of community organization and social flourishment that can usher in a new reality for America’s masses.”
Las Palmas Film Festival Opens with ‘Katie Says Goodbye’
“Roberts believes in the subtle force of his nice-as-pie protagonist, and he is right: Katie’s light outshines the blue Arizona sky.”
Review: Terrence Malick’s ‘Song to Song’
“‘Song to Song’ finds itself in its vast mercies. It balances tragedies and heartbreaks with life’s many graces.”
True/False 2017 Review: Fan Jian’s ‘Still Tomorrow’
“No matter which storyline is in play, the best thing about ‘Still Tomorrow’ is its subject.”
Review: Onur Tukel’s ‘Catfight’
“What ‘Catfight’ lacks in sanity, it makes up for in the sheer exuberance of Sandra Oh and Anne Heche.”
True/False 2017 Review: Yance Ford’s ‘Strong Island’
“‘Strong Island’ is a vulnerable, affecting documentary that illustrates what systemic racism looks like on a personal level.”
True/False 2017 Review: Kitty Green’s ‘Casting JonBenet’
“The editing is where the story of Casting JonBenet is truly built.”
True/False 2017 Review: Theo Anthony’s ‘Rat Film’
“‘Rat Film’ doesn’t spell out its conclusions, instead allowing the viewer to come to their own upon seeing the images and stories it presents.”
Review: Pema Tseden’s ‘Tharlo’
“Pema Tseden’s all-Tibetan film is a confrontation of old and new, of solitude and togetherness, of dreams and reality.”
IFFR 2017 Review: Sophie Goyette’s ‘Mes nuits feront écho’
“We can’t always get what we want, but ‘Mes nuits feront écho’ shows that, in our dreams, we are in charge.”
IFFR 2017 Review: Pedro Aguilera’s ‘Demonios tus ojos’
“All in all, ‘Demonios tus ojos’ is a movie about the excitement of doing something prohibited.”
Review: Josh Appignanesi and Devorah Baum’s ‘The New Man’
“The director’s own forthrightness is, at once, both refreshing and perplexing.”