Why Criticism: Can Film Criticism and Awards Season Co-Exist?
“Many of us may miss the drama of awards season, but there are untold benefits to criticism if it continues to evolve away from its current state.”
Review: Steven Kostanski’s ‘Psycho Goreman’
“‘Psycho Goreman’ is delightfully dark, whimsical, charming and frequently laugh-out-loud funny.”
Fargo Film Festival Review: Mario Furloni and Kate McLean’s ‘Freeland’
“‘Freeland’ is a tour de force showcase for Fairchild — an overnight sensation several decades in the making.”
Review: Anthony Scott Burns’ ‘Come True’
“Stone has the look of a teenager with the earned maturity of someone who’s been through some heavy shit, which lends itself well to her teenage prostitute in ‘Honey Bee’ and works just as brilliantly in ‘Come True.'”
Berlinale Review: Hamy Ramezan’s ‘Any Day Now’
“‘Any Day Now’ is a strong contender within the Generation strand of the Berlinale, showcasing brilliant performances from Keshvari and Rönkkönen.”
Berlinale Review: Soi Cheang’s ‘Limbo’
“While ‘Limbo’ may not be groundbreaking with its formulaic detective narrative, the sheer sense of place and space that Cheang creates allows for a visceral cinematic experience.”
Berlinale Review: Céline Sciamma’s ‘Petite Maman’
“Céline Sciamma’s ‘Petite Maman’ is a luminous ghost story that succeeds in knitting together the themes of empathy, identity and imagination.”
Put Your Hand Down, Little Steve: ‘Get Over It’ at 20
“Looking back on early-2000s fare, ‘Get Over It’ stands out as smarter, sweeter, funnier and weirder than many of its contemporaries…”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Bryan Fogel’s ‘The Dissident’
“Bryan Fogel’s new documentary about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi is unsurprisingly hard-hitting, but it’s the context for macro-scale geopolitics that ‘The Dissident’ communicates so well.”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Mohammad Rasoulof’s ‘There Is No Evil’
“There Is No Evil’s artistry is inconsistent, but its argument is undeniable.”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Min-Ho Woo’s ‘The Man Standing Next’
“Both emotionally and narratively, ‘The Man Standing Next’ is an easy story to get lost in.”
Collecting Movies with Director Dava Whisenant
Greg Carlson Interviews Director Dava Whisenant About Movie Collecting
‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ Review: A Fable Vibrating with Imagination and Optimism
“‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ welcomes a reflection on its Asian-fusion design because western adaptations of Asian culture, even with visible and vocal creative Asian input, will come with a spectrum of orientalism…”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Frederick Wiseman’s ‘City Hall’
“‘Reality fiction’ contours everything in ‘City Hall,’ from the microscopic level of scene transitions to the macroscopic level of entire sequences given deliberate framings…”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Eui-Jeong Hong’s ‘Voice of Silence’
“Rather than using the violence itself as a punchline, ‘Voice of Silence’ builds a comedy of manners out of Chang-bok and his colleagues’ sensibilities.”
A Wild Ride in the Bullpen: How a Young Pedro Almodóvar Upended Genre and Gender
“For all the praise showered on Almodóvar’s later work, it lacks the wildness, freshness and exuberance of his 80s filmography, which often feels unfairly overlooked as a result.”
Review: Jill Li’s ‘Lost Course’
“The most powerful aspect of ‘Lost Course’ is how it portrays the struggle of the Wukan citizens as a general metaphor for political corruption and the futility of activism.”
Sharp Wits and Sharp Swords: How ‘Love & Friendship’ and ‘Pride and Prejudice and Zombies’ Reveal Jane Austen’s Savage Side
“Jane Austen’s stories are already more pointed and complex than many people give them credit for, but two 2016 film adaptations took that caustic tone to new heights…”
Nuns and ‘Dark Habits’: Spoiling God’s Servants
“By spoiling God’s servants with sex, drugs and doubt, films like Almodóvar’s ‘Dark Habits’ show that earnestly criticising the Catholic Church’s crimes is not the only way to weaken centuries of unchecked supremacy.”
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Lili Horvát’s ‘Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time’
“It’s a delight to watch Stork think in ‘Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time.’ Her cogitations are signaled by the darting actions of her piercing blue eyes, the slight flex of an eyebrow or the raising of a subtle and pursed smirk.”