“By featuring a wide variety of animated works from both young and experienced filmmakers, Animafest showed it has the reach to bring together great talents through a stimulating environment.”
“The experimental nature of Jenkin’s production means it might take a few scenes to really get hooked. ‘Bait’ reels the audience in, however, by casting a uniquely strange line, capturing elements of old and new cinema.”
“An efficient script and commanding central performance from Sarah Bolger produce a memorable film with mostly intelligently drawn characters.”
“From a technical perspective, ‘Feedback’ is extremely potent for long stretches. However, in aspiring to be relevant to current affairs, the film eschews effective simplicity for confused complexity.”
“‘Animals’ doesn’t definitively answer it’s feminist question. I’m glad it doesn’t. Rather than making a film about the merits of giving up drink or ditching the guy, Hyde navigates somewhere far more raw.”
“What is most harmful here is attaching the concept of re-gained femininity to makeup and fancy earrings. There shouldn’t be any need for a knight in shining armour to come to the heroine’s rescue.”
“Redd Kross remains the greatest American band most people have never heard of, much less heard. Don’t be like ‘most people.’ Join the party underground of Redd Kross fandom. You won’t regret it.”
“Although ‘Come to Daddy’ slightly loses while accelerating to its conclusion, the splatter of dark comedy and dysfunctional father-son dynamics is always engaging and frequently smart.”
Romantic Comedy Interview: Vague Visages’ Pablo Staricco Cadenazzi discusses the 2019 documentary with filmmaker Elizabeth Sankey.
weet, Sweet Lonely Girl Movie Essay: Logan Kenny on A.D. Calvo’s 2016 film starring Quinn Shephard and Susan Kellermann.
“By the final act, Ferrara has presented both the man and the legend, but can’t seem to decide which version he wants the audience to remember.”
“The Kitchen fares so much better when read as a kind of self-aware meta-narrative of the gangster film, and an examination of Berloff’s construction of the men is one argument for why this rare, female-helmed genre piece deserves a second look.”
“Refusing to look down on their characters, Kazakova and Mileva effectively portray disillusion by relying on familiarity and recognition to bring the marginalised closer.”
“‘Parents – Wir Eltern’ is an imminently likeable movie, but frustrating for the insurmountable reach of its ambition.”
“‘District 9’ might not be a classic like ‘Alien’ or ‘The Terminator’ (not many films are), but it’s still an effective sci-fi film with depth and style.”
“While some metaphors seem rather self-explanatory, Fukada effectively develops a multifaceted character by transforming Ichiko from a collateral victim into an accomplice. ‘A Girl Missing’ highlights the importance of knowing when to speak up and when to stay silent.”
“‘Ham on Rye’ has an inescapably student film-y vibe, a bit like a wannabe Richard Linklater joint but without any of the ambition, grit or intelligence.”
“‘The Hill’ charts a path forward for Lumet’s justice films, which increasingly depart from the idealism of ’12 Angry Men’ and reckon deeply with the justice system’s contradictory, irreconcilable principles.”
“Writer-director Lulu Wang finds inventive ways to freshen up the terminal cancer tale in ‘The Farewell,’ a worthwhile diversion to so much summer blockbuster fare.”
“A sense of restlessness began to be addressed tentatively, and was confronted with increasing boldness as the decade progressed. Battles were being waged on multiple fronts of this unacknowledged war, claims were being sought from historically neglected constituents.”