Review: VESPER, Dark Fairy Tale With Rapidly Rising Body Count
Directed by Kristina Buozyte and Bruno Samper, the eco-punk post-apocalyptic story stars Eddie Marsan and Raffiella Chapman in what is essentially a fairy tale with high production values.
Venice 2022 Review: SKIN DEEP, A Melancholic Exploration of Gender Identity
Director Alex Schaad's feature-length debut uses the subtle sci-fi concept of body-swapping to explore gender identity and body dysmorphia.
Venice 2022 Review: WORLD WAR III, Slapstick Iranian Thriller Unveils Trickling Terror
Directed by Houman Seyyedi, the wartime adventure is Iran's submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.
Venice 2022 Review: BLANQUITA, Immersive, Agile Thriller
Fernando Guzzoni directed the searing drama.
Locarno 2022 Review: NIGHTSIREN, Witch Hunts in the Modern Day
Natalia Germani stars in a bewitching mystery from Eastern Europe, directed by Tereza Nvotová.
Locarno 2022 Review: RULE 34, The Body As a Political Instrument
Lucas Andrade and Julia Bernat star in a prize-winning drama (aka 'Regra 34') from Brazil, directed by Julia Murat.
Locarno 2022 Review: ASTRAKAN, Social Allegory Disguised As Coming-of-Age Tale
In his feature-length debut, French filmmaker David Depesseville explores the strangeness and confusion of growing up during the prepubescent period. Astrakan revolves around a 12-year-old orphan named Samuel. Eventually, he ends up living with Marie and Clément, a young couple...
Locarno 2022 Review: In FAIRYTALE, Alexander Sokurov Revives Tyrants
Sokurov's disturbing and comical deepfake film is a cross-over between 'Dante's Inferno' and Samuel Beckett's 'Waiting for Godot; with the artistic sensitivity of Goya's tableaux.
Locarno 2022 Review: BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND Embraces Tired Tropes, Then Reenergizes Them
From Canada comes director Trevor Anderson's coming-of-age comedy, starring Vaughan Murrae.
Locarno 2022 Review: MEDUSA DELUXE, Single-Shot Murder Mystery Looks Dazzling
The feature-length debut by Tom Hardiman delivers a cross-over between Agatha Christie and Gaspar Noé in a single-shot murder mystery.
Review: MEDUSA, Bold Bubble-gum Horror Pastiche
After premiering her feature debut Kill Me Please in the Orrizonti section at the Venice International Film Festival in 2015, the rising Brazilian filmmaker Anita Rocha de Silveira unveiled her sophomore feature at the Cannes Film Festival in 2021. Medusa was...
Karlovy Vary 2022 Review: Quentin Dupieux Causes Chortles and Puzzlement in a Hilarious Retro Pop-Surrealist Avenger Horror Anthology SMOKING CAUSES COUGHING
The French maverick filmmaker Quentin Dupieux becomes a Beckett of pop as he tests the elasticity of meta-fictional storytelling.
Karlovy Vary 2022 Review: BORDERS OF LOVE Explores Brave New Non-Monogamous World
Polish-born Czech-based producer and filmmaker Tomasz Wiński has been preparing his feature-length debut Borders of Love for some time. Largely misunderstood by the funding institutions due to a provocative topic, the form took over the content in the eyes of...
Karlovy Vary 2022 Review: VESPER, Bio-Punk YA Euro Sci-Fi Encapsulated by Intriguing Worldmaking
Addressing a series of hot-buttoned topics, Vesper is a Jeff VanderMeer film for Gen Z.
Neuchâtel 2022 Daily: Dario Argento and DARK GLASSES, Ali Abbasi and HOLY SPIDER, Lorenz Merz and SOUL OF A BEAST
The back half of any festival can turn up some unexpected gems, as I'm sure attendees of the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival in Switzerland will discover today through Saturday, when the festive occasion wraps up. Allow me first, please,...
Tribeca 2022 Review: AMERICAN PAIN Fuels American Dream For Unlikely Pharma Bros
Darren Foster's true crime documentary reveals the hidden and ridiculous side of the opioid crisis.
Tribeca 2022 Review: MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH MARRIAGE, Animated Female Empowerment
Latvian-American animator Signe Baumane revisits her two short marriage stints and debunks the mythology of love in a semi-autobiographical feature film.
Tribeca 2022 Review: THE LOST WEEKEND: A LOVE STORY, Biography as a Footnote in Rock History
Directed by Eve Brandstein, Stuart Samuels, and Richard Kaufman, the documentary revisits an episode from rock 'n' roll history that came to be known as the Lost Weekend.
Review: APPLES, Absurdist Deadpan Parable, Greek New Wave Style
The emerging Greek director Christos Nikou is the latest guardian to keep the flame of Greek New Wave cinematic oddities smoldering. Nine years after Yorgos Lanthimos' remarkable Alps bowed on the Lido, Nikou arrives at La Biennale with Apples (original title:...
Review: FLUX GOURMET, Absurd and Hilarious Culinary Adventures
British director Peter Strickland evokes his chamber sonic horror Berberian Sound Studio in his latest work. Flux Gourmet pushes the envelope further into an absurdist direction, marking his most hilarious venture so far. After his Giallo homage in Berberian Sound Studio, Strickland...
