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review
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Deals with the topic of gender with all the nuance you would expect today from a white feminist born in the 1960s, especially one coming from nobility. But at least the animation is nice.
2025
29 entries tagged 2025
review
The Testament of Ann Lee
While I appreciate that the duo behind this took some stylistic creative choices to depict the ecstatic nature of their communal rituals, I am clearly not this film's target audience. To me, it ultimately came of as superficial, unfocused, aimless and ultimately just downright boring.
review
It Was Just An Accident
I did enjoy this and given the context of the director think it is a valiant work, but do have some gripes with it.
review
Arco
Loved the environmental metaphors, the bumbling trio of loveable up-to-no-goods, the brilliant French comic inspired artwork, the retro future designs, and even made me sympathetic to the working class robots.
review · Berlinale
Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die
Entertaining and pretty much what I had hoped Mickey 17 would have been, even if it's at times just a modern reimagining of Terry Gilliam's 12 Monkeys.
review
Kokuho
Narratively doesn't reach uncharted territory and definitely has some flaws in its plot progression but I'm just a sucker for these types of stories and it more or less hit the same notes for me as Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū did. Could have definitely benefited from developing its female characters though.
review
Sirāt
Ambitious in its bleak, oppressive portrayal of decisions gone wrong and a group of tortured souls in way over their head as the whole world around them keeps falling apart.
review
Die My Love
Ostensibly deals with postpartum depression from a grounded female gaze but instead repeats old tropes of manic pixie female hysteria with an embarrassing amount of feral Lawrence crawling on the ground but make it sexy scenes? Postpartum depression but actually she still really loves and cares for the baby, it's the dog that overstimulates her really.
review
The Smashing Machine
It's by no means Raging Bull or The Wrestler, but Safdie's directorial vision and Belgian composer Sinephro's soundtrack elevates what otherwise could have been another overly dramatized run-of-the-mill biopic.