Film Festival reviews, interviews, and podcast episodes.
NYAFF 2022: Terrorizers (2021)
Written by Alexander Reams
“It’s not until the 21-minute mark that we see the emotion that gives this film its name, terror, we know the attack is coming, it’s been advertised and frequently shown in plot descriptions. An attack on a young couple…”
TIFF 2022: The Umbrella Men
Written by Alexander Reams
“The heist genre is one of the most versatile genres, from the class drama in “Widows” to the quasi-musical “Baby Driver,” it’s a very versatile genre, there are no caveats to a heist movie, all that’s needed is the will and the bravado to pull one over on the audience…”
Bentonville Film Festival 2022: The Seven Faces of Jane
Written by Anna Harrison
“As a movie, “The Seven Face of Jane” leaves something (a lot, in fact) to be desired, though this is hardly surprising. With eight directors directing a movie, none of whom are told anything about the movie except for what pertains to their scenes…”
Fantasia 2022: A Life on the Farm
Written by Anna Harrison
“It’s lucky that Harding—a first-time feature director—found an interesting subject, because the clutter that he adds around Carson can’t hold a candle to the man himself…”
NYAFF 2022: The Girl on a Bulldozer
Written by Patrick Hao
“The title “The Girl on a Bulldozer” is an evocative image, one that filmmaker, Park Ri-woong, relies heavily on in his debut feature. The image of a petite woman handling such a large, unwieldy machine with so much destructive power.”
Fantasia 2022: Please Baby Please
Written by Anna Harrison
“If you take “West Side Story” and Kenneth Anger, put them together in an enclosure for long enough and let them get to know each other super well, a stork will one day deposit “Please Baby Please” at your front door…”
Tribeca 2022: McEnroe
Written by Taylor Baker
““McEnroe” is largely what its title suggests, a look at the performance, antics, and legend of John McEnroe in his own words. With some brief asides by his children, brother, wife, Billie Jean King, and a handful of…”
NYAFF 2022: Nothing Serious
Written by Patrick Hao
“Jeon Ga-young has been positioning herself as the next generation’s Hong Sang-soo with a trintet of meta films starring herself as a filmmaker seeking romance. So it is particularly interesting to see her break into a more conventional Hollywood-esque romantic comedy in…”
Tribeca 2022: Blessed Boys
Written by Anna Harrison
“Catholic guilt is one hell of a drug, no more so than in Silvia Brunelli’s feature debut, “Blessed Boys…””
Bentonville 2022: Mixtape Trilogy: Stories of the Power of Music
Written by Maria Athayde
“Written and directed by Kathleen Ermitage “Mixtape Trilogy: Stories of the Power of Music” was an incredible surprise. In the past few years, I have been increasingly jaded with music documentaries. They are either puff pieces or exercises in self-aggrandizement…”
Fantasia 2022: My Grandfather’s Demons
Written by Alexander Reams
“…Beato crafted the early scenes immaculately, making everything feel well grounded before bringing supernatural elements came in. “
Fantasia 2022: Glorious
Written by Anna Harrison
“Rest stop bathrooms are, historically, very frightening, very gross places, and no more so than in “Glorious,” Rebekah McKendry’s second feature…”
Tribeca 2022: Mars One (Marte Um)
Written by Maria Athayde
“This slice-of-life family drama navigates the complexities of family life in a country that, more often than not, is plagued by social and political uncertainty. With subtlety, the director can weave a narrative that is in part humorous and aspirational and in part…”
NYAFF 2022: Dealing with Dad
Written by Patrick Hao
“Writer-director Tom Huang’s personal piece “Dealing with Dad” is a frustrating movie to watch. It focuses on the issues that first-generation Taiwanese American children have with their stern, domineering fathers. It is well-trodden territory that is made even more beguiling by…”
NYAFF 2022: #LookAtMe
Written by Patrick Hao
“Ken Kwek has always been a provocateur in his home country of Singapore so it is only natural that the relationship between artists and government censorship is constantly on his mind. His image of Singapore is almost dystopian in his second feature “#LookAtMe”. While the city is…”
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