Week In, Week Out
Weekly collections of five mini-reviews capturing a wide range of films—old and new, obscure and iconic. A personal film journal in snapshots, offering quick, insightful takes on whatever’s been on the screen lately.
-
Movies of the Week #18 (2023)
Indulge in a diverse selection of films: the heartfelt romcom “Rye Lane”; the fantastical adventure “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves”; action-packed “John Wick: Chapter 4”; the underwhelming “Cocaine Bear”; and cult classic “The Toxic Avenger”. From witty repartees to thrilling journeys and iconic characters, these movies offer something for everyone, showcasing the power of… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #17 (2023)
Discover the world of arthouse cinema with these captivating films: Neil LaBute’s hard-hitting office romance, “In The Company of Men”; Peter Strickland’s idiosyncratic “Berberian Sound Studio”; Joanna Hogg’s intimate character study, “Exhibition”; Kôta Yoshida’s humorously provocative “Sexual Drive”; and Radu Muntean’s grounded yet eccentric “Întregalde”. Explore these engaging stories that defy convention and challenge our… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #16 (2023)
Donnie Darko (2001): Back to a classic Easter movie, Donnie Darko never ceases to amaze me (and it’s not the first time I’m reviewing it). Richard Kelly’s visionary movie keeps staying relevant, both in familiar and new ways, every time I watch it. This time around I kept focusing on Jim Cunningham, the (con)man with… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #15 (2023)
Le Otto Montagne (2022): A film on friendship, life choices and love of the mountains, The Eight Mountains is a sight to behold, even if stays on a beaten path. The movie follows two friends of the childhood summers variety, Pietro and Bruno, who reconnect in their twenties while still looking to establish themselves within… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #14 (2023)
Living (2022): A remake of a Kurosawa movie I haven’t watched (i.e. any Kurosawa movie)? Sign me up. With the original screenplay adapted by Kazuo Ishiguro, I was sure this was going to be a slow, entrancing bit of humanist cinema, set against the antihumanist backdrop of the bureaucratic machinery. So it is, as we… Read more
-
Movies of The Week #13 (2023)
Un beau matin (2022): In the skilled hands of Mia Hansen-Løve, a film with not much happening in terms of plot becomes a series of insightful snapshots of the little moments that make up life. Un beau matin is ultimately exactly that, one particular, peaceful moment in a world of turbulences, where time stands still… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #12 (2023)
The Tied Up Balloon (1967): There have been many balloon-related headlines recently, so why not check out a balloon-themed movie? This little allegorical piece by Binka Zhelyazkova takes us to a Bulgarian village where a mysterious balloon comes flying about and the locals immediately contemplate potential ways of making material use of it. The balloon… Read more
-
Review: Spre Nord (2022)
Mincan proves a patient storyteller with flair for the cinematic, be it in the wide shots of the unnerving ocean, or the claustrophobic mazes on the container-laden vessel. Anchored in particular by Cruz’s performance, To the North takes a hard look at our shared sense of humanity and finds it lacking, but for reasons that… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #11 (2023)
Decision to Leave (2022): IMDb says this is a “crime, drama, mystery” movie. Seriously, no romance? It basically portrays all my romantic conceits in a narratively enticing and visually enrapturing manner, very differently from The Handmaiden, but just as effective. The plot sounds almost banal: a detailist and sleepless detective comes across a mysterious case… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #10 (2023)
Aftersun (2022): This father-daughter holiday is a throwback to the days of Macarena and Dr. Jones, of flimsy arcades and dodgy lodgings in foreign lands and, unfortunately, of underlying trauma. The movie drips with nostalgia within the warm haze of gentle summer days, but leaves a door ajar at the other side of which an… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #9 (2023)
This week, Berlinale recap! Here (2023): At just 82 minutes, the movie is strikingly short. Especially if you get into its mood, it will lull you before you even realize it’s ending. We are so used to our urban jungles, that nature takes on ever more mystical qualities. In the world of Here, nature provides,… Read more
-
Movies of the Week #8 (2023)
Close (2022): One of this year’s contenders for Best International Picture at the Oscars, Lukas Dhont’s testament to childhood friendships and their frailty is heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. Two young teenage boys have their relationship tested by your usual high-school pressures and while we get a surface understanding of it, the movie… Read more
tributary stu 