By Jeremy Carr. Septuagenarian grandfather Angus (Richard Dreyfuss) has harbored dreams of space since he was a child. Although the waning years of his life have generally clouded those fancies, thanks to life’s bitter two-pronged tinge of disappointment and regret, he still looks to the stars in order to “see […]
On the Border, with Soap Opera: Tel Aviv on Fire (2018)
Yun-hua Chen
July 25, 2019
By Yun-hua Chen. What would bring the two opposing sides across the Israel-Palestinian borders together? Tel Aviv on Fire’s answer is, through a popular tear-jerking soap opera and some good hummus. The film follows a naïve and melancholic young Palestinian man, Salam (Kais Nashif), who initially works as an assistant […]
The Kurious Kase of a Kinski Krimi: Riccardo Freda’s Double Face
July 24, 2019
By Rod Lott. Ah, young love! When John (enfant terrible extraordinaire Klaus Kinski) meets Helen (Margaret Lee, Venus in Furs) on holiday in 1969’s Double Face, their courtship is instant and intense, with bedding and wedding in quick succession. Within two years, predictably, the white-hot flame of love has burned […]
In the Heart of the World: Soap Opera Meets Social Realism in Brazil
Martin Kudlá?
July 22, 2019
By Martin Kudláč. The Brazilian cinema has been in the viewfinder of the International Film Festival Rotterdam for some time now and certainly for a good reason. New talents have been emerging and captivating cinema has been pouring out of the country despite the ever-increasing political turbulences. Brazilian films have been […]
Bonding vs. Protection: Jan Zabeil’s Three Peaks
July 18, 2019
By Gary M. Kramer. Made in 2017, but just getting a release now, Jan Zabeil’s Three Peaks is a flinty chamber drama set mainly in the Dolomites. And despite the spectacular mountain range location – the title refers to Aaron’s (Alexander Fehling) favorite rock formation – most of this nervy film is extremely claustrophobic. The story […]
Forbidden Desire: The Reports on Sarah and Saleem
Ali Moosavi
July 10, 2019
By Ali Moosavi. If the quality of a country’s cinema is judged on a per capita basis, then surely Palestine would be sitting at the top table. For a country boasting a population of less than five million, it has consistently been producing films of a very high standard and […]
Reconciliatory Depiction of Time: Richard Billingham’s Ray & Liz
Mina Radovic
July 10, 2019
By Mina Radovic. Richard Billingham’s debut as a director is an unjudgmental, observational, frequently difficult, and highly internalized portrait of his family. Composed to the brim, glacial but consistent in its movement of the camera, with a beautifully decaying pastel colour texture, the film follows a series of interconnected vignettes […]
All in the Method – Remembering British Television: Audience and Industry by Kristyn Gorton and Joanne Garde Hansen
July 9, 2019
A Book Review by Tony Williams. This recent monograph (Bloomsbury/BFI, 2019) aims to debate the importance of everyday TV memories involving academics, audiences, and fans, in terms of recent theoretical developments in the field of British television studies. It is an academic study in the full-sense of the term, one […]
Alone on New Adventures: Lara and Patrick (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)
Ali Moosavi
July 8, 2019
By Ali Moosavi. Two films competing for the main prizes at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Both having a person’s name as their title. Lara (Jan Ole Gerster) from Germany and Patrick (Tim Mielants) from Belgium. Lara opens with a shot of the eponymous character, alone in her bedroom, […]
A Tricky Tonal Arc: Greg Kinnear’s Phil
Michael Sandlin
July 5, 2019
By Michael Sandlin. Greg Kinnear has come a long way since his early 1990s career phase sniggering at daytime talk show freaks for E! Network’s Talk Soup. Rising through the ranks of the late-night TV circuit, he finally gained some artistic cred with a series of marquee film roles playing […]