By Amir Ganjavie. Taklub (2015, “Trap”), the most recent movie from Filipino filmmaker Brillante Mendoza, represents the lives of three families after the devastating Typhoon Yolanda. Here the established director uses his artistic tools to raise awareness about climate change and although it is a government-funded project, he has managed […]
“Graphic” Words and Feeling: Thomas Farone on Aftermath (2013)
June 8, 2015
By Paul Risker. Following the success at Raindance with his 2003 directorial feature debut Nate Dogg, filmmaker Thomas Farone has once again stepped behind the camera to direct his sophomore feature Aftermath (2013). More than a decade after his first dalliance with feature filmmaking he constructs a cause-and-effect narrative that’s infused […]
Framing Africa: Portrayals of a Continent in Contemporary Mainstream Cinema (2013)
June 7, 2015
A Book Review by Martin Stollery. Framing Africa is a succinct book, academic in orientation, accessible in writing style, lacking illustrations, but graced with an arresting jacket design. Across an introduction and seven chapters, all but one of them focusing on a single example, Nigel Eltringham and his contributors survey […]
Nuns on the Bus: Radical Grace (2015)
June 5, 2015
By Elias Savada. Before Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected the ultimately enlightened Pope Francis in March 2013, there were a lot of misguided steps taken on behalf of the Catholic Church by his predecessors. While the mishandling of clerical sexual abuse scandals created too many embarrassing headlines, it was the […]
FilmInt on the Underground: Michael Fredianelli and the Grittiness of Genre
June 4, 2015
FilmInt on the Underground is a new blog dedicated to emerging filmmakers. By April L. Smith. An interest in classic and obscure films led director Michael Fredianelli to filmmaking. While working in an office, Fredianelli set a goal of completing one half hour short per month during the weekends. He admits […]
San Andreas: The Empty Catastrophe
June 3, 2015
By Christopher Sharrett. “Today it is easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism.” – Quote attributed to Fredric Jameson, or Slavoj Zizek, or J.G. Ballard, or perhaps an urban legend. “It’s quite enjoyable to watch things being destroyed, sequence after sequence of […]
Survival and Stubbornness: Grimur Hákonarson on Rams (2015)
June 3, 2015
By Amir Ganjavie. Rams (2015), an Icelandic drama directed by Grimur Hákonarson, received the prize for the best movie in the Certain Regard category of Cannes Film Festival. The movie tells the story of two peculiar, single brothers who have spent forty years not talking to each other, despite being neighbors […]
Remorse in Short Supply: Peace Officer (2015)
June 1, 2015
By Elias Savada. William J. “Dub” Lawrence should not be smiling. And yet his bright teeth light up the screen in the mesmerizing, exceedingly well-structured documentary Peace Officer from Scott Christopherson and Brad Barber, a startlingly impressive first feature. His exuberant confidence disarms you, despite some dour opening remarks (“I […]
Tribeca 2015 Festival Report
May 31, 2015
By Michael Miller. The 14th Tribeca Film Festival unspooled April 15-26 at multiple venues in Manhattan. Notable this year is the fest’s major presence in the Financial District downtown; a very short walk from the World Trade Center memorial site. Ten screens were in use at the Regal Battery Park […]
An Intriguing Population of 94: Uncertain (2015)
May 30, 2015
By Elias Savada. The new film from Ewan McNicol and Anna Sandilands begins like a mystery. It’s a dark night. A lone flashlight scans the Cypress trees and Irish moss of a murky lake, as insects flit about, their buzzing intensifying to an uneasy cacophony of unsettling noise. Uncertain isn’t […]