Yes, the synopsis for this debut film by Yusuke Iwasaki film in the festival program said it was a darkly comedic horror but for some reason that hadn’t really sunk in.
Continue readingAnyMart (チルド) (2026)
StandardYesterday the Eye Didn’t Sleep (البارح العين ما نامت) (2026)
Standard
What a debut feature! Rakan Mayasi has crafted a film about a little known culture (in my country) that feels like scripted drama but was made collaboratively with Bedouin communities and the film’s many non-actors.
Continue readingWho Are You, Polly Magoo? (1966)
Standard
It’s hard to know how to appreciate films that are so much of their time. This film by William Klein, who is more often known as a fashion photographer, was made in the 60s as a satire of the fashion industry.
Continue readingFatherland (Ojczyzna) (2026)
Standard
This feels like a perfectly crafted film. As my friend Ariel said, not a single second is wasted. And at only 82 minutes, it shows how well you can tell a story without making it an epic.
Continue readingBig Girls Don’t Cry (2026)
Standard
Seeing the Australian premiere of Paloma Schneideman’s first feature film meant the audience was keyed up for a good time, laughing at every joke.
Continue readingHair, Paper, Water… (Tóc, Giấy và Nước…) (2026)
Standard
I swapped into this one at the last minute, not really knowing much about it but feeling that spending 70 minutes in Vietnam might be a nice way to spend a Wednesday afternoon.
Continue readingTime and Water (2026)
Standard
People die, glaciers die, here’s some more footage of my family. Perhaps if I’d been less tired, I might have sunk into Sara Dosa’s cyclical story of climate change and the inevitability of loss.
Continue readingRoya (2026)
Standard
I felt duty bound to see this film by Mahnaz Mohammadi, supporting the sisterhood by going to see a film that said from the outset that it was about a woman being tortured in an Iranian prison.
Continue readingElephants in the Fog (तिनीहरू) (2026)
Standard
One in a Million (2026)
Standard
This well balanced and nonjudgemental documentary captures a rare thing. Following a Syrian family precariously fleeing Turkey in 2015, the filmmakers follow 11 year-old Israa and her family over a period of 10 years.
Continue reading
