Mohammad Rasoulof keeps his political critique subtle in this early drama set almost completely on a rusting hulk of an oil tanker in the Persian Gulf.
Continue readingIron Island (جزیره آهنی)(2005)
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Poor Things (2023)
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Such a relief! I thought this latest English language feature by Yorgos Lanthimos might have his incisive gaze diminished by Hollywood capitalism but it is on par with some of his early gems, albeit with a more inspiring, less bleak ending.
Continue readingThe Trouble With Jessica (2023)
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Director Matt Winn riffs off Hitchcock’s The Trouble With Harry in this ‘black comedy’ that modernises the vicissitudes of collective guilt and self interest.
Continue readingThe Lesson (2023)
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Director Alice Troughton has a TV pedigree; she directed two of my favourite Doctor Who episodes – The Doctor’s Daughter and the iconic Midnight.
Continue readingSaltburn (2023)
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Emerald Fennell gives us Brideshead Revisited and The Talented Mr. Ripley dragged screaming into a fantastical modern world where desire perverts everything.
Continue readingThe Royal Hotel (2023)
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Director Kitty Green has some worthy documentary subjects under her belt and it’s no surprise that the excellent Hotel Coolgardie (2016) inspired her in this outback noir fictionalisation.
Continue readingVerdigris (2023)
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This is a lovely story about friendships that can form across class divides and provide safety and salvation for women experiencing coercive control.
Continue readingStolen (2023)
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This deeply affecting Irish documentary delves into the history of the institutionalisation of pregnant women from the 1920s to the 90s by various Irish institutions including the Mother and Baby Homes and Magdalene Laundries.
Continue readingHead Wind (باد دبور) (2008)
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ACMI in Melbourne is running a retrospective of the films of Mohammad Rasoulof, an Iranian director who has made some of my favourite films (Manuscripts Don’t Burn, A Man of Integrity, There is No Evil).
Continue readingDream Scenario (2023)
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Kristoffer Borgli (sick of myself 2022) takes a delightful premise and then drains it of joy and drama.
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