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The sublime Daniela Vega holds the screen from start to end in this delicate exploration of marginalisation and grief. Continue reading
A Fantastic Woman (2017)
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Free and Easy (2017)
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This quirky fable about modern day China charmed me with its surreal drollness and allowed a few quiet moments for a catnap. Continue reading
Starstruck (1982)
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“He’s got body, he’s got soul, I’m torn apart without him…” I knew every word of every song and I was itching to get up and dance during the Pioneering Women screening of this delightful and very Australian musical. Continue reading
Japanese Girls Never Die (a.k.a.Haruko Azumi is Missing) (2017)
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Daigo Matsui directed Wonderful World End (MIFF 2015) and Our Huff and Puff Journey (MIFF 2016), both films I enjoyed for their mix of kawaii cuteness with social gravitas. Japanese Girls Must Die treads a similar path but feels more laboured and less whimsical in its telling. Continue reading
Yourself and Yours (2016)
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This is rather delicate and oddball offering from Korean director Hong Sang-soo poses more questions than it answers but provides enough threads to pull together into a satisfying exploration of love and relationships. Continue reading
The Song Keepers (2017)
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Naina Sen’s radiant documentary about the funny and spirited women (and a few men) of the Central Australian Aboriginal Women’s Choir stole my heart. Continue reading
Human Traces (2017)
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This surprising New Zealand drama set on a remote sub-antarctic island focuses on three separate view points of one story. Continue reading
Happy End (2017)
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I’m used to Michael Haneke dramas dealing a devastating blow as the credits roll (The White Ribbon, The Piano Teacher) so I was unprepared for the droll humour and light hand of this study of a wealthy French family struggling to let go of the past. Continue reading
Shame (1988)
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Although, in the telling, this pivotal 1988 movie about rural rape culture seems extreme, it unfortunately has not lost its resonance today. Continue reading
Nocturama (2016)
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This French drama, touted as being one of the most divisive films of MIFF 2017, was absorbing but ultimately lacked the punch I expected. Continue reading
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