This Korean adaptation by Chan-wook Park of the novel Fingersmith by Sarah Waters was a delightful surprise. Skipped at MIFF because it seemed a bit trivial, I discovered it is a beautiful exploration of the power of women and the many guises of oppression and truth. Continue reading
Image via thevacantpage.com
Not the Disney film. Definitely not the Disney film. This surreal meditation on the fragility of one young woman is a mannered but metaphorically profound film by Australian director Julia Leigh. Don’t expect titillation, as many seem to from a superficial reading of the synopsis; university student Lucy begins work at an exclusive club where wealthy men can spend the night with her while she is drugged asleep. Continue reading
I love film festivals. The weekend I chose to be in Melbourne, the Iranian Film festival just happened to be on. As my loyal readers will know, I have a penchant for Iranian films – Rhino Season, Manuscripts Don’t Burn, Crimson Gold, The Past, A Separation, Radio Dreams, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. And at festivals you end up seeing films you know nothing about, that will probably never get a release in Australia. A risk, yes, but a risk worth taking for this surprising film that I chose only because of its time slot and the beautiful B&W image above. Continue reading
What a beautiful and sad film. Set in Tibet, we first meet Tharlo (pronounced tarlo), or Ponytail as he is used to being called, as he recites the words of Mao Tse-tung that he learned by heart when he was nine. He speaks of death being inevitable but not all deaths being the same significance; death after serving the people is ‘heavier than Mount Tai’ but death after serving the fascists is ‘as light as a feather’. He is reciting this to the local police chief who remarks that, with such a memory, he had great promise as a child and his forty years as shepherd, building up a small living, is a waste. Continue reading
A lovely film, beautifully told, this triptych of stories directed by Kelly Reichardt (Meek’s Cutoff) immerses us in the lives of three women, played by Laura Dern, Michelle Williams and a luminous Lily Gladstone (above). Each of the three stories has a small interconnection with the others but stands alone as a meditation on loneliness and the sad reality of our inability sometimes to help others. Continue reading
I loved this Danish film. It is poignant and engaging, an exploration of ageing, relationships and the difficulty of embracing change. It centres around Anna, Erik and their teenager daughter Freja. Set in the 70s, Anna is a well-known newscaster, Erik a lecturer in architecture. When Erik’s father dies, he is left the huge house of his childhood and Anna convinces him not to sell it. Instead they will live in it and invite friends to form a commune. Continue reading
Oh boy, I loved and hated this Turkish film. It is excruciating to watch, like the Lanthimos film Dogtooth where the characters are so extreme, the story so odd and metaphorical that you are not really sure what it is you are seeing. And then the resolution is so devastating that you know you have just watched something with deep resonance. Continue reading
I cried at the end of this film, I’m not sure why. There is a quiet reverence to it and beauty that is at odds with its setting. By Singaporean director Boo Junfeng, the setting is a Malay maximum security prison where Aiman has just begun work as a guard. He seems kind, conscientious, though emotionally distant from his only sister. Soon he is taken under the wing of Rahim, the prison executioner, who teaches him how to ‘kill well’, with the least pain and the most compassion. Continue reading
I love contemporary black and white films. It’s the beauty of the tone and the other-worldliness it creates. I, Olga Hepnarova is a quiet, thoughtful film. Based on history, Olga was the last woman executed in Czechoslovakia, at the age of 22, for deliberately driving a truck along a crowded footpath. This portrayal attempts to create some context to her life and glean the psychology behind this act. Continue reading
Black and white – that adds half a star to my rating. Shallow, I know, but there is something about black and white that suffuses me with pleasure. This lovely Finnish film is about a boxer, Olli Mäki, who has the potential to be world champion, a first for Finland in 1962. That beautiful black and white camera follows Olli as he trains, grapples with the publicity and pressure and falls in love with Raija. Continue reading
