Blerta Basholli’s quiet and forceful drama about the awfulness of war and its effect on women in patriarchal small-town society is a welcome companion-piece to Strong Female Lead (2021) where we saw how hard it was to maintain respect and autonomy, even when you are the elected leader of a country.
Continue reading
With a beginning that reminded me of the doleful surrealism of Lanthimos’s The Lobster (2015), Christos Nikou gives us an unexpectedly gentle portrait of a man struggling with grief.
Continue reading
Messy, arty and wry, this mockumentary by Bill Benz weaves the true-life friendship of Carrie Brownstein and Annie Clark, stage-name St. Vincent, with a rumination on fame, identity and artifice.
Continue reading
This simple and joyful film, ostensibly about a young band trying to navigate flood waters to get to Tehran for an audition, hides a deeper meaning about the challenges for young Iranians.
Continue reading
A bitter-sweet romance that, by stealth, will show you the precariousness of living in Palestine.
Continue reading
A surprisingly wholesome, bloody revenge movie that sees a father’s suppressed rage wreak havoc when he thinks his wife’s death was part of an assassination plot.
Continue reading
A glimpse into Iran between two revolutions, Mohammad Reza Aslani’s long-lost first feature manages to meld Vermeer-like drawing-room drama with gothic horror.
Continue reading
In carefully composed black and white imagery, we watch the Soviet propaganda machine go into overdrive to cover up 1960s labour strikes and a subsequent, ill-advised massacre.
Continue reading
Reminiscent of an early Asghar Farhadi film, this tense and elegant drama by partners Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghadam explores the complexities of sacrifice and atonement in contemporary Iran.
Continue reading
Based on the real experiences of a woman seeking justice after her daughter is abducted by a Mexican cartel, Teodora Mihai’s first feature is not so much a revenge thriller as a portrait of indomitable strength amidst unimaginable tragedy.
Continue reading
fillums 