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It was the topic that drew me to this documentary. Natsuki grew up in Japan, assigned a boy at birth but always feeling like a girl. As an adult, she narrates her early life at school and the challenges of admitting, and being accepted for, who she really is. Interspersed with reenacted drama, this is an engaging story that teaches us about gender identity and expression in Japan, and leaves us pondering about gender roles in relationships. Continue reading
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A fitting film to review during White Ribbon Week, Hotel Coolgardie is a low budget but beautifully realised documentary about the brutal and misogynistic culture that proudly exists in outback Australian mining towns. Continue reading
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This unusually constructed documentary is an illustrated recitation of the words of James Baldwin, American writer and social critic. It begins with a letter to his agent about an idea to write the stories of Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, and Malcolm X, all men who are outspoken about civil rights and all assassinated in the 60s. Continue reading
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On the surface, this is a charming and adept musical odyssey of Scottish folk music. Aidan Moffat, lead singer of band Arab Strap that gained some fame in the 90s, has developed an interest in traditional ballads. Continue reading
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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
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This whimsical and warm-hearted documentary tracks an inspired partnership, road trip and friendship between street artist JR and French New Wave cinema director Agnès Varda. #MIFF2017 Continue reading
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Do you love cats? Do you really love cats? If so, you’ll like this Turkish documentary about the many cats of Istanbul and the people who love them. Continue reading
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“I got hurt feelings, I got hurt feelings,” so sing Jermaine and Brett, of Flight of the Conchords, and, in the case of Russian punk activists, Pussy Riot, so did the Russian Orthodox Church. Continue reading
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This inoffensive hagiography of Australian actor Heath Ledger gathers handfuls of his family and friends to tell us what a good bloke he was. Combined with home movie footage shot by Heath, who obsessively documented his life, we build a picture of a talented young man with a generous heart and an unchecked manic energy that more or less guaranteed he would burn brightly but not for long. He died at age 28 of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs. Continue reading
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This stunningly crafted documentary, ostensibly about the European refugee crisis, won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. Without narration, context nor exposition other than a few paragraphs before it starts, the film juxtaposes the quiet life of the inhabitants of the island of Lampedusa with the horrific plight of those attempting to cross from Africa to Europe. Continue reading
