Category: Film Festivals

Director/actor Nnamdi Asomugha’s THE KNIFE is a breathtaking thriller that takes place over one night at a black family’s home after an intruder is stabbed, presumably by the patriarch played by Asomugha.  Melissa Leo is so good as the unlikable detective interrogating the family, she would be contending for an Academy Award nomination if this […]

Naomi Jaye’s DARKEST MIRIAM is as quirky as one would expect from a film executive produced by Charlie Kaufman. Britt Lower’s mild mannered Miriam has a mundane life working as a librarian dealing with the same characters every day. Things take a turn when she starts a relationship with Tom Mercier’s cab driver Janko.  It […]

In Fernando Andres’ lighthearted queer comedy RENT FREE, best friends Jordan and Ben are broke and make a plan to spend a year living rent free in Austin. Your level of enjoyment will depend on your sense of humor and how likeable or tolerable you find the main characters.  In addition to directing and co-writing […]

Susanne Rostock’s FOLLOWING HARRY can be seen as a sequel to her 2011 film Sing Your Song, which covered Harry Belafonte’s contributions to civil rights movement.  The new film contains plenty of footage from the last 12 years of his life and concentrates on how he inspires a new generation of activists who follow in […]

Oliver Murray’s THEY ALL CAME OUT TO MONTREUX tells the story of the legendary jazz festival and its founder Claude Nobs. The biggest reason for excitement is the archival footage of performances from Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, Nina Simone, Prince, Ray Charles, and others, many of which are more than just snippets. Numerous big names […]

Yasemin Samdereli’s SAMIA is the true story of the Somali Olympic runner Samia Yusuf Omar. She grew up during the Somali Civil War and had to fight oppression and stand up to militants in order to be able to train. She got into trouble for not wearing a headscarf during a competition.  Using a non-linear […]

If you’ve seen A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies, then you know what you are in for with MADE IN ENGLAND: THE FILMS OF POWELL & PRESSBURGER. Scorsese gives a masterclass on the lives and films of two of his favorite filmmakers and I can watch him talk about cinema all day.  […]

Lo-fi cosmic sci-fi SHE LOVED BLOSSOMS MORE is quite the audiovisual experience for fans of experimental cinema and/or for people who like to get high and watch films. Everyone else will likely get frustrated between moments of awe.  As you can tell from the still below, director Yannis Veslemes’ film has wonderful practical effects, the […]

Joshua Erkman’s debut feature A DESERT from the Midnight section is a bone chilling exercise in horror. Its slow, meditative start accompanied by Ty Segall’s jazz fusion score and She Dies Tomorrow cinematographer Jay Keitel’s terrific visuals makes its sudden burst of intensity all the more shocking. It’s stuff nightmares are made of. Erkman is […]