Film Reviews

Enough is Enough: Catastrophe in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Wed, 27 May 2026 04:28:08 GMT

The scramble for these resources has resulted in the decades of civil war, with various groups and armed bands seeking to gain control of territory.

First They Came for My College: Right-wing “human dust” mount takeover of New College of Florida

Thu, 21 May 2026 03:56:18 GMT

Bresnan’s film sets out the sordid details of this far-right maneuver in all its repulsive transparency.

90 years of Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times

Wed, 13 May 2026 01:39:43 GMT

Released under tumultuous social, political and economic circumstances, Chaplin’s movie retains the artistic, cultural, political and social significance it had in 1936.

Chavín de Huántar: The Rescue of the Century: A film of reactionary propaganda for Peru’s military

Fri, 08 May 2026 00:10:03 GMT

The social and political issues are deliberately ignored in order to present the rescue operation as a binary struggle between the “heroic” army and a guerrilla force that is the enemy of the entire nation.

Two Prosecutors: A stubborn young lawyer confronts the criminal methods of the Stalinist bureaucracy

Mon, 04 May 2026 02:05:19 GMT

Many thousands of devoted revolutionaries, including most of the leaders of the October 1917 Revolution, were put to death between 1936 and 1938 by the counterrevolutionary bureaucracy.

Inside Amir: Tehran, before US and Israeli bombs rained down...

Sat, 02 May 2026 03:22:12 GMT

One can’t help but wondering after two months of war and countless waves of bombing, and thousands of civilian deaths: Does that neighborhood still look like this?

Ricky and Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo): “Society is also something real...”

Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:04:07 GMT

The two films present some of the same problems, some of the same problems that a good number of American (and not simply American) “small,” “realist” dramas exhibit.

The consequences of extreme exploitation – Enjoy Your Stay and I Understand Your Displeasure

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:57:31 GMT

Both films underscore a central truth: under capitalism, personal decisions can be so severely restricted that they become almost irrelevant.

Gore Verbinski’s Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die–The solution to the world’s problems? Infect everyone with anti-technology allergy

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 02:43:23 GMT

It is a dreadful work. A libel against humanity, humanity returned the favor by largely staying away in droves.

Project Hail Mary—a hopeful (but somewhat wishful) adventure

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 02:14:42 GMT

The overall result is a charming but cartoonish pastiche that, while broadly appealing, falls short of its ambition to be a truly insightful film

Scenario (Szenario): A documentary normalises German militarism

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 01:20:44 GMT

The director says she had “real images of war in her mind” while filming and wonders about “what context I see them”—but “context” is precisely what is missing from her film.

Berlinale Retrospective: A look back at the fall of the Berlin Wall—“Lost in the 90s”

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 01:12:16 GMT

The burning problems of the present day, genocidal wars, dictatorship and increasing social decline, bring to mind the claims made in the period immediately following the end of the Cold War.

Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights: Is this all that we can expect?

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:07:02 GMT

The force, the genius, of Emily Brontë’s novel is totally absent, wholly unexplored in this adaptation.

More Berlinale short films: Cosmonauts, With a Kind Regard, Graft Versus Host

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 23:24:14 GMT

In the face of official prejudice and indifference, filmmakers fight for solidarity and compassion in a series of short films at the Berlin film festival.

Berlinale short films: A search for social cohesion and direction in a world full of war and disasters

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 02:28:12 GMT

The selection, which also included animations, offered some whimsical pieces, many focused on individual emotions, as well as thoughtful explorations of social and historical issues.

Gus Van Sant’s Dead Man’s Wire: Rage at a rigged system

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 02:55:05 GMT

Van Sant has said the story interested him because it echoes today’s anger at corporate greed and financial institutions.

The Secret Agent—the dictatorship as an “open wound in Brazilian life”

Mon, 16 Mar 2026 22:35:36 GMT

The portrait of a ruling class marked by an absolute contempt for collective interests, culture, and human life is the strongest and most universal aspect of Mendonça’s film.

Blind in the right eye – Prosecution – and a documentary about German dramatist Einar Schleef

Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:57:56 GMT

In an interview, the film’s young director correctly noted: “We can’t really understand the German judicial system without taking its Nazi past into account."

A warning against dictatorship: Berlinale’s main prize winner Yellow Letters—and more government censorship at the festival

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 03:00:17 GMT

The German-Turkish-French co-production Yellow Letters by Ilker Çatak is a powerful warning against the threat of censorship and state oppression, including in Germany and other countries.

German government declares “no politics” at the Berlinale ... unless it’s the politics of the government

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 03:38:49 GMT

The films reviewed here are collaborations between Israeli and Arab filmmakers and actors seeking to come to grips with the catastrophic consequences of Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people.

Increasing social criticism in Berlin and a new, committed tone of film realism: The Red Hangar from Chile

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 23:35:02 GMT

A growing number of younger filmmakers are turning their attention to history and the current threats to human relationships posed by war, state repression, fascist violence and extreme exploitation.

Hamnet, Hamlet and the demanding effort “to show the very age and body of the time”

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 04:37:03 GMT

The film is built around the family life of playwright William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway in Stratford-upon-Avon in the 1590s and the death of their 11-year-old son.

Marty Supreme: A table tennis star’s frantic fight for fame

Sat, 21 Feb 2026 02:34:22 GMT

This movie uses the technique of “propulsive filmmaking,” while viewing the experience of Jews in America through the lens of identity politics.

Sentimental Value: We will have to take their word for it

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 03:52:44 GMT

The movie has been nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best International Feature Film.

The Voice of Hind Rajab: A harrowing account of the killing of a Palestinian child

Tue, 17 Feb 2026 03:13:37 GMT

The film dramatizes the scene in the Red Crescent office, but uses the actual audio recording of Hind’s phone call—hence its title.

No Other Choice from South Korea: Doesn’t “necessity knows no law” cut both ways?

Fri, 06 Feb 2026 04:06:38 GMT

The film is inspired by Donald Westlake’s 1997 novel The Ax, previously adapted as a film by Greek-French film director Costa-Gavras in 2005.

Noah Baumbach’s Jay Kelly: A veteran film star undergoes a crisis

Mon, 19 Jan 2026 04:36:55 GMT

Baumbach satirizes the failings of the contemporary movie industry and mocks the self-involvement of prominent performers.

Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk: Portrait of a young Palestinian artist targeted for death by the IDF

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 01:27:23 GMT

Gaza journalists, like Fatima, face extreme, often fatal, risks under blockade and during assaults, including murder, injury, harassment and starvation while trying to report.

Sarah Friedland’s Familiar Touch: A character study of a woman with dementia

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 01:29:54 GMT

Kathleen Chalfant stands out, as she must, considering the theme of the movie. Now 81 years old, she is known for decades of work in film, television and especially theater.

Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind: “Honestly, I don’t think you’ve thought things through enough”

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 05:26:46 GMT

It impresses the viewer primarily as a criticism of the self-involvement and self-delusion of a certain masculine type.

Film, television and trends and events in art and culture in 2025

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 05:29:17 GMT

It was inevitable that new tensions should find expression in artists’ work and erupt as well as within existing industries and institutions

Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon: Rodgers and Hart, without much music

Sat, 27 Dec 2025 02:24:38 GMT

In this depiction of the end of Lorenz Hart’s career and his life, his legacy gets short-changed.

Russians at War: An honest portrayal of the people inside Russia’s military

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 04:37:05 GMT

Trofimova’s documentary rejects the bogus narrative peddled by US imperialism and its Canadian and European allies about “Putin’s unprovoked war,” and gives voice to the ordinary Russian soldiers the Western media has systematically dehumanized.

Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt: Zero net displacement on a flat plane

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 03:30:55 GMT

It sets out the various sides in an episode where a sexual assault has been alleged with such even-handedness that drawing larger conclusions is challenging.

Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein: The latest film interpretation of Mary Shelley’s novel

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 03:12:25 GMT

Del Toro’s Frankenstein is a visually imaginative work to some extent with a number of urgent and disturbing sequences and an overall gravitas.

Nuremberg: Where does fascist barbarism come from?

Mon, 01 Dec 2025 03:05:00 GMT

The film gives a largely accurate account of the Nuremberg Trials of 1945-46, but it seeks the cause of the Nazis’ crimes in their individual psychology.

American authoritarianism in Anniversary: It does happen here

Thu, 27 Nov 2025 04:18:09 GMT

The film is among a number of recent works that address—or attempt to address—the burning question of mass state repression and fascism.

Bugonia: The latest film from Yorgos Lanthimos—“All that’s been done to us … We’re setting that right again”

Thu, 20 Nov 2025 02:46:31 GMT

Two cousins, in an act of revenge, kidnap a successful, powerful corporate executive and hold her captive in their basement.

Palestine 36: Britain’s brutal suppression of the Palestinians during the 1936-39 Arab Revolt

Tue, 18 Nov 2025 20:09:51 GMT

The mass Palestinian uprising, its defeat and the expulsion and imprisonment of its leaders at the hands of the British army is largely unknown outside the Middle East, particularly in Britain itself.

The Disappearance of Josef Mengele: An outstanding film about the Nazi war criminal in exile

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 07:06:28 GMT

The film by Russian director Kirill Serebrennikov, currently showing in German cinemas, is an outstanding work that nevertheless leaves viewers with a feeling of perplexity.

A House of Dynamite: Kathryn Bigelow’s film about the danger of nuclear war

Fri, 07 Nov 2025 03:38:39 GMT

If one is prepared to suspend one’s disbelief to an extent, A House of Dynamite has genuine value in evoking the horrifying threat of nuclear warfare.

French filmmaker Olivier Assayas’ Suspended Time: Did “time stand still” during the height of the pandemic?

Wed, 05 Nov 2025 05:52:23 GMT

Two brothers and their girlfriends are confined to the brothers’ family home in the countryside southwest of Paris.

Pike River film whitewashes Labour Party and union’s role in New Zealand mine disaster

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 03:59:27 GMT

The film rewrites history to promote the Labour Party and the union bureaucracy, obscuring their role both in the 2010 mine disaster, which killed 29 people, and in the ongoing cover-up.

Charlie Chaplin’s The Gold Rush: A century after its release

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 23:13:29 GMT

In creating his Little Tramp character, Chaplin took a social type that was reviled by official bourgeois society—the vagrant, the unemployed man, the person without property—and turned him into arguably the most beloved character in the world.

Apocalypse in the Tropics: A limited analysis of religion and politics in Brazil

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 02:06:10 GMT

The documentary has attracted an audience seeking to understand the rise of Bolsonaro in Brazil, but it ignores the role played by the Workers Party (PT) of President Lula.

Orwell: 2+2=5–Raoul Peck’s film about George Orwell and contemporary events

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 03:51:53 GMT

What is one to make of the events referenced to in 2+2=5, many of them disturbing or even horrifying? And what is to be done about them?

Eddington: Lost in the desert

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 02:38:02 GMT

A filmmaker seeking to dramatize the explosive political climate in 2020 would be faced with significant artistic challenges, but also major opportunities.

One Battle After Another: Paul Thomas Anderson’s drama of rebellion and repression

Sat, 04 Oct 2025 03:17:22 GMT

Whatever the weaknesses and confused or poorly developed elements, Anderson deserves full credit for making an appalled and outspoken film

King Vidor’s World War I film The Big Parade at 100

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 01:46:24 GMT

With its soldier's eye view, realistic depiction of battle and rejection of national chauvinism, the film departed significantly from previous treatments of the imperialist slaughter.

Ethan Coen’s Honey Don’t!: A private detective sets to work in “non-glamorous” California

Sat, 20 Sep 2025 02:57:15 GMT

Generally, "neo-noir" efforts have little of the urgency, social bite or purposefulness of the earlier films.