Based on the novella by Johan Theorin, Swedish filmmaker Frida Kempff's unsettling debut feature Knocking (or Knackningar in Swedish, such a delicious word) which played Outfest LA 2021 on Saturday night, is a sophisticated psychological horror and a masterclass in tension, spare dialogue, and intricate sound design. At its centre is a compelling performance by... Continue Reading →
Jonas Poher Rasmussen's remarkable Flee world premiered at Sundance 2021, winning the festival's World Cinema Grand Jury Prize for Documentary. As the film opens a caption tells us that this a true story and that some of the names have been changed to protect the subjects' anonymity. In present day Copenhagen, Denmark we meet 36... Continue Reading →
Last night's Sundance Film Festival awards ceremony, hosted by actor and comedian Patton Oswalt on great form coming live from his home screening room, saw CODA, Summer Of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised), and Hive all receive multiple honours, with wins for festival favourite LGBTQ+ features Flee (The World Cinema Grand... Continue Reading →
Thanks to the programmers of Sundance's New Frontiers section for giving me the best night out I've had since last March (without having to leave my apartment or get out of my pyjamas) with creator-writer-star Jibz Cameron and director Mariah Garnett's Weirdo Night. Acknowledging, but not dwelling on, the lack of audience in the room... Continue Reading →
UPDATE: The Sparks Brothers is released in US theaters Friday June 18th, 2021. BAFTA-nominated British filmmaker Edgar Wright, known for his adept and creative use of music in movies like Baby Driver and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, has devoted several years to making his feature documentary debut about his favourite band, Sparks. Whether you're... Continue Reading →
Part of Sundance 2021's Spotlight program, director Mona Fastvold's Queer Lion-winning The World to Come, adapted from a short story by Jim Shepard, immerses us in the bleak daily life of a contemplative mid-nineteenth century woman, Abigail (Katherine Waterston), living on the stark, unforgiving Northeastern frontier with her husband Dyer (Casey Affleck). The film opens... Continue Reading →
Filmmaker Pacho Velez, who made 2017's exceptional archive footage doc The Reagan Show, turns his camera on himself and a diverse cross-section of his fellow New Yorkers looking for dates online in Searchers. The film's effective visual conceit places us as viewers behind the screens that the subjects are looking at, as if we're curious... Continue Reading →
As twenty year-old Bella Cherry (Sofia Kappel) arrives in Los Angeles from her native Sweden she's asked by a US customs agent whether the purpose of her visit is 'business or pleasure', with her momentarily delayed reply giving director Ninja Thyberg's stunning debut feature, co-written with Peter Modestij, its title. Pleasure, which expands on Thyberg's... Continue Reading →
Based on the novella by Johan Theorin, Swedish filmmaker Frida Kempff's unsettling debut feature Knocking (or Knackningar in Swedish, such a delicious word) which premiered in the Midnight section at Sundance on Friday, is a sophisticated psychological horror and a masterclass in tension, spare dialogue, and intricate sound design. At its centre is a compelling... Continue Reading →
UPDATE: Ailey opens in New York on July 23rd, Los Angeles on July 30th and expands to theaters nationwide on August 6th via NEON. Emmy-winning director Jamila Wignot's feature documentary Ailey, which just had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, is a captivating and deeply moving portrait of the celebrated dancer and... Continue Reading →
