Das Lehrerzimmer (The Teachers’ Lounge) – Film Review | Berlinale 2023

When one of her students is suspected of theft, teacher Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch – The Crown, Babylon Berlin) decides to get to the bottom of the matter. Caught between her ideals and the school system, the consequences of her actions threaten to break her. With Das Lehrerzimmer, Ilker Çatak directs his most accessible film, …

Unicorn Boy – Film Review | Slamdance 2023

“You can’t expect all good with no gross.” Life in Los Angeles for artist Matt Kiel has been pretty bad lately. After the end of a relationship has left them in a rather down state and a less than calculated attempt at reconciliation went unmentioned, Matt is feeling lost and aimless. Coffee with their friend …

Slow – Film Review | Sundance 2023

Marija Kavtaradze’s second feature film, tells the story of two people falling in love in their own way. When dancer Elena (Greta Grinevičiūtė) meets sign language interpreter Dovydas (Kęstutis Cicėnas), these two very different individuals instantly connect in an unspoken manner. The invisible sparks tighten the air between them, inevitably pulling these two opposites towards …

Bones of Crows – Film Review | TIFF 2022

Montreal, 1942 World War II is well underway in Europe. The day he is put on a train to go fight in London, Adam (Phillip Lewitski) marries Aline (Grace Dove) moments before they are separated. Aline goes back to work as a Morse code operator. After graduating from the academy, she is sent over to …

Luxembourg, Luxembourg – Film Review | La Biennale di Venezia 2022

Based on an important event in director Antonio Lukich’s life, Luxembourg, Luxembourg tells the story of twin brothers Kolya & Vasya setting out on a journey to see their long-absent father, who’s found sick in Luxembourg, one last time. Everyone has a different bond with their parents, but when a parent leaves early on in …

Spre Nord (To The North) – Film Review | La Biennale di Venezia 2022

Romanian director Mihai Mincan debuts his first feature fiction film at Venice Film Festival this year. An ambitious story based on true events that happened almost twenty years ago, but still feel just as relevant today. The film opens with two men in wild waters, grasping onto floating barrels. They look petrified, and most likely …

Ti mangio il cuore (Burning Hearts) – Film Review | La Biennale di Venezia 2022

An old feud between two rival families is rekindled by a forbidden love: the one between Andrea (Francesco Patanè), reluctant heir of the Malatesta, and Marilena (Elodie), beautiful wife of the boss of the Camporeale clan. A fatal passion that sets the two clans at war again. But Marilena, banished by the Camporeale and prisoner …

Blanquita – Film Review | La Biennale di Venezia 2022

Blanca, an 18-year-old foster home resident, is the key witness in a scandal involving kids, politicians and rich men taking part in sex parties. Yet, the more questions are asked, the less clear it becomes what Blanca’s role in the scandal exactly is. Blanquita is based on a year- long investigation of the ‘Spiniak Case’, …

Eternal Spring – Film Review | Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2022

In March 2002, a state TV station in China was hijacked by members of the outlawed spiritual group Falun Gong. Their goal was to counter the government narrative about their practice. In the aftermath, police raids sweep Changchun City, and comic book illustrator Daxiong, a Falun Gong practitioner, is forced to flee. He arrives in …

Waterman – Film Review | Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2022

As someone who isn’t familiar with the world of surfing, this documentary about five-time Olympic medalist and Native Hawaiian Duke Paoa Kahanamoku was a revealing and beyond inspiring viewing that defies time and legacy. Majestically narrated by Jason Momoa, the film takes us on a journey through the many highlights of Duke’s professional life. He’s …