November 11, 2024
Anora (2024) *****
Sean Baker's greatest film to date, a tarantinesque mix of "Pretty Woman" and "After Hours", starring Mikey Madison in a fearless performance as a tough-as-nails hooker who sees her Cinderella dreams crashing and burning in the most unexpected ways.
Kinds Of Kindness (2024) *****
Yorgos Lanthimos' greatest film to date, a constantly surprising cinematic puzzle of the highest order.
October 10, 2024
Flow (2024) ****
Fabulous animated feature from Latvia. It's the story of a cat whose life is upended by a massive flood, leading to an unexpected and touching alliance with a diverse group of animals: a capybara, a bird, a lemur, and a dog. Not unlike "Ponyo" (2009) and "Life Of Pi" (2012), but surprisingly different in a variety of ways.
The Seed Of The Sacred Fig (2024) ****
Set during the anti-hijab protests in Iran, it's a tense, surprising drama about an investigative judge who finds himself in a tug-of-war against his wife and two daughters. The film was secretly shot in Iran by dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof, who is now wanted by the police in his own country, where he has been sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, a fine and the confiscation of property. However, he managed to escape from Iran to attend the Cannes Film Festival, where he received a Special Award for his film.
Emilia Perez (2024) ****
Surprising and amazing French film set in Mexico, with a story straight out of a Latin American telenovela, stunning musical numbers, a powerful political message and superlative acting performances from Karla Sofia Gascon, Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldana and Adriana Paz (who all won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival).
September 9, 2024
Civil War (2024) ***
The film tries hard to hide its political message, but there are more than enough hints as to where its actual sympathies lie. Nick Offerman's president is a barely disguised Donald Trump, Jesse Plemons' genocidal soldier doesn't need to carry a tiki torch to be easily identifiable, and the numerous mentions of Charlottesville aren't subtle at all. A weird (and unlikely) alliance between Texas and California aside, it's basically an anti-MAGA allegory masquerading as an anti-war one.
August 8, 2024
Le Successeur (2024) **
French thriller set in Canada. There is one huge and memorable surprise in this film, but some of its plot twists just aren't believable.
July 7, 2024
Una Historia de amor y guerra (2024) *
Very silly Mexican comedy that tries very hard to be some kind of allegory of the tragic destiny of that country, but fails miserably.
June 6, 2024
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) ***
The fifth "Mad Max" movie. A prequel to "Mad Max: Fury Road" (2015).
May 5, 2024
Jour de chasse (2024) *
A Canadian thriller that tries so hard to make some sort of a statement about racism and sexism that it almost forgets about suspense and thrills.
Ababouiné (2024) ***
A very peculiar Canadian black comedy about a revolt of Catholic schoolchildren against their religious teachers, set in a poor Montreal neighbourhood in the 1950's. One of the best films by Andre Forcier, an enfant terrible of the French Canadian cinema.
April 4, 2024
The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent (2024) ***
Tense short film about courage. Winner of the Palm d'or for best short film at the Cannes Film Festival.
The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (2024) ***
A Halloween special with Sideshow Bob (Kelsey Grammer) singing with Simpsons, Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars characters.
March 3, 2024
Jimmy Carr: Natural Born Killer (2024) ***
"You can't go around apologizing for jokes. They're jokes. So I've got a plan. The next time I get cancelled over a joke, the next time I upset people with a joke, I'm gonna come out on the day of the cancellation, I'm gonna make a statement, a public statement. I'm gonna say, I've rehearsed this, I'm gonna say 'I'm SORRY!' And the people I've offended will say 'You don't really mean that apology.' And I'll say 'So you're saying I can say something and not mean it.' Now you're getting it."
Ancient Apocalypse: The Americas (2024) ***
A fascinating journey into the past of Easter Island, Sacsayhuaman, Pueblo Bonito, Palenque and other mysterious places.
The Perfect Couple (2024) ***
A murder mystery on Nantucket Island, starring Nicole Kidman as a novelist whose son is getting married. Directed by Susanne Bier.
Evil: Season 4 (2024) ***
The last season of the TV series that examines the origins of evil along the dividing line between science and religion.
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