Review: Corpus Christi (2019)
This thought-provoking character study about an impostor who becomes a surprisingly likable priest is also working as a satire to the clerical distance between church and the parish.
Review: Cleaners (2019)
While the visual is ambitiously rare, the anthology feels a little uneven in portraying raw, teen angst which provides throwback moments and social commentary at the same time.
Review: Just 6.5 (2019)
There’s always surplus of energy in this Iranian thriller about drug trades—electrifying at the first half and harrowingly heartbreaking on the latter half.
Review: John Denver Trending (2019)
However depressing and frustrating, this Filipino internet drama is a thought-provoking discourse about internet’s trending mentality.
Review: My Extraordinary Summer with Tess (2019)
Sam is preparing for the worst; and, Tess is preparing for the best. When they meet each other, emotion begins shifting and thoughts about life begin to unravel.
Review: Roh / Soul (2019)
While wearing its inspirations on the sleeve, Emir Ezwan’s patient direction and his audacity to go gore help Roh achieves the unsettling height it aims for.
Review: Charlatan (2020)
Jan Mikolášek’s biopic by Agnieszka Holland provides more questions and ambiguity that root from legends rather than treating the figure with a deeper insight as an individual.
Review: Martin Eden (2019)
Luca Marinelli leads in what started out as a star-crossed love story that grows as a thought-provoking discourse about the rise and fall of socialism.
Review: The Dead Queen / Pedro e Inês (2018)
Pedro and Inês’ love story is a lot, but feels superfluous and gimmicky rather than compelling.
Review: Little Joe (2019)
Little Joe’s ambiguity wouldn’t fool anyone, except for sheer frustrations over the direction of its intriguing sci-fi horror premise.
Review: Beginning (2020)
Beginning with fire and ending with dust, there’s almost a divine force seaming Dea Kulumbegashvili’s story of a female struggle among patriarchal societies that often neglect abusive cycles.
Review: Shiva Baby (2020)
Emma Seligman’s poised debut is a chaotic, claustrophobic dramedy thick with Jewish tradition and thought-provoking sexual tension.
Review: She Dies Tomorrow (2020)
Amy Seimetz’s vision of an infectious fear of dying is in the no-man’s land between ridiculous and scary.
Review: Quo vadis, Aida? (2020)
Quo vadis, Aida? retells the moments leading up to the 1995 Srebrenica Massacre with sensitivity and demand to remember.
Review: One Careful Owner / El Inconveniente (2020)
One Careful Owner starts out bizarrely but as it kicks in, it delivers an optimistic, uplifting dramedy. Thanks to Acosta and Manver’s exhilarating chemistry.