★★★☆☆ A surreal period piece about a small Georgian community during the dying whimpers of the Soviet Union, Georgy Paradzhanov’s Everybody’s Gone (Vse ushli, 2013) is a somewhat bizarre mix of folkloric philosophies, archaic traditions and the capricious nature of memories. Known primarily as the nephew of revered Georgian-born, Armenian-raised Continue Reading
★★★☆☆ The mockumentary has steadily evolved over the last 30 years, borrowing here and there from the found footage and talking head formats that have opened doors to parody and satire. Recently, more emphasis has been placed on the actual filmmaker – how much can we trust them? Has the Continue Reading
★★☆☆☆ UK audiences have acquired quite the taste for Scandinavian crime drama, with shows like The Killing, Borgen and Wallander all received with open arms. However, despite this Scandi-crime obsession, the name ‘Roland Hassel’ still remains unknown – and judging by Måns Månsson’s arduous debut, it’s going to stay that Continue Reading
Available to own now on DVD and Blu-ray from world cinema distributor Artificial Eye, Beyond the Hills (2012) is director Cristian Mungiu’s remarkable follow-up to his 2007 Palme d’Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days; the film that crystallised the Romanian New Wave. It’s a stark, sobering film, rich Continue Reading
Brazilian writer-director Kleber Mendonça Filho is the discovery of the year. His feature debut, Neighbouring Sounds (2012), is a provocative chronicle of urban angst played out against an intriguing narrative of social change. The film’s remarkable sound design – reminiscent of Hitchcock’s The Birds (1963) – is both ominous and Continue Reading
★★★★☆ Taking place behind the high walls and security gates of an affluent district in the Brazilian city of Recife, Neighbouring Sounds (O Som ao Redor, 2012) is a taut social drama brimming with urban anxiety. It’s a fantastically assured debut from Kleber Mendonça Filho, who dexterously combines visual and Continue Reading
★★☆☆☆ Existential malaise has long been a tenet of contemplative European cinema, and Turkish filmmaker Muzaffer Özdemir has embraced the tradition in his first feature as director, Home (Yurt, 2011). In this instance, the reflection is seemingly brought on by a mid-life crisis, but soon extends to frustration with the Continue Reading
★★★☆☆ Following on from 2009’s Funny People, director Judd Apatow has spent the last few years working as a producer on films such as Bridesmaids (2011) as well as TV shows like Lena Dunham’s Girls. He returned to the director’s chair in 2012 for This Is 40, a sort-of sequel Continue Reading
★★☆☆☆ Cashing in on the current craze for ‘Grey pound’-targeted filmmaking – heralded by the success of The King’s Speech (2010) and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) – Song for Marion (2012) arrives boasting a robust cast and a supposedly heart-warming story about the celebration of life and the Continue Reading
★★★★☆ Awarded the Best International Film prize at last year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival over Dan Sallitt’s The Unspeakable Act and Miguel Gomes’ marvellous Tabu, Chinese director’s Mao Mao’s Here, Then (2012) finally gets a UK release this month thanks to world cinema distributor Second Run. An almost impenetrable study Continue Reading