DVD Review: ‘A Touch of Sin’
★★★★★ The promotional material surrounding Jia Zhangke’s A Touch of Sin (2013) concocts spurious images of knife play, bombastic explosions and plenty of bloodshed....
Film Reviews & More
Most Recent. In Patrick Gamble.
14 April 2023
Film Review: Three Colours Trilogy
★★★★★ Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Three Colours Trilogy stars Juliette Binoche, Julie Delpy and Irene Jacob in three of the most revered pieces of European cinema ever made. Named after the colours of the French flag (Blue, White and Red), the films are loosely based on the three political ideals of the French Republic; Liberty, Equality and Fraternity.
23 August 2022
Sarajevo 2022: Our festival highlights
The Sarajevo Film Festival has a history of resilience, so it was hardly surprising to see it come back stronger than ever after two years of Covid restrictions. Founded in 1995, the festival is now the leading industry event in south-east Europe, showcasing the very best films from across the Balkan peninsula.
22 October 2020
Film Review: Cinema Paradiso
★★★★☆ A major contributor to the reverential narrative of wistful cinema, Giuseppe Tornatore’s magnum opus Cinema Paradiso is an elegant distillation of the form’s...
Patrick Gamble
DVD Review: ‘Only Lovers Left Alive’
★★★★☆ Implanting the dark heart of Gothic fiction into his signature cinematic carcass of deadpan humour and beatnik contemplation, indie provocateur Jim Jarmusch’s Only...
Film Review: ‘A Spell to Ward off the Darkness’
★★★★☆ A collaborative journey across the spiritual plains of Northern Europe, Ben Rivers and Ben Russell’s A Spell to Ward off the Darkness is...
Film Review: ‘A Most Wanted Man’
★★★☆☆ Dutch visual artist Anton Corbijn compiles an all-star cast for his much-anticipated film adaptation of John le Carré’s bestselling novel A Most Wanted...
Film Review: ‘At Berkeley’
★★★★☆ During one heated discussion in Frederick Wiseman’s At Berkeley (2013), a lecturer insists that a ‘revolution in ideas’ is the best strategy for...
DVD Review: ‘Blue Ruin’
★★★★☆ A quiet revelation at Cannes last year, Jeremy Saulnier’s Blue Ruin (2013) is a stripped-back revenge thriller that cruises down the central reservation...
Film Review: ‘Life of Crime’
★★★☆☆ Adapted from crime author Elmore Leonard’s novel The Switch, Daniel Schechter’s Life of Crime (2013) is a polyester clad, bell-bottom sporting time capsule...
Film Review: ‘Obvious Child’
★★★★☆ The label of ‘abortion rom-com’ doesn’t necessarily scream box office success. However, director Gillian Robespierre doesn’t care what you think. Her debut feature,...
