Berlin 2012: ‘Bel Ami’ review
★☆☆☆☆ There are a mountain of problems with Declan Donnellan and Nick Omerod’s adaptation of Guy de Maupassant’s novel Bel Ami, which stars Robert Pattinson, […]
Berlin 2012: ‘A Royal Affair’ review
★★★★☆ Nikolaj Arcel’s lavish historical drama A Royal Affair (En Kongelig Affære, 2012), starring Mads Mikkelsen, Berlinale Silver Bear winner Mikkel Følsgaard and Swedish star […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Avalon’ review
★★★★★ Avalon (2011), directed by Axel Petersén, maintains Swedish cinema’s reputation for outstanding films with a captivating thriller starring Swedish comedian and buddy of Mick […]
Berlin 2012: ‘About Cherry’ review
★★★☆☆ American activist and author Stephen Elliott puts down his pen to make his directorial debut with US drama About Cherry (2012), starring James Franco, […]
Berlin 2012: ‘The End of Puberty’ review
★★☆☆☆ An unique twist on the body-swap sub genre, Kimura Shoko’s debut film The End of Puberty (Koi ni itaru yamai, 2011) is a kooky […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Marley’ review
★★★☆☆ Having proven an insurmountable task for masters of the medium in the past (perhaps notably Martin Scorsese and Thelma Schoonmaker), Life in a Day […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Xingu’ review
★★★★☆ Setting up base camp in the Panorama programme at this year’s 62nd Berlinale, Cao Hamburger’s Xingu (2012) is an extremely engrossing, well-executed and well-meaning […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Mercy’ review
★★☆☆☆ One of the competition entries for the coveted Golden Bear at this year’s 62nd Berlinale (yet ultimately receiving no awards), Matthias Glasner’s Mercy (Gnade, […]
Berlin 2012: Berlinale roundup
This year’s 62nd Berlinale (like most film festivals) was a bit of a mixed bag, containing some exceptional examples of provocative world cinema and, as […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Caesar Must Die’ wins Golden Bear
Earlier on this evening, the 62nd Berlin Film Festival announced its final award winners following yet another hugely successful festival programme, which now reaches its […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Headshot’ review
★★☆☆☆ A story of corruption, deceit and exploring the true definition of justice, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s Headshot (2011) is a Thai film noir with an enticing […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Iron Sky’ review
★★☆☆☆ Easily one of the most anticipated films at this year’s Berlinale (for right or for wrong) was Timo Vuorensola’s Iron Sky (2012), with tickets […]
Berlin 2012: ‘War Witch’ review
★★★★☆ Surely one of the frontrunners for this year’s coveted Berlinale Golden Bear award, Kim Nguyen’s War Witch (Rebelle, 2012) is a harrowing exploration of […]
Berlin 2012: ‘King of Comics’ review
★★☆☆☆ Rosa von Praunheim’s documentary King of Comics (König des Comics, 2012) explores the life and work of Ralf König, one of Germany’s most celebrated […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Just the Wind’ review
★★★★☆ Benedek Fliegauf’s hard-hitting Hungarian drama Just the Wind (Csak a szél, 2011) is a chilling story of a Romany community living amongst an atmosphere […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Bliss’ review
★★★★☆ Bliss (Glück, 2011) – directed by Doris Dörrie and adapted from the short story by Ferdinand von Schirach – recounts the tale of Irina […]
Berlin 2012: ‘White Deer Plain’ review
★☆☆☆☆ Director Quan’an Wang brings his overly-sprawling epic White Deer Plain (2011) – adapted from the controversial novel by Zhongshi Chen – to this year’s […]
Berlin 2012: ‘Rent-a-Cat’ review
★★★★☆ Tonally a million miles away from the dark subject matter of most of this year’s Berlinale lineup, Naoko Ogigami’s Rent-a-Cat (Rentaneko, 2011) is a […]