Palme d’Or-winning Japanese drama about a surrogate family living on the margins of modern Tokyo, Shoplifters lulls you in with its gentle intimate rhythm, before dropping big heart-wrenching twists.
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Amy – Film Review
A crushingly sad documentary about the short and volatile life of Amy Winehouse, who burned bright before a downward spiral of bulimia, drugs and alcohol that led to her death at the age of 27.
Nightcrawler – Film Review
Jake Gyllenhaal’s unnerving performance as a sociopath for the ages is the main reason to watch this visually sleek film, which rests somewhere in between a dark nihilistic thriller and biting media satire.
Black Narcissus – Film Review
Sometimes you end up watching a movie simply because its title and description sound way too arresting to ignore. “Anglican nuns in the Himalayas” was outlandish enough to draw me into watching this unusual and darkly sensuous 1947 British drama with Deborah Kerr.
The Lives of Others – Film Review
An engrossing Oscar-winning German thriller about spying, fear and oppression in the East Germany, in the fittingly Orwellian year of 1984.
Center Stage – Film Review
I haven’t been watching many films lately, with the cinemas all shut down and my favourite DVD rentals dying off even earlier, but now I’m finally streaming! This teen dance drama, celebrating its 20th anniversary this May, wasn’t an obvious choice for the first movie to watch on Netflix, but it proved to be an excellent Friday night pick.
The Talented Mr. Ripley – Film Review
I’ve been rewatching some of my old favourites lately, including this underappreciated 1999 thriller written and directed by Anthony Minghella. Though, judging by the amount of online articles that seem to be popping up to celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary, maybe it’s not so underappreciated after all.
Downfall – Film Review
I finally got around to watching this dark and gripping 2004 German drama about the last days of Hitler and the Third Reich. Realistic, hard-hitting, impeccably crafted, meticulously researched and detailed, Downfall is easily one of the best historical war films I’ve seen.
The Lighthouse – Film Review
I went to the Astor Theatre with a friend for a Robert Eggers double feature: last year’s The Lighthouse and his debut film, The Witch, that I was happy to re-watch on the big screen. T’was a fun night of creepy folk tales and period horror. Now that the coronavirus is shutting theatres down, it’s strange to think that this might be my last cinema outing for a while, and that the last two films I’ve watched are about people going insane and killing each other in confined spaces.
1917 – Film Review
I’m slowly catching up on the acclaimed 2019 movies, most recently this World War I drama from the director Sam Mendes. I always have to overcome a barrier of reluctance with war movies set in the modern era, but I’m glad I managed to watch 1917 on the big screen (and in the plush comfort of Village Gold Class too!)
