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Deconstructing the machinery of cinema.

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horror, reviewLeave a comment

OAFF: New Religion (2022)

comedy, reviewLeave a comment

OAFF: Is This Heaven? (2023)

drama, reviewLeave a comment

OAFF: When Morning Comes, I Feel Empty (2022)

drama, reviewLeave a comment

OAFF: December (2022)

review, thrillerLeave a comment

AFFFF: Notre-Dame on Fire (2022)

list, opinionLeave a comment

Favourites of the 1990s: #275-251

review, thrillerLeave a comment

REVIEW: The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

March 6, 2023 Grant Watson

On its final voyage across the ocean before it is decommissioned, the luxury liner Poseidon is struck by a tsunami that capsizes the vessel. With much of the crew and passengers dead, a small group of survivors led by firebrand … Continue reading REVIEW: The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

drama, reviewLeave a comment

REVIEW: My Identity (2019)

March 5, 2023 Grant Watson

The complicated links between Japan and Taiwan – a Japanese territory from 1895 to 1945 – seem a popular subject matter for contemporary Japanese cinema. In recent times the issues of anti-Taiwanese racism, the migrant experience, and shared cultural experience … Continue reading REVIEW: My Identity (2019)

review, western2 Comments

REVIEW: The Indian Fighter (1955)

March 2, 2023 Grant Watson

In the aftermath of the American Civil War, former soldier Johnny Hawk (Kirk Douglas) – a man famed for fighting Native Americans – is hired to escort a wagon train across Oregon. His mission runs foul of a local Sioux … Continue reading REVIEW: The Indian Fighter (1955)

drama, reviewLeave a comment

REVIEW: Empire of Light (2022)

February 27, 2023 Grant Watson

I have emerged from Sam Mendes’ new drama Empire of Light more than a little ambivalent about it; indeed, I find myself tremendously frustrated. This English drama, set in a seaside down in the early 1980s, stars Olivia Colman as a miserable … Continue reading REVIEW: Empire of Light (2022)

comedy, reviewLeave a comment

REVIEW: Tora-San, Wish You Were Here (2019)

February 27, 2023 Grant Watson

In 1969, director Yoji Yamada helmed It’s Tough Being a Man, a domestic comedy that became an unexpected hit in Japanese cinemas – so much so that by the end of the year Yamada had already made its sequel. The film … Continue reading REVIEW: Tora-San, Wish You Were Here (2019)

review, science fiction1 Comment

REVIEW: Something in the Dirt (2022)

February 24, 2023February 24, 2023 Grant Watson

I have always rather liked the Hollywood term ‘multi-hyphenate’. Usually used by journalists for Variety or the Hollywood Reporter, it refers to those particularly talented types who undertake more than two roles in a film production. Not just an actor-director, or … Continue reading REVIEW: Something in the Dirt (2022)

list, opinionLeave a comment

Favourites of the 1990s: #300-276

February 23, 2023 Grant Watson

Back in 2019, I marked the end of the decade with a huge countdown of my favourite films of the 2010s; Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone was my top pick. I figured it was about time to run another massive countdown of my … Continue reading Favourites of the 1990s: #300-276

comedy, reviewLeave a comment

EEFF REVIEW: The Odd-Job Men (2021)

February 21, 2023February 21, 2023 Grant Watson

On the outskirts of Barcelona, a home repair business is going through a period of change. For Valero (Valero Escobar), it means saying goodbye to his long-term partner Pep (Pep Sarrà) who is retiring. At the same time it means … Continue reading EEFF REVIEW: The Odd-Job Men (2021)

drama, reviewLeave a comment

REVIEW: Suburban Birds (2018)

February 20, 2023 Grant Watson

Qiu Sheng’s debut feature Suburban Birds is a low-key but fascinating work. At first it appears to fall in line as yet another naturalistic urban character drama; the kind that tends to be liberally scattered over international film festivals each year. As … Continue reading REVIEW: Suburban Birds (2018)

review, science fictionLeave a comment

REVIEW: Gamera vs Zigra (1971)

February 19, 2023 Grant Watson

Over the course of the Gamera film series, the individual films continued to make a profit while the studio that made them, Daiei Film, sank closer and closer towards bankruptcy. It was shortly after the completion of this seventh Gamera that Daiei’s finances finally … Continue reading REVIEW: Gamera vs Zigra (1971)

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