B (out of 5) Luc Besson tries to recapture the spirit and look of his problematic but still superior Fifth Element with this adaptation of a comic book series, the most expensive film made in… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) Diane Kruger is devastated when a bombing takes the lives of her loved ones, leaving her with nothing but sorrow and more than a few questions: who did it and… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) A British superspy (Charlize Theron) is sent to divided Berlin on the eve of the wall coming down, charged with recovering that age-old (and quite frankly worn out) MacGuffin… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Niko’s day gets off to a bad start and only gets weirder as the hours progress: following an immature cop-out with his girlfriend, he meets with a court officer… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) Phil has been raised in the German countryside since his mother (whom he calls “Glass”) gave birth to him and his twin sister after running away from their father in America.… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) This film is reviewed at Magenta Magazine. Click here to be redirected. Film Manufacturers, HBO Documentary Films, World of Wonder Productions USA/Germany, 2016 Directed by Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato Cinematography… Continue reading
BB (out of 5) After losing their son in battle, a Berlin couple decide that Nazi ideology is not worth believing in if the cost is to be so high. He (Brendan Gleeson) continues his work… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Adam Driver plays a New Jersey bus driver whose name matches his route, his days spent traveling the same roads again and again but his mind occupied with the poetry that… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) Claire Denis makes her way into the world of horror with his moody, sexy drama. Vincent Gallo and Tricia Vessey have arrived in Paris for their honeymoon, but their bliss is… Continue reading
BB (out of 5) Lars von Trier’s proposed trilogy of observations of American society starts out strong with Dogville but moves on to a much less interesting second chapter (the third has yet to be… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Latin American films that apply a realist flavour to an examination on class divisions are so standard that at this point you want to tell everyone to work it out… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) A Glasgow bus driver (Robert Carlyle) intercedes when a woman with poor English skills named Carla (Oyanka Cabezas) is accosted by a fare inspector for not buying a ticket, getting… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) As with many superhero narratives of late, the Avengers are facing P.R. difficulties with the world of normal people. This is no longer the post-war society that celebrated extraordinary abilities with… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Forest Whitaker is terrific as a hired hit man who styles himself a modern day samurai, elegantly swinging his guns into his jacket as if they were swords and keeping… Continue reading
BBB (out of 5) Miniature charmer by Aki Kaurismaki that begins when a young man, who spends his days sewing the children’s clothing that his mother boxes for shipment, has had enough of… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Henri Murger’s novel, most famously adapted as an opera by Puccini and also as the musical Rent by Jonathan Larson, is here given the subtle, wry treatment by Aki… Continue reading
BBB (out of 5) Aki Kaurismaki goes for film noir in this gorgeously shot piece, played in a minor key. A shopping mall security guard falls for a gorgeous, mysterious blond and leaves… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) A ring of jewel robbers confound a city as murders pile up and a police detective is driven crazy trying to figure out the source of all the crime.… Continue reading
BBBBB (out of 5) The life and work of J.M.W. Turner are visited in this impressionistic exercise in brilliance by Mike Leigh, here making yet another unforgettably perfect film. It also marks a… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) In David Cronenberg’s Hollywood, incest is not just a way of doing business but a reality at home as well. A child star (Evan Bird) with a drug problem,… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Michelangelo Antonioni’s first completed feature after suffering a stroke in 1985 ended up being his last, with only the short in the Eros omnibus completed after this one. It… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) A film of dreamlike quality, rich with wondrous images that resonate long after its conclusion. The known anecdote with which it begins is that of Nietzsche embracing a horse… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Another John Le Carre adaptation, which we recognize as being his because the spies can’t enjoy their coffee and their clothing is never ironed, but better executed and far more exciting… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Wes Anderson turns to the inspiration of Stefan Zweig for a glimpse of old-world European daintiness filtered through his own precious imagination. Author Jude Law visits a faded grand hotel… Continue reading
BBB.5 (out of 5) Warning, this review contains spoilers for Volume I. Picking up her tale where it left off at the end of the first chapter, with Charlotte Gainsbourg‘s modern-day Moll Flanders… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Stellan Skarsgård finds a beaten and bloodied Charlotte Gainsbourg lying in an alleyway, takes her home, gives her tea and asks her to tell him why she ended up in such… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Just shy of his sixteenth birthday, young Liam is facing issues that most people couldn’t handle in full adulthood: his mother is in prison after taking the fall for… Continue reading
B (out of 5) Hold on to your butts, people, cause Mel Gibson is perverting history to make himself look cool again. This time it’s a war propaganda film about a war that America lost,… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Lars Von Trier goes for epic grandeur but never quite reaches the limits of his magnificent scope with this science-fiction melodrama. The first half takes place at a wedding… Continue reading
BBBB.5 (out of 5) Lars Von Trier has made his most audacious film yet with this powerful drama, whose most extreme moments are so over the top as to actually make them humorous.… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Lars Von Trier repeats his exact formula from his 1996 art house hit Breaking The Waves with one notable exception: this time the leading lady sings up a storm.… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Gorgeous, visionary tale from Lars Von Trier set in postwar Germany. German-descended, American-born Jean-Marc Barr shows up in his father’s destroyed country and, thanks to the connection with his conductor… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Tiresome adaptation of the novel by Patrick Suskind, about a young boy born under a table in a fish market and raised by luck and chance into adulthood in… Continue reading
BB (out of 5) Lars von Trier makes his most provocative film yet with this attention-grabbing but empty drama. Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg are a married couple whose child dies in an unfortunate accident,… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Following the successful resurrection of the Rocky franchise, Sylvester Stallone got his dream of bringing back his other famous series come true with the return of John Rambo. Years after… Continue reading
BB.5 (out of 5) Fairly diverting comedy remake of the 1960s Stanley Donen cult favourite, this time with Brendan Fraser selling his soul to the devil in exchange for seven wishes that give him… Continue reading
BBB (out of 5) Taking place right before the events depicted in The Silence of the Lambs, this new chapter in the fascination with Hannibal Lecter has Anthony Hopkins return in the role of… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Renee Zellweger is delightful as a New York City writer whose new tome seeks to emancipate women from subservient roles and set them up as equals with their male counterparts.… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Enchanting German drama makes a perfect entry in the long line of food movies that include Babette’s Feast and Like Water For Chocolate. Stringent Martha is one of the… Continue reading
BBBBB (out of 5) Silent horror classic by F.W. Murnau that is a milestone in the genre of German Expressionist filmmaking. Max Schreck is perfectly creepy as Count Orloc, the Dracula-like vampire who, following… Continue reading
BBBB.5 (out of 5) Stepping out into the London night of a futuristic, Orwellian dystopia, Natalie Portman finds herself being harassed by crooked cops for violating a curfew ordinance and is saved from their… Continue reading
BBBBB (out of 5) Milestone chapter in science-fiction film history, about a futuristic city run by mass human labour and devoid of individualistic passion. When a woman decides to lead a revolt, she… Continue reading
BBBBB (out of 5) Early film noir is considered the most important step in German expressionist cinema. Directed by the incomparable Fritz Lang, the film tells the tale of a serial killer (Peter… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Jim Jarmusch laments the death of high culture with this deliciously funny foray into vampire fiction. Tom Hiddleston is an undead rocker who conceals himself from the fans he detests… Continue reading
BBB (out of 5) A metal worker arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten and mugged on his first night in the city. He awakens bandaged and disoriented in a hospital room, without a… Continue reading
BBBB.5 (out of 5) A shoe shiner lives a sketchy life in the Norman town of Le Havre, completely approved of by his sweet Finnish wife (Kati Outinen) who loves and takes care… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Claire Denis, the master of detailed fixation, goes towards one of her darkest subjects yet in this searing drama. Vincent Lindon abandons his job as a ship captain after his… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) The improbabilities of this film are further proof that life truly is stranger than fiction. Based on the memoirs of Solomon Perel, this powerful drama tells of a young… Continue reading
BBBB (out of 5) Delightfully faithful adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ children’s classic story, about a villain who steals Christmas from the unsuspecting peaceful residents of Whoville because they treat him with fear and… Continue reading
