Tag: Drama

REVIEW: Argentina, 1985 (2022)

Ricardo Darín and Peter Lanzani star in Argentina, 1985 — PHOTO: Amazon Prime Video.

Directed by Santiago Mitre — Screenplay by Santiago Mitre and Mariano Llinás.

Santiago Mitre’s Argentina, 1985 is a historical courtroom drama about the true story of the Trial of the Juntas, which sought to bring to justice the ringleaders of the military junta that committed murder, kidnappings, and torture under Argentina’s right-wing dictatorship in the late-1970s and early-1980s. The film primarily follows Julio César Strassera (played by Ricardo Darín), the chief prosecutor, as he, along with a team of inexperienced lawyers, gathered evidence and testimonies that could possibly convince the court.

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REVIEW: The Power of the Dog (2021)

Benedict Cumberbatch and Kodi Smit-McPhee in Jane Campion’s THE POWER OF THE DOG — Photo: Netflix.

Directed by Jane Campion — Screenplay by Jane Campion.

Based on the 1967 Thomas Savage novel of the same name, The Power of the Dog is a western drama set in Montana in the 1920s, when the old American west had begun to morph into a new era. While we hear about automobiles and cities at the local inn, the surrounding wide-open landscape and barren mountains still feel distinctly western. It is clear that the world is changing, and some of these changing roles are exemplified in the film’s characters.

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REVIEW: The Last Full Measure (2020)

Theatrical Release Poster – Roadside Attractions

The following is a review of The Last Full Measure — Directed by Todd Robinson.

Todd Robinson’s The Last Full Measure is a war drama that tells the true story of William H. Pitsenbarger (played by Jeremy Irvine), a Vietnam War-hero, who died defending a unit of soldiers during a tough battle in 1966. The film, however, primarily follows Scott Huffman (played by Sebastian Stan), a relatively young Pentagon bureaucrat, thirty-two years later. After having met with Pitsenbarger’s parents and the soldiers that he saved, Huffman risked his career to tell Pitsenbarger’s story in an effort to have him awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously. Continue reading “REVIEW: The Last Full Measure (2020)” →

REVIEW: Marriage Story (2019)

Character Posters – Netflix

The following is a review of Marriage Story — Directed by Noah Baumbach.

Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story is one of the most difficult and rawest films that I have seen this year, and I absolutely do mean that as a huge compliment. Like few other films have been able to do this year, Baumbach’s film genuinely moved me to tears multiple times over the course of the exhausting and heartbreaking but absolutely necessary 136-minute runtime. Baumbach has with The Meyerowitz Stories and Marriage Story now made two of the best films that Netflix has ever been associated with, and I actually think his latest film is not just the best of the two, but also one of the few true Netflix masterpieces that have been released this decade. Continue reading “REVIEW: Marriage Story (2019)” →

REVIEW: Her (2013)

Theatrical Release Poster – Warner Bros.

The following is a short updated review (2019) of Spike Jonze’s Her (2013).

Written and directed by Adaptation.-director Spike Jonze, Her is a science-fiction love story set in a ‘futuristic’ American city. The film follows Theodore (played by Joaquin Phoenix) — a writer of other people’s personal letters — who is separated from his wife (played by Rooney Mara). Continue reading “REVIEW: Her (2013)” →

REVIEWS: Feature Films Directed by Quentin Tarantino (1992-2015)

Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time In Hollywood opened in North American theaters a couple of weeks ago, but it was just released in my corner of the world yesterday. To commemorate the release of what Tarantino claims is his penultimate feature film as a director, I decided to rewatch and review every full feature film directed by Quentin Tarantino thus far (not including his partially lost amateur film). Below you’ll find reviews of all of the films listed in the image above. So, without further ado, let’s get to it. Continue reading “REVIEWS: Feature Films Directed by Quentin Tarantino (1992-2015)” →

REVIEW: Dronningen (2019)

Danish Theatrical Release Poster – Nordisk Film

The following is a review of the Danish film ‘Dronningen‘ (international title: Queen of Hearts) — Directed by May el-Toukhy.

Dronningen is a disturbing and twisted tragedy about double-standards, hypocrisy, and gender-roles from the female Danish-Egyptian filmmaker May el-Toukhy. The Danish film — and controversial conversation starter — stars the outstanding actress and critical darling Trine Dyrholm in the leading role as Anne, a Danish lawyer and mother of two girls. Anne is married to the Swedish doctor Peter (played by Magnus Krepper, who recently appeared in the Danish film Før Frosten), who has a 17-year old troublemaking son, Gustav (played by Gustav Lindh), from a previous marriage in Sweden.

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REVIEW: Paddleton (2019)

Release Poster – Netflix

The following is a quick review of Paddleton — Directed by Alex Lehmann.

There is a way to sugarcoat and refuse to spoil what Paddleton is really about. I could tell you that it’s just about two old friends and neighbors playing some game they invented for 90 minutes. I could feed you some line about how it becomes surprisingly moving or something like that.

But, I’m not going to do that, because Alex Lehmann’s Paddleton essentially reveals its nature in its very first scene in which it is revealed that Mark Duplass’ Michael is suffering from terminal cancer. Paddleton, though — yes — named after the game that is two friends’ own invention, is a film about assisted suicide, saying goodbye, and reluctantly coming to terms with a loss.
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REVIEW: Burning (2018)

Theatrical Release Poster – CGV Arthouse

The following is a review of Burning (‘버닝‘) — Directed by Lee Chang-dong.

There are a couple of news reports during the first hour of Lee Chang-dong’s Burning. During the reading of these reports, the frustrated Lee Jong-su (played by Yoo Ah-in) is walking through his family home, a farm house so close to the North Korean border that he’s able to hear North Korean propaganda out in the open. As he is walking through the house, we hear how his generation is struggling to find work in South Korea, and we also see President Donald Trump on a television screen. Continue reading “REVIEW: Burning (2018)” →

REVIEW: Før Frosten (2019)

Danish Theatrical Release Poster – Nordisk Film

The following is a review of Før Frosten (also known as ‘Before the Frost‘) — Directed by Michael Noer.

Før Frosten is Michael Noer’s fifth narrative feature film. Noer, whose last feature film was the remake of Papillon starring Charlie Hunnam and Rami Malek, has returned to his native country to make a dirty and cold period drama about the pursuit of happiness and survival in 19th Century Denmark. Continue reading “REVIEW: Før Frosten (2019)” →