Mental health film narratives are arguably among the most challenging to bring to the big or silver screen due to their complexity, requiring a delicate balance between authenticity, artistic interpretation, and emotional sensitivity. Yet, Florian Pochlatko rises to the occasion with How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World, a film that…
Category: Film events and festivals
75th Berlin International Film Festival: “How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World” Review
Much like the greyscale outlook of those with depressive disorders, sometimes cinema is so uninspired it seems like the entire industry has been lost to shareholders. But on one’s first watch of Florian Pochlatko’s How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World, it’s like trying fudge after a lifetime of eating cardboard….
75th Berlin International Film Festival: “The Message” Review
Screened in Competition at this year’s Berlinale and winner of the Silver Bear Jury Prize, Iván Fund’s The Message is an unconventional coming-of-age story that balances the ethereal with the tangible, creating a narrative about family, perception, and connection. At its core, The Message captures the defining moment when a child gains the awareness that…
75th Berlin International Film Festival: “Hysteria” Review
A study in humanity might be one good way of summarising Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay’s 2025 film Hysteria. Where is the line between a righteous act and a performative spectacle? Büyükatalay attempts to answer the question when a dishonourable burning of a Quran for a shoot sparks conflict between parties, and Hysteria becomes a meta film…
“Cottontail” Review: A Masterful Directorial Debut
The recently bereaved Kenzaburo (Lily Franky), travels to the UK in order to scatter his late wife’s ashes in Lake Windermere accompanied by his son, Toshi (Ryo Nishikido), his wife, Satsuki (Rin Takanashi) and their daughter. Once in London, the fractious relationship between father and son intensifies leading to Kenzaburo deciding to fulfill his wife’s…
Takeuchi Hideki Returns to the Far East Film Festival
Historically, cinema has predominantly engaged with the human body through the lens of science fiction, often depicting miniature characters – reduced to the size of ants – who embark on fantastical journeys within our physical form, confronting its mysteries and the limited special effects technology of bygone eras. Iconic films like Richard Fleischer’s Fantastic Voyage,…
18th Asian Film Awards Have Announced the Nominees for its 16 Award Categories
The Asian Film Awards have once again shown the genius of Asian cinema, with Exhuma taking the lead in this year’s nominations. Earning an impressive 11 nominations across major categories, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Newcomer, Best Screenplay, and more, Exhuma has quickly become a prime example of the power…
“By the Stream” Review
There is no easy entry point to the work of Hong Sang-soo. Even though his style remains consistent, his Eric Rohmer-inspired narratives frequently built around off-the-cuff drunken conversations and meandering walks around Seoul, there’s a density to the storytelling not always immediately apparent. His earlier work could often be in conversation with itself, with metatextual…
Wang Bing’s “Youth” Trilogy: Voices from China’s Hidden Factories – Film Review
The history of cinema, in many ways, began in the factory – its first frames capturing the daily lives of male and female workers as they filed out of the Lumière factory in Lyon in 1895. This simple, silent image marked the inception of the filmic medium, recording not just the physical movement of workers,…
Lindsay McIntyre on Cultural Preservation and Storytelling Through “NIGIQTUQ (The South Wind)”
Native cinema, whether from the Americas, Australia, the Pacific Islands, or any other region, plays a vital role in today’s film industry by serving as a powerful medium for storytelling, cultural preservation, and social advocacy. For far too long, Indigenous communities have been underrepresented or misrepresented in mainstream media. Native filmmakers are now reclaiming their…
“NIGIQTUQ ᓂᒋᖅᑐᖅ (The South Wind)” Review
Lindsay McIntyre’s NIGIQTUQ ᓂᒋᖅᑐᖅ (The South Wind) is a heartfelt exploration of identity, cultural displacement, and survival. Based on the director’s grandmother’s story, this moving short film brings viewers to 1938, where young Marguerite and her mother Kumaa’naaq (koo-MAT-na) leave their Inuit homeland in Nunavut to build a new life in the South. This transition…
BIFA Raindance Maverick Award 2024 Longlist Announced
Britain’s largest independent film festival, Raindance, stands as a lighthouse for maverick filmmakers who bring creativity, resourcefulness, and boldness on a limited budget. Celebrating these intrepid talents, Raindance introduced the Raindance Maverick Award in 1998 at the British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), an award that continues to honor visionary filmmakers working under a budget of…
19th London Korean Film Festival: “The Guest” Review
The slasher genre has long been a cornerstone of horror cinema, terrifying audiences with its iconic villains, suspenseful storytelling, and gruesome kills. From the masked killers of Halloween to the supernatural terrors of A Nightmare on Elm Street, slashers continue to draw viewers into their blood-soaked worlds. At the heart of the slasher genre lies…
19th London Korean Film Festival: “The Truth Beneath” Review
Lee Kyoung-mi’s The Truth Beneath, a superb dark thriller, served as the Opening Night film at the London Korean Film Festival in 2016, and now it has returned to the festival once more. Co-written by Park Chan-wook, The Truth Beneath takes audiences on a harrowing journey through the grimy underbelly of politics and the personal…
