As the Trump reign rages on, the illegal immigrants are solidly placed among the most marginalized and prosecuted groups in the USA, even though the government’s zero-tolerance policy hasn’t quite quenched the numbers of those seeking a brighter future in what used to be seen as the land of the free. In 2017, the estimate…
76th Venice International Film Festival: Chola (Shadow of Water) Review
Chola is an uncompromising and uncomfortable film that attempts to tackle the alarming sexually oppressed female experience of modern India. Yet, while writer/director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan pretties and dresses up the journey with wide, ambitiously beautiful shots of rural Kerala, the destination is left jarringly raw and brutally morbid. What starts as a charmingly simple…
76th Venice International Film Festival: Atlantis Review
The year is 2025 – just one year after a war has ended between Ukraine and Russia. A war that has left eastern Ukraine collapsing into a state of disrepair. Hundreds of flooded mines have left local wells and rivers poisoned beyond repair, in a few years this region will be void of any drinking…
76th Venice International Film Festival: Just 6.5 Metri Shisho Nim Review
For over a decade, Iran has been witnessing a rise in the number of drug addicts; drug abuse, which is often concentrated on the use of opium and its derivative substances, has risen double in the country since 2017 and even with strict laws and punishments, it seems like there is still no successful solution…
Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite Review
Seeing Bong Joon-ho’s work makes one believe time and again that the art of film excellence has not yet disappeared. South Korean director, known for The Host, Okja and Snowpiercer, gifted the film goers with yet another sublime production of his this year: Parasite; a perverse, comical, contemporary yet daunting film that won the Palme…
Aniara Review
Tsunamis, wildfires, and hurricane winds all ripping across the Earth’s surface while a pod races up from the Earth’s atmosphere towards a looming spaceship. This is how Pella Kågerman and Hugo Lilja’s Aniara starts. Based on the existential Harry Martinson poem of the same name, Aniara follows the cruiser ship Aniara – think Virgin Trains…
In Conversation with Nokdu
Nokdu is an independent singer-songwriter from Seoul who is using the shifting trends in the South Korean indie scene to put out his unique synth popping singles from his at-home studio. With a growing audience from his latest EP and collaboration with fellow artist Jacoby gaining popularity, we recently sat down with him for a…
KNK Light Up The Stage With Their Stellar Performance in London
K-Pop is the leading trend these days, there is no doubt about it; it does not only stand for a change of power on the charts, no: the door to South Korea’s cultural and commercial invasion of western markets has been blown wide open. It comes as no surprise that more K-talents have been set…
In Conversation with DJ Takaki
Takaki, a self-taught DJ from Japan, seems to be pushing harder than ever before towards his goal of becoming the world-renowned DJ. With his innovative approach to DJ-ing, there is no doubt that Takaki will soon reach the level of fame of the likes of David Guetta, Tiësto or Calvin Harris. The opportunities in the…
Midsommar Review
Midsommar is Ari Aster’s (Hereditary) latest slow-burn horror that witnesses a group of American grad students get caught up in a Swedish folk cult during the festival of Midsummer. Dani (Florence Pugh) is heavily grieving after hearing some disastrous news – to try and take her mind off things she tags along with her boyfriend,…
“Just like BTS, EXO and BlackPink, We Want to Keep Working Hard in Order to Become a Popular Group Everywhere.” – In Conversation with KNK, a South Korean Idol Group
KNK, a South Korean idol group, first saw the light of day in 2016 when they debuted on the domestic market. They relatively quickly made a name for themselves with their mature and serious looks, music and gentlemen attires. In 2017, a huge crowd welcomed their performance at the Feel Korea concert in London and…
Swing Kids Review
Musicals are a rarity in South Korean cinema, even if there are South Korean productions out there with traces of music themes, thrown into the middle of the film or found close to the end credits – but that does not qualify those movies as musicals. Swing Kids, directed by Kang Hyeong-cheol (Tazza: The Hidden Card),…
Backstreet Boys’ DNA World Tour Larger Than Life
Backstreet Boys have it all, it seems, but it has not always been a life of ease for the members. Although the group went through hardships both in personal and professional life, it only made them stronger. The times when flowers, underwear and mascots were showering the stage may be over, but it seems that…
Coldrain Sets The Black Heart On Fire With Their Energetic Performance In London
It rarely happens that a band, one that usually plays in front of huge crowds, performs an intimate gig in an unexpected venue. Coldrain, formed over a decade ago in Japan, gained their worldwide recognition in 2013, when they signed a deal with British company Raw Power Management; the act opened up many new doors…
