coldrain – “OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE” Album Review: Keep the Noise Human

Almost twenty years into their career, coldrain have watched the music industry change dramatically around them. Streaming changed how we listen, social media gave artists new ways to reach audiences, and now AI can write songs, imitate voices and create music in seconds. For five musicians whose work depends so heavily on real people playing,…

74th San Sebastián International Film Festival: “CUTE” Review

Marlene Emilie Lyngstad’s CUTE is hard to watch. Premiering in the New Directors section at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, it takes on one of the most disturbing subjects imaginable without trying to soften it for the audience. What surprised me most, however, is how much of the story is really about loneliness, shame…

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF26): “Head to Head” Review

Women do not experience oppression in exactly the same way and pretending otherwise helps nobody. Where we are born, the laws we live under, religion, family, money and social expectations can make the differences enormous, but across countries and cultures women still find themselves being told what is appropriate for them: how to dress, how…

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF26): “Salvation” Review

Scotland is one of the most wonderful places in Europe, and one I always appreciate seeing on screen. Like anywhere else, people there struggle with money, work, family problems and the uncertainty of what comes next, but art remains very much alive, and Scottish cinema has produced filmmakers who have always understood that ordinary lives…

83rd Venice Film Festival: “Lovers in the Blue Night” Review

Indian women filmmakers have been behind some truly remarkable independent films in recent years. The talent has always been there; the opportunities have not always followed quite so easily, especially when it comes to making that difficult second film. That is one of the reasons it is so exciting to see Anuparna Roy back at…

83rd Venice Film Festival: “One Minute to Midnight” Review

After I finished watching Nicolas Pariser’s One Minute to Midnight, one question popped into my head: what happens when a man reaches middle age and begins looking back at how he has treated women, loved them, misunderstood them, and perhaps taken certain things for granted? It is a subject worth exploring, especially at a time…

83rd Venice Film Festival: “What Belongs to Others” Review

Polish cinema has had a strong relationship with the Venice International Film Festival for decades, but its presence on the Lido has been noticeable in recent years. In 2022, Damian Kocur’s Bread and Salt (Chleb i sól) competed in Orizzonti and won the Special Jury Prize, with Kocur turning an ordinary summer in a small…

83rd Venice Film Festival: “Children of the Monkey” Review

Becoming a parent changes your life, but becoming the parent of a child with a disability can change it in ways nobody can fully prepare you for. There are appointments, routines, worries about the future and, depending on the child’s needs, a level of physical and emotional care that can continue for a long time….

Asian Cinema at the 70th BFI London Film Festival

The BFI London Film Festival has unveiled the programme for its 70th edition, and Asian cinema will once again form an essential part of the celebration. From long-awaited works by some of the continent’s most respected filmmakers to daring debuts, intimate documentaries and large-scale genre spectacles, this year’s selection reflects the extraordinary breadth of filmmaking…