Tag Archives: World Cinema
Review in Brief: Blade of the Immortal (2017)
BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL is one-man filmmaking army Takashi Miike’s 100th feature and arguably his largest scale project to date. I doubt the man who makes Ridley Scott look sluggish even broke a sweat (only a film a year, Ridders? … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Bloody Milk (2017)
It really has been the year for depressing farming dramas hasn’t it? First-time UK filmmakers gave us THE LEVELLING and GOD’S OWN COUNTRY, now comes France’s offering, BLOODY MILK. Director Hubert Charuel must have drawn on some of his own … Continue reading
Review in Brief: The Villainess (2017)
Creative fight choreography and full-on violence is one thing, but what really blew me away about THE VILLAINESS was the cinematography. I can’t even begin to imagine how they achieved some of these impossible shots. For once a POV action … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Toni Erdmann (2016)
Pretty much every review I’ve seen of TONI ERDMANN has been focussed on how unexpectedly good a two-and-a-half hour German comedy turns out to be. I find that overly reductive and more than a little patronising. American comedies are often … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Seoul Station (2016)
SEOUL STATION brings back slapstick zombies and a good punch of dark satire in its final act, but as a companion piece to TRAIN TO BUSAN, it falls rather short in terms of character. None of the supposed protagonists are … Continue reading
Review: The Handmaiden (2016)
THE HANDMAIDEN is unmistakably a Park Chan-wook film. A polished tale of control featuring sadistic torture and plot-reevaluating twists, this is far beyond the ordinary bodice-ripper. During the Japanese occupation of Korea, a thief (Kim Tae-ri) masquerades as a handmaiden … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Train to Busan (2016)
It must be a nightmare thinking up new ways to portray zombies, but the walking-seizuring, rictus-grinning infected of TRAIN TO BUSAN are certainly original, creepy and funny creations. You don’t need much of a shake-up in terms of the confined … Continue reading
Downbeat Marion Cotillard Double Bill: Rust and Bone & Two Days, One Night
Marion Cotillard is rapidly becoming notorius for her drastic transformations of body and presence on film. She excels playing strong women worn down or broken by trauma, from the increasingly frail Edith Piaf in LA VIE EN ROSE to Mal’s steady … Continue reading
Playing Catchup: The Japanese Edition
A few more films I’ve (to my shame) only seen for the first time recently. This time, I’ve headed to the Land of the Rising Sun, and come back better for it. SEVEN SAMURAI (1955) Akira Kurosawa’s seminal epic was … Continue reading
SSP Thinks Film 