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HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Yellow Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: May 16, 2023 Directed by: Elham Ehsas Written by: Elham Ehsas Starring: Afsaneh Dehrouyeh, Ahmad Jan Mano, Elham Ehsas In August 2021, the Taliban overtook Afghanistan. This short drama explores the aftermath. It is a busy market in Kabul and a young woman (Dehrouyeh) is looking to purchase her first chadari. He enters a clothing shop and requests one from the assistant (Ehsas). He helps her make the right choice, gives her advice and is quite helpful. She does not seem to be fond of the garment and appears to realise that her life is changing. This film is about a turning point in a woman's life, following the Taliban's conquest of Afghanistan. It is obvious that it is the first time she is wearing a chadari, as she does not know how to put it on, which highlights the change that she is going through. Through her eyes, the audience sees a procedure that many women in Afghanistan are going through: getting a chadari for the first time and entering a new stage in their life. The screenplay calmly examines the procedures that the heroine undertakes in order to obtain a chadari and thus (in some ways) go through a transformation and become another person, a person who the Taliban approve of. The film dramatically points out some of the effects of the Taliban takeover. One is the degradation of women, which is explored through Dehrouyeh's character and a television news broadcast about the strict laws applied by the Taliban regarding women wearing a chadari. Another is the banning of music, which is briefly shown through Ehsas' character. One part that stands out is a dance scene that feels almost magical thanks to slow motion and creative editing by Ehsas and Ross Leppard. Director of photography Yiannis Manolopoulos does a great job with the cinematography and commendations go to Jessica Holme for the costumes. An effective point-of-view shot places the viewer in the heroine's position, helping them feel how she feels. This film is a poignant and hard-hitting commentary about the Taliban's seizure of Afghanistan, how it affects the people of that country, particularly women. It provides an insight into the current situation, painting a bleak vision of the future. About the Film Critic Jason Knight Short Film, World Cinema < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Stop Making This Hurt Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: Dec 13, 2022 Directed by: Susie Kimnell Written by: Susie Kimnell Starring: Joe Swift, Beth Collins, Alexander Jeremy, Elisha Mistretta A man meets his former partner in a restaurant and they discuss the past. A man (Swift) is sitting at a restaurant table by himself. Closing time is approaching and the place is quiet and a bit darkened. Eventually, he is joined by a woman (Collins), with whom he used to have a relationship. The two of them have a conversation and it becomes apparent that things between them ended up badly. The man attempts to apologise and make things better, however, it becomes evident that he did something terrible. This dark short film begins as a drama about a broken relationship and as the story progresses and more and more clues are brought to light, things move towards thriller territory. The main element is the conversation between the two protagonists, which tells a lot about their lives, particularly about the man's life, about what kind of person he is and the findings are not positive and just keep getting worse and worse. Swift delivers a chilling performance as an individual who has very dark secrets and a very sinister hidden personality. Although, he can appear charming and cheerful, it is obvious that ultimately, he is a bad person. Collins does a terrific job as a his ex-partner who was a victim to his actions and knows what he really is. The film is free from music, apart from the ending, which is where Duncan Pittock and Richard Lacy make their contribution with a sinister score that makes an effective closing. Ben Mann also deserves commendations for the work on the cinematography. This short has a very-well-structured screenplay that starts with more or less normality and revelation after revelation lead to a devastating truth. Through well-written dialogue and strong acting, this film tells a dark and memorable story. About the Film Critic Jason Knight Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Cikgu Hana Film Review average rating is 2 out of 5 Critic: Chris Buick | Posted on: Nov 23, 2023 Directed by: Wan Dinnie Written by: Wan Dinnie Starring: Charlene Jane, Herlea Titieanna Tasked with an assignment to write about the history of their country, two students are transported back to the past where they learn all about their country’s rich history and how it has shaped their lives today. Malaysian short-film Cikgu Hana: Director’s Cut , the version that was submitted for this review, prefaces itself with an apology. It seems that in post-production many of the films production files stored on an external hard drive were lost or damaged, meaning that only ten percent of the files were recoverable. What is presented here is a re-edited version of what was salvageable with very mixed results. What we do get to enjoy in what is presented over the films six-and-a-half-minute runtime is a beautifully created visual spectacle of rotoscoping, a process animators use where live-action footage is traced over frame by frame to create some truly wonderful animated works of art that add depth and flourishes to sequences that otherwise couldn’t have been achieved. And that is where Cikgu Hana really shines. The animation here looks amazing, really bringing the whole piece alive, awash with vibrant colour and pure imagination that is a joy to watch. Much like the film's predecessor Hana , the previous offering from D-Mulsion Productions that is equally remarkable visually, Cikgu Hana is a feast for the eyes. But unfortunately, given the state of the rest of the film, this is a re-edit that is very rough around the edges and with simply way too many pieces missing. Narratively there are clear gaps, plot points jump suddenly from one to another and it becomes hard to keep a grasp on what exactly is going on, although the animation does help a lot to convey the intended story as best as it can. Editing is choppy and jarring, which is of course to be expected given so little to work with, but it does undeniably have a big impact, even hindering the fabulous artistry at times. On the positive side, the film does manage to showcase the obvious talent these filmmakers have, a fact all the more confirmed by looking at what was achieved with Hana , so it’s really frustrating and saddening to know that here there would have been definite quality, that if troubles hadn’t occurred this film could have really sang. One does sympathise of course with what must be a heartbreaking loss of a lot of quality work, especially if the aforementioned and fully completed Hana is anything to go by, but one can also only judge what they are presented. And unfortunately, this film in this state doesn’t have enough. It’s a real shame that what would have been clearly a lot of hard and considered work hasn’t been able to make it to the finished product. If Cikgu Hana can one day be fully realised as it was meant to and deserves to be, it could be something special. About the Film Critic Chris Buick Short Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

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HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Influencer Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: Feb 3, 2024 Directed by: Kurtis David Harder Written by: Kurtis David Harder, Tesh Guttikonda Starring: Cassandra Naud, Emily Tennant, Rory J Saper, Sara Canning A young woman murders online influencers in Thailand and steals their money. This feature-length thriller has a screenplay that moves from one character to the other. It begins with an American online celebrity named Madison (Tennant) who travels to Thailand for business as well as leisure. There she meets CW (Naud), another foreign woman and the two of them form a friendship. However, Madison's hotel room is burgled and her passport is stolen. Stranded in Thailand while she waits for a temporary passport, CW offers to take her on a tour around the country. CW's true intentions are brought to light when she takes Madison to a remote small island via boat and leaves her there to die. As CW pursues her next victim, another online celebrity named Jessica (Canning), things get complicated with the unexpected arrival of Ryan (Saper), Madison's boyfriend. As mentioned the story goes from one character to another, allowing the viewers to see the events from their perspective, kind of like Psycho . Initially, it is assumed that Madison is the main character, then she falls victim to CW's vile scheme and things then focus on exploring how she takes over her victims' online accounts in order to acquire their money and how she searches for new ones through social media, eventually choosing Jessica and trying to lure her into another trap. Then Ryan shows up and the audience follows him as he starts being a detective, attempting to locate Madison. As well as being a story about a criminal and her victims, the film explores the world of online influencers and points out the dangers of being a social media celebrity, how people can find out information about them and use them in order to commit fraud. CW makes a rather intriguing character and she is played superbly by Naud. A foreigner living in Thailand, preying on online influencers so she can gain their trust, murder them and get their money. She is basically a loner and a ruthless, cunning and remorseless individual living a life of luxury due to her crimes. It should be pointed out that the opening credits do not begin until approximately twenty-five minutes after the film has started. This is not necessarily a negative thing, just unusual and therefore awkward. The feature is supported significantly by Harder's skilful directing that includes some wonderful establishing shots that reveal the beauty of Thailand and David Schuurman's stunning cinematography is a big plus. This is a dark story about murder, deception and cybercrime. It is an entertaining psychological thriller whose highest qualities are the suspense, the interesting plot and Naud's character. About the Film Critic Jason Knight Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS The Fall Guy Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: May 2, 2024 Directed by: David Leitch Written by: Drew Pearce, Glen A. Larson Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson From the first notes of the Kiss classic playing behind a montage of stunt moments across cinema’s recent history, The Fall Guy defines itself as a love story. This movie loves stunt performers. And why not? It’s pretty clever in getting audiences on board by casting maybe the most lovable movie star working today, Ryan Gosling, as Colt Seavers, hapless stuntman. (Yes, that is the same name used by Lee Majors in the kitschy 80s TV detective show, but mercifully the PI angle is dropped for the feature.) Colt, longtime stunt double for megastar Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), is smitten with the camera operator on his latest film. But an accident takes him out of the stunt game and out of Jody’s (Emily Blunt) life. That is, until producer Gail (Hannah Waddingham) comes calling: Ryder’s missing and Colt must fill in on set or Jody’s first film as a director, Metalstorm , will go bust. When David Leitch made his feature directing debut in 2017 with Atomic Blonde , his decades in stunt work and stunt coordination showed. His instinct was not just to string together one fascinating piece of stunt choreography after another (though he did do that). He took advantage of his cast’s natural physical abilities to help sell the action. And where Charlize Theron is grace, strength and ability, Gosling and Blunt are goofy and adorable. That’s the vibe from start to finish. The leads share a sweet, infectious chemistry. Winston Duke is underused but fun as Metalstorm ’s stunt coordinator and Colt’s bestie, and Taylor-Johnson’s full-blown McConaughey riff is a riot. The film has some glaring problems, though. The Fall Guy’s heart is not really in its plot, and that’s fine. But at a full and noticeable 2 hours, the film needed to prune. The opening third of the film could easily lose 15 minutes because the sheer chemistry between Blunt and Gosling carries the love story without the heavy and lengthy exposition. It’s too long and it feels it, but there’s still much to be delighted by. The set pieces are fun, funny, practical and quite impressive. And they lead to a climax that lets a full cast of stunt performers and technicians just go to town. The Fall Guy is not the most memorable way to spend two hours and 9 minutes (you will want to stick it out through the credits, BTW), but it is mindless—if overlong—fun. About the Film Critic Hope Madden Theatrical Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Emily Film Review average rating is 4 out of 5 Critic: Hope Madden | Posted on: Feb 22, 2023 Directed by: Frances O'Connor Written by: Frances O'Connor Starring: Emma Mackey, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Fionn Whitehead Wuthering Heights was always a conundrum of Gothic literature. It is mean, its tragedies ugly, its heroes selfish and boorish. It’s a dark and misanthropic piece of fiction often mistaken as romance. Lucky for all of us, Frances O’Connor appreciates the twisted nastiness of the novel and suggests a vividly unusual inner life for its author in her feature debut, Emily. Emma Mackey stars with an understated but authentic weirdness as the misfit Brontë sister. Emily doesn’t seem suited for teaching, or for much of anything. The stories she tells are childish and they embarrass her sisters, and she won’t let anyone read what she’s writing. She seems to disappoint everyone around her except her brother, Branwell (Fionn Whitehead). In O’Connor’s loose biopic, Emily finds the space to explore once her sisters are gone off to teach and she is alone with Branwell. The filmmaker slyly inserts memorable scenes from Brontë’s novel as moments, here more innocent, between brother and sister. These moments work on many levels, but mainly because writers draw from their own lives. The dynamic complicates and Emily’s transformation deepens as an unexpected, almost involuntary suiter comes into the picture. Untethered by the judgments of her sisters, Emily is free to determine her own course and the journey is intoxicating to witness. Mackey glows as her character slowly, finally comes into her own, giving us a dimensional, tender and delicately genius young woman you yearn to know better. Whitehead charms in a slightly underwritten but nonetheless poignant role. Oliver Jackson-Cohen – so different than the unrelenting narcissist of The Invisible Man – delivers the greatest arc of any character as assistant parson William. His performance is never showy, but moments of vulnerability give the film its heartbeat and heartbreak. O’Connor breathes life with all its chaos, misery and joy into the Brontës’ 19th century. Emily feels less like the vision of a newcomer than the product of a passionate kindred spirit. About the Film Critic Hope Madden Theatrical Release < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Genocidium Film Review average rating is 1 out of 5 Critic: Alasdair MacRae | Posted on: Jul 14, 2022 Directed by: Alexandre David Lejuez Written by: Alexandre David Lejuez Starring: Eva Langlet, Alexandre David Lejuez CONTENT WARNING: Rape, Suicide. When Angèle (Eva Langlet) leaves the house one day without a face mask she is kidnapped by a killer known as The Dictator (Alexandre David Lejuez). Once held captive in his dingy loft The Dictator then forces a mask onto her and proceeds to torture and rape her. In the intervals between torture, Angèle fantasizes about her death, be it by her own hand or by her captor. What director Alexandre David Lejuez presents here is anti-mask, anti-vax rhetoric in a wrapping of misogynistic violence. He seems to conflate the needs of the public health system with genocide, religious persecution, and martyrdom. The film opens with a quote from political philosopher and Holocaust survivor Hannah Arendt, as if the Holocaust and wearing a face mask are comparable!? From there Lejuez, fittingly both playing The Dictator and being the film’s director, forces Angèle to be sick in her own mask, beats her repeatedly, and engages in a prolonged rape scene that lasts for five whole minutes. Then after seeing Angèle die many violent deaths we are left with the closing image of Christ on the cross. Staggering. To be clear Genocidium is not challenging or culturally significant like the films associated with New French Extremity. Nor does it have the constructs of a Lars Von Trier or Michael Haneke film. And it does not meet the grade of lo-fi pulp that is associated with Rob Zombie. It is simply a flimsy and insulting allegory shot mostly at a Dutch angle and accompanied by classical music in order to disguise itself as being capable of containing a credible idea. Watch the trailer here . About the Film Critic Alasdair MacRae Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >

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HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Naughties Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Joe Beck | Posted on: Nov 30, 2023 Directed by: Olivia D'Lima Written by: Olivia D'Lima Starring: Olivia D'Lima, Nalân Burgess, Conor Tahir Humans have a tendency to look back at the past with hazy eyes that remember it as a far better time than it actually was. This is because it is a safe place, no matter the hardships, one which has passed and in which we can revel in the memories of a supposedly glorious yesterday. Each generation tends to have their own nostalgic lens through which they view the age in which they were adolescents, and this in turn permeates the cultural zeitgeist, bringing ideas thought to be lost to the bowels of time back to the forefront of popular culture. ‘Naughties’, is, as the title suggest, a nostalgic view of the 2000s, though in truth, it falls flat in depicting the period, let down by an overall lack of focus in its writing. In recent years, jettisoned by the seismic impact of ‘Stranger Things’, nostalgic romanticism has largely focused on the 1980s, with films such as ‘It’, ‘Everybody Wants Some’, and ‘Top Gun: Maverick’, following suit and taking us back in time. To a lesser, but nonetheless growing extent, both the 90s and the 00s have enjoyed similar revivals in popular culture, as those who grew up and matured in those decades have come to an age in which they can significantly alter what is popular in wider society. The revival of flip phones (albeit at a much higher level of technology), pleated skirts and cargo pants point to the comeback of 2000s trends, and ‘Naughties’, a web series - itself an extremely 2000s concept - reflects that. ‘Naughties’ follow teenage girl Olivia (Olivia D’Lima) across six mini episodes that depict her fairly exciting life growing up in the 2000s. Nothing, extraordinary happens during these six episodes, but for a school age teenager, these are definitely some of the cherry picked memorable best moments. Throughout these six episodes, Olivia goes through something of a journey of self discovery around herself and her body, with episode one beginning with her engaged in a web chat with a man on the Internet, who wants to webcam and see her naked. There’s also insecurities over the size of her breasts, questions over the legitimacy of female masturbation, and mixed feelings over what she’s attracted too. All this with plenty of shouting at her mother, normally over her barging into her room, as parents are bound to do. Whilst such a narrative through line across the six episodes is good and helps the viewer associate to a greater extent with Olivia as a character, it only has an impact on three episodes of the narrative - the first, last, and an episode in the middle - and thus the other episodes feel like filler, which you should not have in a six episode web series in which episodes are three minutes, and are irrelevant towards Olivia’s overall arc. Nevertheless, Olivia D’Lima’s directing shows moments of creativity that outstrip the ability of her writing and makes a scene in which she is pretending to drink and smoke, just about tolerable enough to get through. ‘Naughties’ is a glimpse into the past through rose-tinted glasses, a nostalgia burst which shows promise in some areas, but is otherwise let down by both its format, which was left in the era in which it is set for a reason, and by inconsistent writing. About the Film Critic Joe Beck Web Series < All Reviews Next Film Review >

HOME | FILMS | REVIEWS Decrypted Film Review average rating is 3 out of 5 Critic: Jason Knight | Posted on: Nov 4, 2021 Directed by: Tom Sands Written by: Mick Sands Starring: Sophia Myles, David Hoflin, Don Gilet, Akie Kotabe, Talisa Garcia, Clive Francis, Amanda Abbington, Kevin McNally Members of the National Security Agency kidnap the creator of Bitcoin and bring him to an apartment for interrogation. However, things do not go according to plan, leading to outrageous consequences. Due to the issues it might cause in the financial world, the Trump administration categorizes its developer as a terrorist and the NSA takes action. Special officer Beth Barnes (Myles) and captain Buck Johnson (Hoflin) have been assigned to capture Satoshi Nakamoto (Kotabe), the man who created Bitcoin and extract valuable information from him that will eliminate cryptocurrencies. In London, Nakamoto and his associate Sofia (Garcia) are taken by Barnes and Johnson and brought to an apartment, where they plan to make them cooperate. Unbeknown to them, they are being spied on by two members of the MI5, who are staying in the building opposite them. The two NSA members report their progress to Colonel Pike (McNally), who is in the United States. The mission swiftly goes downhill as Johnson finds himself unable to resist Sofia and loses his patience with Nakamoto. Eventually, the people in the apartment are injected with a substance that makes them tell the truth, leading to all sorts of shenanigans. Most of the story in this adult dark comedy takes place inside the London apartment, following the situation as it spirals out of control. The operation begins OK, then Johnson's behaviour turns things around, as he becomes sexually involved with Sofia and viciously beats Nakamoto and repeatedly waterboards him. The administration of the truth serum drugs is what leads the story to its catastrophic conclusion. It should be mentioned that this movie is not for sensitive viewers. There is often very strong language, a very strong sex scene and a great deal of sex talk. The part where Nakamoto is assaulted and tortured might be quite upsetting to some. The protagonists deliver entertaining performances as mostly awkward individuals. Hoflin's character is the one who steals the show with his over-the-top performance as a person who ignores his mission and is more interested in pursuing his sexual desires and goes berserk as he attempts to make Nakamoto talk. Myles is the one who is focused on her duty and tries to keep it together. McNally also has an interesting role as a nervous military man who is constantly sitting at his desk, trying to put together a miniature battleship. Recognition also goes to Francis who plays a resident of the building where the interrogation is taking place and finds himself getting caught in the middle of it. Haydn West develops wonderful cinematography that works particularly well during the flashbacks. Richard Morson makes a great contribution with the music that is dramatic, atmospheric, tense, mesmerising and entertaining. Decrypted is not for everyone. It contains a lot of profanity and a great deal of dialogue about sex. One could also argue that the film is a bit overlong. Nevertheless, those who enjoy dark and adult humour will probably not be disappointed. About the Film Critic Jason Knight Digital / DVD Release, Indie Feature Film < All Reviews Next Film Review >