Man with a Movie Camera: experimental film documentary with the camera as central character
Dziga Vertov, “Man with a Movie Camera” / “Chelovek s Kino-apparatom” / “Liudyna z Kinoaparatom” (1929) No plot, no obvious characters or a point of view…
nausika
The Cathedral: search for life’s purpose and oneness with God isn’t fulfilling in this little film
Tomasz Baginski, “The Cathedral” / “Katedra” (2002) It’s a short film – less than seven minutes – created entirely with 3D computer animation but Baginski’s “The Cathedral”…
Dead Man’s Letters: post-apocalyptic dystopia is depressive in style and tone but holds out hope for humanity
Konstantin Lopushansky, “Dead Man’s Letters” / “Pisma myortvogo cheloveka” (1986) Depressive in tone but with a hopeful optimism at its end, this film explores how human…
The Space Voyage: space adventure propaganda piece for kids is a little subversive
Vasily Zhuravlov, “The Space Voyage” / “Kosmicheskiy reys: Fantasticheskaya Novella” (1936) In the 1930s, the youth branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, usually…
Aerograd: great visuals of wilderness and flying planes in Soviet war propaganda film
Alexander Dovzhenko, “Aerograd” (1935) It’s a well-made film with stunning shots of wilderness and planes flying in the sky but where would a Dovzhenko film be without…
Australian and New Zealand Films
Once Were Warriors: compelling film with complex characters but disappointing message
Lee Tamahori, “Once Were Warriors” (1994) An intense film from New Zealand of a family in an impoverished and degraded social environment dominated by alcohol, a…
Waltz with Bashir: a film revealing repressed memories and a hideous war crime in parallel
Ari Folman, “Waltz with Bashir” (2008) Few movies about war must be as personal and intense as this animated film about an Israeli ex-soldier’s gradual acknowledgement of the…
Living in Fear: unusual and eccentric black comedy about finding redemption in digging up landmines
Chuyen Bui Thac, “Living in Fear” / “Song trong so hai” (2005) It’s mid-1975, the war has ended and the Americans have gone, and the North…
The Sky Calls: visually striking film that’s low on excitement and high on propaganda with a surprise twist
Mikhail Karyukhov and Alexander Kozyr, “The Sky Calls” / “Nebo Zovyot” (1959) A visually stunning film about space exploration, “The Sky Calls” was the first in…
Northern European Films, Russian and Soviet Films
The Sampo: good-looking film with a moral let down by watered-down story and wooden acting
Risto Orko and Alexander Ptushko, “The Sampo” (1959) A joint Finnish-Soviet fantasy production aimed at a family audience, “The Sampo” is a very loose retelling of…