A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Hana Makhmalbaf, “Buddha Collapsed out of Shame” (2007) Charming and delightful with two small child actors playing the main parts, this film carries a sombre message…
Alfred Hitchcock, “Frenzy” (1972) Coming at the tail-end of the UK film director’s illustrious career, “Frenzy” is a straightforward murder thriller set in London in the…
Ridley Scott, “Alien” (1979) In the wake of news that Ridley Scott has started work on “Prometheus”, the movie prologue to “Alien”, it’s timely to revisit…
Brazilian Films, Portuguese-language Films
Jose Padilha, “Elite Squad” (2007) An examination of corruption and brutality in a special forces unit of the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro state in…
Latin American Films (Spanish language)
Walter Salles, “The Motorcycle Diaries” (2004) A film about two guys in their 20s riding on a motorcycle through South America in the 1950s should have been…
French and French-language Films, West African Films
Jean-Stephane Sauvaire, “Johnny Mad Dog” (2008) A film of child soldiers set in an African country experiencing a long and protracted civil war, “Johnny Mad Dog”…
Charles Ferguson, “Inside Job” (2010) For many people, this incisive documentary on the immediate origins of the 2007 – 08 Global Financial Crisis will prove a…
Joel and Ethan Coen, “True Grit” (2010) Adapted from the 1968 novel of the same name by Charles Portis, “True Grit” can be read as both…
Sabine el Gemayel, “Niloofar” (2008) That familiar maxim “Less is more” applies as much to making movies as it does in composing music and creating other…
Peter Greenaway, “The Draughtsman’s Contract” (1982) British director Peter Greenaway’s first full-length feature film is a lovely feast for the eyes and ears, and the…