A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Yorgos Lanthimos, “Bugonia” (2025) A remake of the South Korean sci-fi / black comedy film “Save the Green Planet!”, this work is just as dark in…
Guillermo del Toro, “Frankenstein” (2025) After many years of planning and delays, at last Mexican director Guillermo del Toro brings his adaptation of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein;…
Essays, Multi-media Presentations
Vladimir Putin’s Valdai Speech at the XXII Meeting (Final Plenary Session) of the Valdai International Discussion Club (Sochi, 2 October 2025) / Q&A Session After his…
Essays, Multi-media Presentations
Vladimir Putin’s Valdai Speech at the XXII Meeting (Final Plenary Session) of the Valdai International Discussion Club (Sochi, 2 October 2025) The Valdai International Discussion Club…
Ben Leonberg, “Good Boy” (2025) For his first film as a director, Ben Leonberg chose an unusual lead actor: his own pet dog, a Nova Scotia…
Marc Evans, “Mr. Burton” (2025) Told in conventional British history drama style, “Mr. Burton” tells the story of the early life of acclaimed 20th-century Welsh actor…
British Films, North American Films
Danny Boyle, “28 Years Later” (2025) A much-anticipated entry in the series of films that began 20 years ago with “28 Days Later”, this film of…
Hayao Miyazaki, “Gake no Ue no Ponyo” / “Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea” (2008) As always with Studio Ghibli films, and especially those SG…
German and German-language Films
Andres Veiel, “Riefenstahl” (2024) Gaining access to 700 boxes of archives of the work of notorious German film director Leni Riefenstahl (1902 – 2003), who made…
Peter Cattaneo, “The Penguin Lessons” (2024) At first this film appears no more than a light, gentle comedy about a teacher upstaged by a penguin. In…