Nano: hard-boiled pulp fiction ho-hum plot with an unusual premise
Mike Manning, “Nano” (2017) This short film has the look and feel of a proof-of-concept work itching to be made into a full-length feature film or…
nausika
The Replacement: an inquiry into the nature-versus-nurture dilemma
Sean Miller, “The Replacement” (2018) What starts out as an investigation of the consequences of cloning in this sci-fi comedy short turns out almost to be…
Exploring destiny, reincarnation and transformation in “Uncle Boonmee who can recall his past lives”
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, “Uncle Boonmee who can recall his past lives” (2010) The last days of a farmer dying from kidney disease on his farm in a…
Nine Minutes: choosing how to die as your oxygen gives out
Ernie Gilbert, “Nine Minutes” (2017) What if you suddenly discovered that you only had nine minutes left to live? How would you spend that time? This…
French and French-language Films
Animal: in a ruined world, hope, tradition and openness to new consciousness can overcome despair
Jules Janaud and Fabrice le Nezet, “Animal” (2017) In the not too distant future, in a post-industrial world, communities living on the margins of society will…
Plurality: a film of techno-dystopia in New York
Dennis Liu, “Plurality” (2012) A competent little short that looks very much like a proof-of-concept work for a longer feature film, “Plurality” plays like a conventional…
British Films, North American Films
Zero: teenage survivalist making a critical decision about her future
Keith and David Lynch, “Zero” (2019) In a post-apocalyptic world, when robots and humans have fought each other almost to the death in a long drawn-out…
Jameson: when love becomes a permanent existential hell
John Humber, “Jameson” (2018) A man living an apparently secluded life off the grid in a cabin he built himself in the middle of a deep…
ChromoPHOBIA: a message about how we treat (or don’t treat) mental illness well
Keith Adams, “ChromoPHOBIA” (2019) Based on a short story by B Evenson, this dark horror fiction short focuses on mental illness and its treatment, and unconscious…
Vladimir Putin’s Presidential Speech to the Russian Federal Assembly (15 January 2020): a vision of a future democratic Russia
Vladimir Putin’s Presidential Speech to the Russian Federal Assembly (15 January 2020) Under Article 84 of the Russian Constitution, the Russian President is required to give…