Last Requests: quiet naturalistic character study gives insight into US prison culture and the people it exploits
Courtenay Johnson, “Last Requests” (2017) A sombre character study of a prison worker on her
Category: North American Films
Reviews of films made in Canada and United States including all films made by Hollywood.
The Incident at Benghazi: a good summary of an ambitious diplomat’s career bites off more than it can chew
Carlton Meyer, “The Incident at Benghazi” (31 July 2020) As short reports go, this one
The American Annexation of Okinawa: an overview of the post-1945 history of the Ryukyu Islands under the US military
Carlton Meyer, “The American Annexation of Okinawa” (Tales of the American Empire, 24 July 2020)
Chappaquiddick: character study deprived of its wider historical background and significance
John Curran, “Chappaquiddick” (2017) A thoughtful and well-acted film, as the metonym title suggests, this
The False Tale of Killing Osama bin Laden: duping the public with fake news for political gain
Carlton Meyer, “The False Tale of Killing Osama bin Laden” (Tales of the American Empire,
Protecting the American Opium Empire: opium as a tool and fuel for US imperialism
Carlton Meyer, “Protecting the American Opium Empire” (Tales of the American Empire, 9 July 2020)
Eve: choosing between freedom, compassion and responsibility makes an android more human than humans
Josh Bowman, “Eve” (2019) A character-driven sci-fi story with good acting and a strong visual
Satori [Awakening]: post-apocalypse film very much asleep under character stereotypes and a boring plot
Adam K Batchelor, “Satori [Awakening]” (2020) An original and ambitious idea of an Earth re-engineered
End of Decay: pulpy body-horror adaptation of Frankenstein story
Christopher Todd, “End of Decay” (2017) A pulpy body-horror update on Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein; or,
Lucid: horror sci-fi dealing with cyber-addiction, escapism and technology shaping human psychology
Jamie Monahan, “Lucid” (2018) The film’s title refers to so-called lucid dreams in which the