A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
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…
Michael Anderson, “Logan’s Run” (1976) Admittedly this film has not aged well over the past half-century: its sets look bad; its music soundtrack turns tired and…
Hiromasa Yonebayashi, “Mary and the Witch’s Flower” (2017) A visually very attractive family movie, clearly influenced by the Studio Ghibli animation style – indeed, director Hiromasa…
Tim Mielants, “Small Things Like These” (2024) Adapted from the novella of the same name by Claire Keegan, “Small Things Like These” is an understated character…