Italian and Italian-language Films
Don’t Torture a Duckling: behind the sensationalism, a surprisingly thoughtful and critical film
Lucio Fulci, “Don’t Torture a Duckling / Non si sevizia un paperino” (1973) Fret not,
The Lobby (Episode 1: Young Friends of Israel): how Israel infiltrates youth groups and organisations in Britain
Clayton Swisher, “The Lobby (Episode 1: Young Friends of Israel)” (Al Jazeera, 2017) In recent
Bohemian Rhapsody: a boring and forgettable film fails to address its lead character’s complexities
Bryan Singer, “Bohemian Rhapsody” (2018) Astonishingly, given the rich source material and the fact that
A sense of Cold War paranoia and self-righteous American exceptionalism in “Espionage Target – You!”
“Espionage Target – You!” (1964) Commissioned by the United States Department of Defense for training
The Real Manchurian Candidate: a meandering set of interviews on the Robert F Kennedy assassination and Sirhan Bishara Sirhan’s role in it
Shane O’Sullivan, “The Real Manchurian Candidate” (e2 films, 2018) Sirhan Bishara Sirhan is notorious as
There are TWO Londons & Why It MATTERS: introducing viewers to a secret world of tax evasion in a city within a city
“There are TWO Londons & Why It MATTERS” (Black Pigeon Speaks, 2017) Why indeed should
The Seagull (dir. Michael Mayer): a film adaptation of Chekhov’s play lacking good characters and direction
Michael Mayer, “The Seagull” (2018) Quite why this film adaptation of the famous play by
The Syria Deception (Part 1: Al Qaeda Goes to Hollywood): a blunt examination of the cynicism of Western propaganda
Dan Cohen, “The Syria Deception (Part 1: Al Qaeda Goes to Hollywood)” (2018) This first
The Wicker Man: a satire on religious bigotry and fanaticism
Robin Hardy “The Wicker Man” (1973) In spite of a small budget and the set-backs
Australian and New Zealand Films
Jirga: a sparingly told story of remorse, compassion and forgiveness
Benjamin Gilmour, “Jirga” (2018) The wonder is that this film got made at all as