French and French-language Films
Bernadette: fluffy satirical comedy saved by good actors
Léa Domenach, “Bernadette” (2023) Any time Catherine Deneuve takes on a film role is reason enough to watch that film, and so it is with “Bernadette”…
Comedy
Exhuma: Korean shamanism and colonial past explored in supernatural horror thriller
Jang Jaehyun, “Exhuma” (2024) It starts innocently enough when a newborn boy contracts a mystery illness and ends up in intensive care in hospital – but…
Dream Scenario: wacky fantasy comedy satire on social media fame and post-modern cultural values
Kristoffer Borgli, “Dream Scenario” (2023) This psychological fantasy comedy film is as oddball as they come, yet “Dream Scenario”, the first English-language feature film from Norwegian…
British Films, North American Films
Poor Things: a male-centred fantasy of a child-like heroine’s sexual liberation and personal empowerment
Yorgos Lanthimos, “Poor Things” (2023) A visually sumptuous feast, set in an alternative late Victorian steampunk world, “Poor Things” is a science fantasy concoction revolving around…
British Films, North American Films
Saltburn: black comedy thriller send-up of British elites and modern British culture
Emerald Fennell, “Saltburn” (2023) Arriving in Sydney with little fanfare, “Saltburn” initially presents as a more contemporary variation of “Brideshead Revisited” with the latter’s hints of…
French and French-language Films
Mon Crime: screwball comedy is a sly satire on male privilege and how societies deal with uncomfortable issues and truth
François Ozon, “Mon Crime / The Crime is Mine” (2023) On the surface, “Mon Crime” presents as a frothy light comedy romp paying homage to the…
Renfield: camp horror comedy suffers from co-dependency on too much CGI splatter violence
Chris McKay, “Renfield” (2023) A cheerfully cheesy vehicle for Nicolas Cage to finally fulfil his life’s ambition to play Count Dracula, “Renfield” shifts the focus away…
Blacula: cheap and campy cult classic given backbone by its monster
William Crain, “Blacula” (1972) In 1780, a noble African Prince (William Marshall), known as Mamuwalde, visits Transylvania with his wife Luva to solicit the help of…
The Lost King: real people and events lost in identity politics stereotypes
Stephen Frears, “The Lost King” (2022) A breezy and light film, “The Lost King” depends very largely on its lead actor Sally Hawkins’s energetic and impassioned…
British Films, French and French-language Films
Triangle of Sadness: a perilous navigation through class warfare, power struggles and a plot that falls apart
Ruben Östlund, “Triangle of Sadness” (2022) Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip … er, sorry, this won’t…