Ana by Day: exploring identity and the limits of freedom and pursuing one’s dreams
Andrea Jaurrieta, “Ana by Day / Ana de Dia” (2017) You feel vaguely dissatisfied with and trapped by your life as a lawyer studying for a…
Comedy
Masha and the Bear (Season 1, Episode 17: Recipe for Disaster): Masha and kasha aren’t a good mix
Oleg Uzhinov, “Masha and the Bear (Season 1, Episode 17: Recipe for Disaster)” (2009) Despite its title, this charming little short turned out to be the…
Italian and Italian-language Films
Loro: a portrayal of political corruption and debauchery seduced by its own excess
Paolo Sorrentino, “Loro / Them” (2018) Originally made in two parts totalling three hours, this fictional drama about Italian media magnate and former prime minister Silvio…
Vice: satirical biopic is as empty as the man it lampoons
Adam McKay, “Vice” (2018) A rather patchy satirical study of the life of former US Vice-President Dick Cheney, “Vice” shows how an unscrupulous individual can attain…
French and French-language Films
Normandy Nude: a light-hearted if flat comedy with a message about exploiting people and land for profit
Philippe le Guay, “Normandy Nude / Normandy Nue” (2018) One of a distinctly French genre of comedy films – Cedric Klapisch’s “Back to Burgundy” is another…
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 Anton Chekhov couldn’t have been set in the United States in…
Adam Ruins Everything (Season 2, Episode 4: Adam Ruins Dating): everything else except the institution of dating put under the spotlight
Tim Wilkime, “Adam Ruins Everything (Season 2, Episode 4: Adam Ruins Dating)” (2017) If ever there were profitable scams preying on people’s insecurities in finding lasting…
BlacKkKlansman: use of race politics demeans the achievement of a black police officer in exposing the Ku Klux Klan’s evil
Spike Lee, “BlacKkKlansman” (2018) Filmed as a blaxsploitation-styled comedy drama, this work revolves around a real scenario in which a black American police officer in Colorado…
Tokyo Godfathers: a heart-warming if fussy Christmas movie on the importance of family in assuring survival and resilience
Satoshi Kon, “Tokyo Godfathers” (2003) No, this ain’t no cult yakuza film – though yakuza types do appear for a short while – but instead this…
Evil under the Sun: a minor crime caper classic portraying a self-contained, self-absorbed world of the rich at play
Guy Hamilton, “Evil under the Sun” (1981) Even when he’s holidaying in an apparently perfect little Mediterranean paradise where the sky is always celestial blue and…