Your Name: teenage romance comedy drama comes with an unexpected twist sending it into disaster sci-fi fantasy
Makoto Shinkai, “Your Name” (2016) At first this teenage romance drama seems to be just
Tag: Coming of Age Films
Rams: a minimal but insubstantial film on the fragility of family and community ties and traditions against the outside world
Grimur Hakonarson, “Rams / Hrutar” (2015 Forty years ago, a family rift led to two
Downsizing: an uneven satirical science fiction comedy commenting on various social, economic and political issues
Alexander Payne, “Downsizing” (2017) For most viewers, perhaps the more interesting part of this long
British Films | North American Films
Goodbye Christopher Robin: a surprisingly substantial film with some disturbing themes
Simon Curtis, “Goodbye Christopher Robin” (2017) A film about English playwright / author A A
Tom of Finland: a film of hope, sympathy for underdogs and inspiration to others suffering hardship and oppression
Dome Karukoski, “Tom of Finland” (2017) As a general introduction to the life of gay
Adam Ruins Everything (Season 2, Episode 7: Adam Ruins College): how financially naive young adults end up in the grip of neoliberal economic ideology
Paul Briganti, “Adam Ruins Everything (Season 2, Episode 7: Adam Ruins College)” (2017) Aiming squarely
German and German-language Films
Oh Boy: a young man without purpose and focus comes to accept responsibility and care for the world
Jan Ole Gerster, “Oh Boy” (2012) Debut film for German director Jan Ole Gerster, “Oh
The Truman Show: comedy drama satire encapsulating the search for authenticity for self and community under conditions of control and manipulation
Peter Weir, “The Truman Show” (1998) Once in a while Hollywood releases a film that
Spirited Away: a lavish film representing the peak of Studio Ghibli’s creativity and the start of its decline
Hayao Miyazaki, “Spirited Away” (2001) In many ways, “Spirited Away” represents the peak of Studio
A Samurai Chronicle: an earnest and heavy-going lesson in how to live a good life with grace, compassion and humility
Takashi Koizumi, “A Samurai Chronicle” (2014) I’m afraid that these days the Japanese just don’t