A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Sophia Banks, “Unregistered” (2018) This short film commenting on the treatment of undocumented immigrants in the United States during Donald Trump’s presidency (2017 – 2021) has…
Chinese and Chinese-language Films, Spanish Films
Alejandro Suarez Lozano, “The Fisherman” (2015) A cleverly made and succinct little SF horror film set in Hong Kong, “The Fisherman” combines a character study that…
William Hellmuth, “Alone” (2020) A moving film about connection – and about how so strong humans’ need for connection can be that some individuals will travel…
Jesse Mittelstadt, “Flyby” (2019) In its own way this film can be considered a horror film, focusing as it does on how an alien force seems…
Magali Barbe, “This Time Away” (2019) A very heartwarming little film, succinct and taut in its telling, yet filled with tenderness and depth, this character study…
Australian and New Zealand Films
Luke Sparke, “Occupation: Rainfall” (2020) Here’s a brisk and flashy science fiction action film done on a small budget with plenty of Australian bravado and no…
Andrey Klimov, “Azarkant” (2013) Made as a proof-of-concept piece for a film, “Azarkant” understandably is short on plot and character to the extent that it plays…
Nour Wazzi, “Lab Rat” (2019) Initially the plot seems familiar to the point of banality: three scientists working for a robotics firm are suddenly trapped in…
Josh Bowman, “Eve” (2019) A character-driven sci-fi story with good acting and a strong visual look with a desert setting doesn’t need a fancy budget or…
Adam K Batchelor, “Satori [Awakening]” (2020) An original and ambitious idea of an Earth re-engineered by Artificial Intelligence to reverse environmental degradation, combined perhaps with genetic…