Alone: drama and emotion in a tiny space-pod
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…
Short films
Flyby: an ingenious but weak film on time literally slipping away
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…
This Time Away: a succinct and heartwarming character study with a sting in its tail
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…
Tribes: fast, witty lesson on identity politics as tool of control
Nino Aldi, “Tribes” (2020) In societies obsessed with categorising people on the basis of arbitrary and artificial criteria such as race and gender self-identity, this short…
Eastern European Films, North American Films
The 2014 American Coup in Ukraine: textbook example of how the US invades and makes over other nations
Carlton Meyer, “The 2014 American Coup in Ukraine” (Tales of the American Empire, 21 August 2020) A very timely release in Carlton Meyer’s Tales of the…
Australian and New Zealand Films
Nullarbor: laconic little road movie on the need to work together
Alister Lockhart, Patrick Sarell, “Nullarbor” (2011) Across the longest stretch of straight road through the flat desert that is the Nullarbor Plain in southern Australia is…
Los Angeles 1991: a common humanity emphasised in an almighty shootout
Miguel de Olaso, Macgregor, Bruno Zacarias, “Los Angeles 1991” (2015) The tale seems contrived and some suspension of disbelief may be required but essentially this taut…
Latin American Films (Spanish language), North American Films
La Carnada: one boy’s road to Hell paved with love and concern in a spider web of exploitation
Josh Soskin, “La Carnada” (2014) In a poverty-stricken town in Mexico not far from the border with the United States, 13-year-old Manny (Angel Soto Jr) is…
Australian and New Zealand Films
The Disappearance of Willie Bingham: portrait of a society exploiting emotions and desire for vengeance
Matt Richards, “The Disappearance of Willie Bingham” (2015) A truly unsettling short realist film about a bureaucracy gone insanely inhuman, pandering to the lowest common denominator…
Retouch: a character study about struggle and sudden unexpected freedom
Kaveh Mazaheri, “Retouch” (2017) A stunning character study of a married woman, submissive to her bullying husband, who is unexpectedly given a new lease of life…