Possibly the finest from Jia in recent years, this unexpectedly affecting documentary remarkably paints a portrait of China in the second half of the 20th century through the diverse oral histories of renowned literary figures.
Ann Hui’s latest period piece has a slow-burning elegance, but despite the array of world-class talents involved—Christopher Doyle, Ryuichi Sakamoto and the late Emi Wada—and adapted from an Eileen Chang text no less, it feels too thematically shallow to work.
Kawase’s naturalistic and graceful filmmaking is there for all to see, but she doesn’t quite pull off successfully an oddly-structured work about the sometimes fateful circumstances surrounding mothers and babies.
Critics have called this a cine-symposium, and rightly so as Puiu’s latest is an ultra-dense and ultra-slow exercise that sees five individuals debate over their stubborn—and at times arrogant—views on religion, morality and mortality in thought-provoking but dullish fashion.
Watching and listening to farm animals can be surprisingly cinematic in this immersive dialogue-free new documentary by Kossakovsky that seems to exist outside of time, even as it startlingly reminds us that these animals have fates they can’t control.
This entertaining Kenyan documentary about a political activist-cum-family man running for election is tightly-constructed and highly-illuminating as it explores how politics is synonymous with corruption and violence, but also the desire for change.
The sum is lesser than its parts in this interesting but ultimately unconvincing Venice offering that deals with a group of anti-fascist youths who become increasingly violent in their moral fight against the rise of ultra-right ideologies in Germany.
The best animated film of 2020, Tomm Moore’s enthralling third feature is a masterful folkloric take on heroes and villains, humans and beasts, and the courage to change perceptions.
This inspirational Oscar-winning documentary shows us that nature is our best teacher—that we are fully capable of adapting and changing for the better if only we had the wisdom to do so.
It’s not exactly a special film and gets bogged down by a narrative that is far more predictable than you think, but there’s a certain charm to how this alcohol-meets-schoolteachers drama plays out, backed by an indelible turn from Mads Mikkelsen.
Eternality Tan 