Review: Rita (2019)
The film is interesting in terms of different techniques and expression forms coming together, but it doesn’t take enough of emotional distance from its main character.
October 2020
Review: Merry Christmas, Mr. Monster (2019)
The directorial duo André Rodrigues & João Pais da Silva do what they can with the script written by Tiago Laranjo that borrows from many genre tropes without having developed them to the maximum, and with a very slim budget
Review: Romance Del Robo Del Sacramento (2019)
Plundering as an act of everything that church officially stands against, but that it had employed for centuries to accumulate its own wealth, turns into a metaphor of sorts.
Review: Aysan (2019)
Guileful on many levels, the script leaves us with a plenitude of questions not turning annoying by not providing definite answers.
The reality behind a relationship: While You’re Sleeping (2019)
Despite its over-reaching ambition, While You’re Sleeping does remain an often intriguing metaphor for human relationships.
Review: Wade (2019)
The short animation drama Wade, written and directed by Upamanyu Bhattacharyya & Kalp Sanghvi isn’t that much of a horror film as a premonition of a terrifying, near future.
Review: Have a Nice Dog! (2020)
Maghout and his small team have created the uniquely unpleasant feeling of being lost and suffering without even a notch of exploitation of their characters.
Review: The Ink Doesn’t Dry (2019)
The Ink Doesn’t Dry seems both old-timey and contemporary. Its stark black and white colour scheme serves as a nod to the modernist tendencies of the late 50s and early 60s, especially when combined with different types of hand-held shots and the notion of rawness in the editing department.
Review: The Shadow (2019)
Is a motherly sin to blame for the evil possession of a young boy? Director Nayla Al Khaja, who holds the historic position of being the first female director-producer in her native United Arabic Emirates, peppers this initial question with influences from her own life.
