American Pop (1981)

Magnolia focuses on how one’s childhood and trauma relate to their confidence and self.

The Weight is highly recommended, will transport you back to its Great Depression-era setting and will have you rooting for the protagonist harder than most films this year

Tran Quoc Bao succeeds in telling us a story about martial arts, human decay, and friendship. The originality shown by his filmmaking is admirable and brings fresh air to the classic Chinese martial arts genre.

When diverse representation is featured on-screen, it oftentimes comes with strings attached that undermine the message they were trying to send. This can be attributed to the fact that behind-the-screen, the industry primarily does not reflect the breadth of diverse difference that is present in daily life. That’s why when something as powerful and authentic as Minari comes along, it is both incredibly wonderful and needs a large audience to witness it.

Although Christmas is a time of year for love and cheer for all, holiday cinema has not always represented diverse communities. Being a holiday with Christian origins, much of its media consists of straight white families or straight white romances. Luckily, modern years have been bringing with them plenty of POC and LGBTQ+ representation that the holidays so desperately need.

By depicting 4 different stories, Director Sergio Tovar Velarde keeps the focus on the shared humanity and search for love (both self and romantic) of various gay Mexican men.