Europa 54 54′-25 19′ 

'Ganja & Hess' is a 1973 experimental horror film, written and directed by the visionary auteur Bill Gunn. It was meant to be a straightforward blaxploitation film – but director Gunn had grander ambitions.

With The Father, writer-director Florian Zeller- who wrote and developed the play upon which the film is based- pulls no punches as he confidently makes every effort to put the audience in the mind of someone whose grip on reality has all but vanished. It’s a dazzling testament to Zeller’s abilities as a director as he makes his first transition from stage to film appear as if he’s been working behind a camera his entire career. The dialogue he fashions with co-writer Christopher Hampton, along with the work of production designers Peter Francis and Cathy Featherstone, collectively makes the downward spiral of dementia startlingly tangible, doing so in a way that can be comprehended by everyone except the person it directly affects.

The 1950s lesbian romance is stunning, emotional, restrained, and, simply put, one of the best movies I’ve ever seen depicting a woman-loving-woman (WLW) relationship.

Most movies give you their point upfront, while others make you think it’s about a specific topic, then reveal that the story is about something else. Pink Lady belongs somewhere in the middle of those two categories.

A haunting look at grief, survival, and a mother’s quiet collapse in a world that never gave her room to fall.

How powerful can a story be when it is stripped to the bare essentials of just a room, a handful of people and raw human voice?