Samantha Mitchell’s “RSVP” Incluvie Film Fest Review
“There’s always something you can do…to make people feel like they’re welcome”

Pierrot, the Harlequin and Don Quixote come from Berlin. They are the actors in Harald Metzkes’ paintings, the parable-like characters in the great tragicomedy of human life, the ambivalent interplay between 'black and white' in daily as well as political life. Using characters from literature, mythology and the circus, Metzkes rejected the ideological appropriation of the GDR state apparatus. His melancholic sensualism made him a protagonist of the Berlin School. Reiner E. Moritz visited the 'Cézannist' shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In conversation with Metzkes, he traces the life and work of one of East Germany's most lyrical artists.
“There’s always something you can do…to make people feel like they’re welcome”
As this critic continues to look back at some of this Summer's films I have taken in, I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the most overall unsettling trends in Hollywood over the last several years.....sequels, reboots, and remakes. Look, I am all for seeing more than one film for certain originals that made a splash, ie: "Jurassic Park", "Pirates of the Caribbean", "Transformers", etc.
Twisting what seems to be obvious setups and frameworks is what sets the story structure of Squid Game apart. I appreciate that this narrative is complex but not complicated; an easy enough plot to wrap your head around while still treating the audience like an equal participant in this social commentary
Two Summers ago, on May 27th, 2022, the theatrical cinematic realms were re-awakened from their post-COVID dormant state of being by a little film titled "Top Gun: Maverick". It re-introduced us to the absolute elation of seeing not only a highly anticipated (and, granted, 36 years in the making!) sequel, but the return of the quintessential Summer blockbuster to witness on the BIG screen again.
The justice system in the United States of America is supposed to operate as you are deemed innocent until proven guilty. But "When They See Us" shows what happens for Black people is they are deemed guilty until proven innocent.
One of THE most frustrating trends in the mainstream film industry over the last several decades has been the onset of comedy efforts that seem SO focused on being crude and/or gross-out in all ways possible. That, at least for me, makes them no longer funny.