Hot Trash (1981)

The differences in these films could not be more blatant, and yet Gus Van Sant has found a way to portray the same messages and use the same techniques in each.

'The Lost Daughter' doesn't paint over the choices Leda and Nina make as mothers as right or wrong but examines the messy in-between.

'The Last Black Man in San Francisco' is part fiction, part documentary. Jimmie longs for the old Victorian home that he grew up in — the house that his grandfather built. However, this home is now in an overpriced, White, San Francisco neighborhood.

“And I think to myself….what a wonderful world”. Louis Armstrong sang about this notion via his classic 1967 song, an ode to witnessing elements of our life that should be but some reminders of exactly what that concluding line of each verse indicates. Now we see our contemporary realities and, just being honest, it makes a sentiment like this seem SO overtly far away….perhaps even impossible….to accept or believe could be. It sounds harsh, but again, so much of what is occurring speaks not to beauty, but bedlam.

Guillermo del Toro highlights a touch of innocence in the Gothic classic. The journey of Victor Frankenstein defying death gained inspiration from the Eastern energy system that is named ‘Qi’ and the lymphatic system being studied by Muslim scholars.

The genres of science fiction and fantasy are not exclusively masculine territory. Over the last few decades, female directors have brought to the screen some of the most visually stunning, intellectually daring, and deeply moving works of speculative fiction. From big Hollywood productions like Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel to independent low-budget films, women filmmakers are making a name for themselves around the world.