Death and life dance together in this poetic short filmed in the streets of Mexico City. It is the fall of 2017, 32 years after the 1985 earthquake. While cracked buildings testify to the violence of a new quake, preparations for the Day of the Dead are in full swing. Flowers, music and masks come out to combat despair and fear. In grainy images in which reality becomes ghostly and ghosts come to life, Étienne Lacelle’s keen eye captures fleeting moments in the streets, markets and squares, embodying the chance encounter of the two sides of existence. Amidst a joyful atmosphere, the dead are not forgotten. To the contrary, the celebration is a stand against the fragility of fate.
Diversity is incorporated in a way that only aids in a well-rounded conveying of stories through different lenses. The show’s success is a testament to what audiences are craving: authentic stories that broaden the mind and heart.
Crazy Rich Asians. The title is tacky, but the actual movie is both heartwarming and cosmopolitan. After all, it takes place in Singapore!
The 100 imagines a future where humanity's overcome some of its most pervasive forms of prejudice—only to create new ones.
In The Women and the Murderer, directors Mona Achache and Patricia Tourancheau center women—the very demographic true crime is designed to appeal to.
Movies also have the ability to make the audience think deeper about an issue that plagues society. "Blindspotting" does that without shying away from the intense reality of police brutality and racial discrimination.
Him is visually stunning—all concrete cathedrals and bone-rattling impact shots that look like a nightmare highlight reel. Marlon Wayans is magnetic as this legendary quarterback who's basically selling salvation with a smile that never quite reaches his eyes. But the story keeps running in circles: more tests, more cryptic pep talks, more ritualistic drills. The sports-as-religion metaphor beats you over the head when subtlety would've been more effective. The middle drags, and that finale chooses spectacle over substance. It's undeniably stylish, but left me cold. Also worth noting: despite the Monkeypaw connection, this isn't actually a Jordan Peele film—he didn't write or direct.
