Los Mosquitos (2024)

This Comedy-Drama set in Nazi Germany, shows a young boy, Jojo who wants to be Hitler's personal guard and even conjures up Hitler to be his imaginary friend. His nationalism and prejudices of Jews change when he discovers a Jewish girl hiding in his attic.

Hitchcock is no stranger to innuendo, as was common in that era, but there was something so sophisticated about his approach to 'Rope', and it starts in the first frame.

Slumber Party Massacre is a gory film with just enough commentary on sexist excuses, the validity of women's voices, and the inherent feminism of the slasher.

The social issues The Half of it takes on are handled well, between the antagonization brought on to Ellie for her race and the conflict that arises from her being gay. Both aspects of her character are built up over the course of the film and don’t seem abrupt or rushed. The film shows racism towards Ellie and her and father in varying levels, from having her schoolmates specifically address her as "Chinese girl” to the fore mentioned way her Dad is treated due to language barriers. The same can be said about Ellie being a lesbian. While she never truly “comes out” in the narrative, that does not undermine her journey of self-discovery from being meaningful. These ideas aren’t thrust upon the viewer in a preachy manor, the scenarios that occur feel believable given the rural setting. The film presents watchers with problems whom those like Ellie may face, and leaves us to sit with them and reflect.

In The Novelist's Film, Hong explores the meaningful things people share and inspire by virtue of simply engaging with one another.