Near Lunar New Year, Liang Zhe makes the long trek home to his village in rural Shanxi. Along the way, he encounters acquaintances, estranged friends, and potential love interests. Though everyone seems impressed by his life in Beijing, Zhe can’t help but reflect on his failures both past and present. Based on his own experiences, Jian Haodong’s take on the well-worn road movie genre is a melancholic and quietly engrossing journey of self-reflection, relatable to anyone who has left home for greener pastures. Best Film, Pingyao Film Festival.
This film was filled with great plot points. Unfortunately, they all contradicted each other and clashed. Had the premise of Awake been more consistent and accurately portrayed the real world aspect, I think this could have been an extreme success.
Unrelentingly funny, highly entertaining, and ridiculously absurd, My Movie Starring Paul Dano is, according to its creator, Joe Bartone, a tribute to the willful ignorance of independent filmmaking found in the late '70s in New York City. Developed through open discussions with the cast at the reading table, the mockumentary follows a delusional and fame-starved indie director, Herman Rumowicz, through the process of making his very first feature movie starring Paul Dano.
I have no idea how getting an abortion is still not a basic right at this point, but that means the fight is far from over. So, films like Happening are ever-relevant.
If you enjoy the bizarre, silly and entertaining world of the horror B-movies and want a break from the nuanced and poignant big budget horror releases, I have a list of gore-fests from the last ten years to enjoy this October.
Knives Out doesn’t just defy the whodunit narrative, it uses the weaknesses to its advantage. It’s well aware of the genre’s faults and tropes
The shattering of what we strive to maintain as reality. It is certainly truthful to state that most, if not all, of us have experienced moments of genuine mental stress. Regardless of what might be the cause, the sheer unsettledness, the pressure that weighs upon us is a tangible force that CAN seem insurmountable. However, more often than not, this is only a temporary , one we can come through and simply move on from.
