Teaching audiences to view films actively
By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Corneliu Porumboiu
Starring: Adrian Purcarescu | Corneliu Cozme | Nicodim Toma | Toma Cuzin
Jason says: “Even the titles of Corneliu Porumboiu’s best-known recent films – 12;08 EAST OF BUCHAREST and POLICE, ADJECTIVE – are focused on a sort of precision that can sometimes be maddening and THE TREASURE, (‘Comoara’ in the original Romanian)
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Rating: 3.5 cats
Jason says: “As a film, TOUCHED WITH FIRE sometimes struggles with being bipolar in one of the ways that its characters do, seemingly wanting to claim it as a source of creativity even if the connection is shaky, while the
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Maren Ade
Starring: Michael Wittenborn | Peter Simonischek | Sandra Hüller
Brett says: “TONI ERDMANN is a comedic drama containing a premise that might seem similar to a large number of films, but this is a film that relies on a subtle characterization and timely humor as its backbone, opposed to
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.75 cats
Director: Jafar Panahi
Starring: Jafar Panahi
Bruce says: “So cleverly crafted is Jafar Panahi’s TAXI that it could easily be mistaken for a documentary. Winner of the 2015 Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, TAXI is another creative response from Panahi (THIS IS NOT A
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Matt Sobel
Starring: Azura Skye | Josh Hamilton | Logan Miller | Richard Schiff | Robin Weigert | Ursula Parker
Bruce says: “Saying director Matt Sobel is fond of the McGuffin would be a gross understatement. TAKE ME TO THE RIVER is a film that in no way is what it seems. First off, while Don (Richard Schiff) and Cindy
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Stephen Fingleton
Starring: Andrew Simpson | Martin McCann | Mia Goth | Olwen Fouere
Jason says:”There are several types of survivalist in stories t hat take place after the collapse of civilization, from the gregarious fellow who knows how to live off the land and aims to share that knowledge and bounty to the
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Bruce says: “While not exactly covering new territory in terms of content,SUMMERTIME is a satisfying coming-of-age lesbian drama because of the carefully-crafted characters, beautifully brought to life by its three main actors – Izϊa Higelin, Cécile de France and Noémie
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats
Director: Alberto Marini
Starring: Andrés Velencoso | Diego Boneta | Jocelin Donahue | Maiara Walsh
Jason says: “From the title alone, it’s pretty clear that SUMMER CAMP is not exactly likely to break new ground as a horror movie, but there’s plenty of hope that it may do a familiar thing well, and the 81-minute
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2 cats
Director: Sandy Robson
Starring: Aidan Kokotilo-Moen | Bronwen Smith | John Prowse | Sandy Robson
Jason says: “There are a lot of ways filmmakers can be too clever for their own good, but the most frustrating involve telling the audience, in one way or another, that the thing they’ve invested their time, money, and emotions
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Director: John Carney
Starring: Aidan Gillen | Ferdia Walsh-Peelo | Ian Kenny | Jack Reynor | Kelly Thornton | Maria Doyle Kennedy
TC says: “Director/writer John Carney does it again with this hilarious charmer about Cosmo, a 15 year old so enamored with a local girl he asks her to be in his band’s music video. When she says ‘yes,’ he and
Read the review...By Michael Colford
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Wiebke von Carolsfeld
Starring: Brandon Oakes | Hamidou Savadogo | Imajyn Cardinal | Pascale Bussières | Paul Spence
Michael says: “The new film by Wiebke von Carolsfeld (MARION BRIDGE) has not been officially released in the States yet. It’s small distribution deal will hit this fall, but I was lucky enough to see it at the Provincetown International
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Warren Beatty
Starring: Annette Bening | Candice Bergen | Lily Collins | Matthew Broderick | Paul Sorvino | Warren Beatty
Thom says: “I was totally amazed at my appreciation for this film especially because it was for all the wrong reasons, at least as my expectations went. I picked this up due to the presence of Annette Bening, the lovely
Read the review...By Chris Kriofske
Director: Grímur Hákonarson
Starring: Charlotte Bøving | Gunnar Jónsson | JónBenónýsson | Sigurður Sigurjónsson | TheodórJúlíusson
Chris says: “Charming Icelandic drama about two sheep-herding brothers who, having been estranged (yet still neighbors) for 40 years must work together when illness effects both of their flocks. Pulls off the neat trick of convincing you it’s about one
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Eric Piccoli
Starring: Jean-Nicolas Verreault | Julien Deschamps Jolin | JuliePerreault | Nadia Essadiqi
Jason says: “The festival opened with a film (400 DAYS) that covers a lot of the same territory – global cataclysm happens while astronauts are undergoing long-term isolation trials – and this one is easily much better, despite having a
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Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Julian M. Grünthal | Samuel Schwarz
Starring: Arnold Bucher | Christoph Bach | Julian M. Grünthal | Nikolai Bosshardt | Nina Fog | PhilippeGraber
Jason says: “There are likely a great many odd cross-pollinations like POLDER that even the most dedicated watchers of world cinema miss because a German art-house adaptation of a Japanese science-fiction novel would appeal to fairly specialized tastes under the
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2.5 cats
Jason says: “I think that I vaguely recall the ‘Phoenix Lights’ that give this film its name; at least, there was a feeling of familiarity when the footage appeared which demonstrates that filmmaker Keith Arem has either done a nice
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2.75
Director: Zheng Xiao
Starring: Brother Sway | David Wu | Dennis Joseph O'Neil | JiangShan | Macy Gray | Song Zuer | Xia Yu | Yang Zi
Jason says: “There’s always something a bit off about movies like PAPA though they are set in America and surround their (in this case) Chinese star with local actors, the filmmakers don’t quite know how everyday English sounds or the
Read the review...By Michael Colford
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Starring: Haruka Ayase | Kaho | Masami Nagasawa | Ryo Kase | Ryôhei Suzuki. | Suzu Hirose | Takafumi Ikeda
Michael says: “Hirokazu Kore-eda (LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON, STILL WALKING, NOBODY KNOWS, AFTER LIFE) returns with a lovely, heartfelt portrait of three sisters who discover they have a fourth sister after their estranged father passes away. They bring her into
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Tom Ford
Starring: Amy Adams | Armie Hammer | Isla Fisher | Jake Gyllenhall | Laura Linney | Michael Shannon
Bruce says: “NOCTURNAL ANIMALS brings as layered and complex a narrative as anyone will find this year, combined with an unapologetic visual style that accents every complex fold of the plot. Added to the vision of Tom Ford as it
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Justin Roberts
Lorraine says: “NO GREATER LOVE is ending a festival run but will be making a theatrical run and I want to put it on your radar. “It played in the Beaufort Film Festival. I missed the screening but met the
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