Teaching audiences to view films actively
By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Sarah Polley
Starring: Diane D'Aquila | Jennifer Podemski | Luke Kirby | Michelle Williams | Sarah Silverman | Seth Rogen
Bruce says: “TAKE THIS WALTZ will have more impact for those who have not seen Michelle Williams in BLUE VALENTINE or WENDY AND LUCY. In all of these films she plays young women in search of something undefinable and elusive.
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Stephen Fung
Starring: Angelababy | Eddie Peng | Qi Shu | Tony Leung Ka-fai | Yuan Xiaochao
Jason says: “I knew going in that TAI CHI ZERO had a follow-up coming out in fairly rapid succession (a one month gap in China, three in North America), and was still a bit surprised that the movie saves its
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 1.5 cats
Director: Kern Saxton
Starring: Andy Mackenzie | Cortney Palm | Danny Trejo | James Duval | Mark Hamill | Noah Hathaway | Tony Todd
Jason says: “Ugh, what an unpleasant movie. Sure, it’s the sort of grittily flamboyant crime flick that has an audience, but it’s a hollow, mean-spirited thing that isn’t nearly clever or well executed enough to be worth it. “After serving
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Rating: 4 cats
Director: Haofeng Xu
Starring: Cheng-Hui Yu | Yang Song | Yuanyuan Zhao
Jason says: “It might not be obvious from the opening, which is a fine action sequence, but THE SWORD IDENTITY perhaps works best as the straightest-faced spoof of martial arts films imaginable. It’s more than that, of course, but its
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Ole Christian Madsen
Starring: Adriana Mascialino | Anders W. Berthelsen | Jamie Morton | Paprika Steen | Sebastian Estevanez
Bruce says: “Paprika! Whoever suspected she would end up in a romantic comedy in Buenos Aires? Anna (Paprika Steen) is a football fanatic and, wearing an agent’s hat, she brokers deals between businessmen and athletes. Her current client is the
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Kang Hyung-chul
Starring: Go Su-hee | Jin Hee-kyung | Kang So-ra | Kim Min-yeong | Park Jin-joo | Sim Eung-kyeong | Yu Ho-jeong
Jason says: “SUNNY is flagrant nostalgia bait, but don’t count that against it – it’s genuinely funny, heartfelt nostalgia bait, and while that might seem odd to world cinema fans – few films that reach North America set in 1980s
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.25 cats
Director: Aaron Houston
Starring: Amatai Marmorstein | Ben Cotton | Johannah Newmarch | Kacrey Rohl | Patrick Gilmore | Peter New
Jason says: “Even as mock-documentary movies go, SUNFLOWER HOUR looks kind of bare bones, but partly by design. Of course, even when cheapness is part of the aesthetic, that doesn’t mean a filmmaker knows how to use it – despite
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Tom Lin
Starring: Harlem Yu | Hui Ming Lin | Janei Tsai | Kenneth Tsang | Lunmei Kwai | Rene Liu
Jason says: “Stick around through the end credits of STARRY STARRY NIGHT, which appear to contain images from Jimmy Liao’s original illustrated book. It’s not just that they’re beautiful (they are) or that they imply that this pretty stunning film
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Thaddeus O'Sullivan
Starring: Alan Curran | Amy Huberman | Martin Sheen | Stephen Rea
Chris says: “To make a movie about operating a movie theater is a subject close to my heart and usually enough for me to give the filmmaker a free pass. Such a premise adds considerable charm to STELLA DAYS; the
Read the review...By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 1.75
Director: Zal Batmanglij
Starring: Brit Marling | Christopher Denham | Davenia McFadden | Kandice Stroh | Nicole Vicius | Richard Wharton
Thom says: “I feel like an old crab not liking this more but it is becoming abundantly clear that I takes a lot of convincing for me to get into the conscience of the cult. Here, a couple ingratiate themselves
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