Monthly Archives: November 2019

Marriage Story (2019) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Scenes from a divorce

Noah Baumbach’s latest film “Marriage Story”, which is released in South Korean theaters this week and will be available on Netflix on next Friday, is a sharp and intimate story about one difficult process of divorce. When its two main … Continue reading

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I Lost My Body (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): A hand looking for its body

French animation feature film “I Lost My Body”, which won the Nespresso Grand Prize when it was shown in the International Critics’ Week section at the Cannes Film Festival early in this year (It is incidentally the first animation film … Continue reading

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Official Secrets (2019) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A whistleblower charged with treason

“Official Secrets” is a well-intentioned but ultimately mild drama based on the true story of Katharine Gun, a British woman who was an employee of Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) around the time when she decided to leak a secret memo … Continue reading

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Bring Me Home (2019) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Desperately looking for her missing son

Watching South Korean film “Bring Me Home” is an experience not only unpleasant but also stressful in many aspects. Relentlessly pushing the story and its increasingly desperate heroine into sheer cruelty and brutality from the beginning to the end, the … Continue reading

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Hustlers (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): The Vixens of Wall Street

“Hustlers” is a sexy and engaging crime drama film to be savored and appreciated for good reasons. While wisely avoiding pitfalls of sensationalism and exploitation, the movie is buoyed by a bunch of colorful performances to admire, and it is … Continue reading

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Crawl (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Against a hurricane – and alligators

“Crawl”, which belatedly arrives in South Korean theaters at the end of this autumn, is a modest but effective genre piece which handles its rather preposterous premise better than expected. Although I could instantly see from the beginning how it … Continue reading

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Burning Cane (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Southern lives stuck in anger and despair

“Burning Cane”, which won two awards including the Founders Prize when it was shown at the Tribeca Film Festival early in this year, is a small but remarkable work to be appreciated. Although this is the first feature film of … Continue reading

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The Nightingale (2018) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A brutal revenge drama set in Tasmania, 1825

There are a number of brutally remorseless moments of physical violence in Jennifer Kent’s second feature film “The Nightingale”, which won the Special Jury Prize when it was shown at the Venice Film Festival in last year. As a matter … Continue reading

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Brittany Runs a Marathon (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Running for her body, mind, and life

“Brittany Runs a Marathon”, which won the Audience award when it was shown at the Sundance Film Festival early in this year, is a genuine crowd-pleaser packed with lots of wit and heart. While generating a number of sharply humorous … Continue reading

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Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Silly but entertaining nonetheless

“Dora and the Lost City of Gold” is an unabashedly lively entertainment product which provides a fair share of silly fun for its target audiences. While it is as broad and goofy as you can expect from a live action … Continue reading

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