Author Archives: kaist455

Evil Does Not Exist (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s interesting minor work

Posted on March 24, 2024 by kaist455

Ryusuke Hamgauchi’s latest film “Evil Does Not Exist”, which won the Grand Jury Prize when it was shown at the Venice International Film Festival in last year, is interesting to watch for several good reasons. Although it does not reach … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Assassination Nation (2018) ☆☆(2/4): Stylish but messy

Posted on March 23, 2024 by kaist455

“Assassination Nation” is a stylish but messy satire which throws lots of things on the screen but fails to be something coherent enough to engage or excite me. Sure, right from the start, I was ready to accept the warped … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Leave a comment

What’s Love Got to Do with It? (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): So it goes like that

Posted on March 21, 2024 by kaist455

“What’s Love Got to Do with It”, which is incidentally not associated with the 1993 Tina Turner biopic, is as predictable as your typical romantic comedy. Right from when its two lead characters appear together at the beginning of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Kokomo City (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Their experiences as Black transgender sex workers

Posted on March 19, 2024 by kaist455

Documentary film “Kokomo City”, which won the NEXT Innovator award when it was premiered at the Sundance Film Festival early in last year (It also won the NEXT Audience award, by the way), is exceptional as closely listening to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Frida (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): Via her own words

Posted on March 17, 2024 by kaist455

Documentary film “Frida”, which is currently available on Amazon Prime, presents the life and career of legendary Mexican artist Frida Kahlo mainly via her works and words. Although it may not inform you that much if you are familiar with … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Dolphin (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Reluctant to live her family house

Posted on March 16, 2024 by kaist455

South Korean film “Dolphin” is a bit too plain and simple for me in terms of story and characters. The movie often tries to delve into the complicated emotional circumstance between its ordinary young heroine and several other main characters … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Okiku and the World (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): A Japanese period drama with lots of sh*t

Posted on March 10, 2024 by kaist455

Japanese film “Okiku and the World” may amuse you to some degree if you are not that squeamish about its smelly main story subject. I must warn you that the movie often pays a lot of attention to a dirty … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Godland (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): A priest struggling in malformed land

Posted on March 9, 2024 by kaist455

“Godland”, which was the Icelandic submission to Best International Film Oscar and then included in the shortlist around the end of the last year, is relentlessly cold, rigid, and bleak from the beginning to the end. I often felt distant … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

FAQ (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): The girl who listens to a bottle of rice wine (no kidding)

Posted on March 5, 2024 by kaist455

Dear my little niece who will be one year old in this November I recently watched South Korean independent film “FAQ”, which was released at local movie theaters in last week. To be frank with you, I could not help … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Amiko (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): Here is Amiko

Posted on March 5, 2024 by kaist455

Japanese film “Amiko” is a dry but painful coming-of-age tale about one odd and socially awkward young girl who often clashes with the increasingly gloomy reality surrounding her. While it is quite uncomfortable to observe how frequently she struggles to … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies | Tagged , | Leave a comment