Category Archives: Movies

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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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My Prediction on the 96th Academy Awards

Posted on March 1, 2024 by kaist455

So here comes the end of another Oscar season. As usual, some of the best films of last year received well-deserved nominations while other excellent films were unfortunately ignored, but I and many of you remain interested in which movie … Continue reading →

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Exhuma (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): A bad grave

Posted on February 29, 2024 by kaist455

Good horror movies usually need a substantial amount of conviction for making themselves work, and South Korean horror film “Exhuma” has plenty of that. While I do not believe much of what its main characters talk about, the movie did … Continue reading →

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Dune: Part 2 (2024) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): …and a prophecy is fulfilled

Posted on February 28, 2024 by kaist455

Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part 2” gives us much of what its predecessor promised to us a few years ago. Yes, his previous film “Dune” felt to me like an exercise rather than an entertainment, but I still admired many of … Continue reading →

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