Tag Archives: Dictatorship

Argentina, 1985 (2022) ☆☆☆1/2 (3.5/4): A trial in Buenos Aires, 1985

“Argentina, 1985”, which was selected as the Argentine submission to Best International Film Oscar in last year and recently won the Best Non-English Language Film award at the Golden Globes, is a calm but powerful period drama surrounding one big … Continue reading

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New Order (2020) ☆☆(2/4): A messy exercise of chaos and brutality

Sometimes, I come across hollow artsy flicks hopelessly stuck in their supposedly interesting but ultimately flimsy ideas, and Mexican film “New Order” is one of such depressing cases. Sure, I understand that it intends to be an edgy political allegory … Continue reading

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The Man Standing Next (2019) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): It’s really hard for him to stand next to his big boss…

South Korean film “The Man Standing Next” is a slick and competent period drama film which does not go further than what I and many other South Korean audiences already know. Based on one of the major historical incidents in … Continue reading

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The Kingmaker (2019) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Rotten, superficial, and powerful

If you are familiar with the notoriety of Imelda Marcos and her rotten family members in the Philippines, you will be often disgusted and horrified as watching documentary film “The Kingmaker”, which presents a very disturbing picture of how she … Continue reading

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The Death of Stalin (2017) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A political satire set in the Soviet era

Some black comedies dare to generate laughs from dark, ghastly subjects, and “The Death of Stalin” is one of such interesting cases. Focusing on the human absurdities and inhuman horrors inside one of the most infamous totalitarian regimes in the … Continue reading

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The Devil’s Double (2011) ☆☆☆(3/4) : A dangerous life with dictator’s son

One of my morbid childhood memories is associated with those pulpy anti-communism magazines published for South Korean elementary school students. Whenever I found nothing to read, I zealously read these magazines in my classroom because they told me lots of … Continue reading

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