Tag Archives: Filmmaker

Passages (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): You will be sorry for them – but not him

Posted on December 4, 2023 by kaist455

Ira Sachs’ latest film “Passages” will definitely make you wince a lot for its utterly unlikable hero – and how much the two other main characters around him struggle with his toxic influence in one way or another. Although you … Continue reading →

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Promise (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): A boy missing his departed mother

Posted on November 5, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean documentary film “Promise” is a seemingly simple but undeniably poignant personal diary from a filmmaker father and his sensitive 9-year-old boy still missing his departed mother a lot. While wisely avoiding any cheap sentimentalism via its calm and … Continue reading →

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Yellow Door: ’90s Lo-fi Film Club (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): When they were young cinephiles

Posted on October 31, 2023 by kaist455

Netflix documentary film “Yellow Door: ‘90s Lo-fi Film Club”, which was released a few days ago, looks into the memories of a little club of young South Korea cinephiles in the early 90s. Although they did not know that much … Continue reading →

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Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on the Exorcist (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): How he made it

Posted on October 17, 2023 by kaist455

William Friedkin, who sadly left us a few months ago, has always been associated with “The Exorcist” (1973), one of the iconic classic horror films in the 1970s. To be frank with you, I was not so scared when I … Continue reading →

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8 1/2 (1963) ☆☆☆☆(4/4): A filmmaker in chaotic crisis

Posted on October 8, 2023 by kaist455

Federico Fellini’s “8 1/2” is your average navel-gazing piece of work, but it is surely one of the best ones of its kind in addition to being the groundbreaking one. While having been emulated so much by numerous subsequent films … Continue reading →

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Cobweb (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): One crazy filmmaking day

Posted on September 28, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “Cobweb”, which finally arrived in South Korean movie theaters yesterday after being shown at the Cannes Film Festival early in this year, is about one crazy filmmaking day to watch. Although it stumbles from time to time … Continue reading →

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In Water (2023) ☆1/2(1.5/4): In Blur (or Bullsh*t, perhaps)

Posted on April 15, 2023 by kaist455

When my late mentor/friend Roger Ebert was going to review Ingmar Bergman’s great film “Persona” (1966) not long after he became the film critic of Chicago Sun-Times, he did not know what to write first, but then he simply began … Continue reading →

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The Eternal Daughter (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): Two Swintons in one foggy hotel

Posted on February 27, 2023 by kaist455

Joanna Hogg’s latest film “The Eternal Daughter” feels like the logical next step from her two previous films “The Souvenir” (2019) and “The Souvenir Part II” (2021). In the coming-of-age tale of those two films, their young heroine’s relationship with … Continue reading →

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The Souvenir Part II (2021) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Her next chapter after his death

Posted on February 27, 2023 by kaist455

Joanna Hogg’s “The Souvenir Part II”, which is the sequel to her previous film “The Souvenir” (2019), illustrates the aftermath of its young heroine’s toxic romantic relationship depicted in the previous film. As she tries to process the devastating end … Continue reading →

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Peter von Kant (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): Fassbinder via Ozon

Posted on February 20, 2023 by kaist455

François Ozon’s new film “Peter von Kant” is often amusing to watch if you are familiar with not only its original version but also the legendary German filmmaker behind that version. The movie, based on Reiner Werner Fassbinder’s “The Bitter … Continue reading →

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