Tag Archives: Illness

Can We Get Married? (2024) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Between his family and his girlfriend

South Korean film “Can We Get Married?” starts as a comedy and then becomes something more serious and painful. Although I am not so sure about whether its mix between broad comedy and sentimental drama works as well as intended, … Continue reading

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All the Long Nights (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): As they help and support each other

Japanese filmmaker Shô Miyake’s latest film “All the Long Nights” is a calm and somber character drama between two different troubled people who come to help and support each other more than expected. Although it feels predictable at times, the … Continue reading

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Petrov’s Flu (2021) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A baffling Russian flu fantasia

Kirill Serebrennikov’s “Petrov’s Flu” is a boldly self-indulgent mess you may admire for good reasons. Mainly revolving around one plain hero who happens to have a serious case of flu, the movie freely and whimsically goes back and forth between … Continue reading

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Picnic (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): Returning to the hometown with her best friend

South Korean film “Picnic” is an unabashedly sappy character drama which actually earns some poignancy in the end. While it sometimes feels quite blatant in the attempts to pull our heartstrings, the movie is thankfully anchored well by two strong … Continue reading

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American Symphony (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): A slice of his art and life

Netflix documentary film “American Symphony”, which came out a few days ago, simply presents a slice of life and art from John Batiste, who has been one of the most prominent American musicians during last several years. Although the documentary … Continue reading

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Juhee from 5 to 7 (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Her and some others from 5 to 7

I was disappointed to see that South Korean independent film “Juhee from 5 to 7” does not focus on its titular heroine as much as I expected from its very title. Here is a potentially interesting female figure to illustrate … Continue reading

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Gleason (2016) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): His life with ALS

Amazon Prime documentary film “Gleason” gives us an honest and intimate look into one former professional athlete’s daily life with his serious illness and the following complications. While never overlooking all those difficulties and frustrations experienced by him and several … Continue reading

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Everything Went Fine (2021) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A restrained but poignant drama by François Ozon

French film “Everything Went Fine” is restrained but poignant as simply observing a very serious family matter. While never overlooking its main characters’ emotional struggles over that matter, the movie thoughtfully lets us get to know more about them and … Continue reading

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Don’t Make Me Go (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A road trip with her dad

“Don’t Make Me Go”, which was released on Amazon Prime in last week, is predictably sappy but fairly engaging before taking a sudden distracting left turn in the last act. While I will not go into details here for not … Continue reading

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Mogul Mowgli (2020) ☆☆☆(3/4): A Pakistani British rapper in double crisis

“Mogul Mowgli” is a curious piece of work which alternatively baffled and intrigued me. While this is essentially a familiar tale of personal/artistic crisis, it dynamically swings around many different elements including professional integrity and cultural identity, and the result … Continue reading

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