Tag Archives: Race

Emergency (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): One unlucky night of theirs

Posted on May 28, 2022 by kaist455

“Emergency”, which was released on Amazon Prime on this Friday, is an interesting mix of campus comedy and social commentary. Although its overall result does not always work, the movie keeps rolling till the expected finale thanks to the game … Continue reading →

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Master (2022) ☆☆(2/4): A racially tame campus horror flick

Posted on March 20, 2022 by kaist455

“Master”, which was released on Amazon Prime two days ago, feels rather tame in its incoherent mix of racial issues and supernatural elements. The movie initially seems to be ready to tackle these sensitive issues in addition to trying to … Continue reading →

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MLK/FBI (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A close look into the FBI surveillance on MLK

Posted on February 6, 2022 by kaist455

Documentary film “MLK/FBI” is often compelling in its calm but sobering presentation of what happened between one great American figure and a very powerful government agency quite willing to suppress him by any means necessary. While it will not probably … Continue reading →

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Passing (2021) ☆☆☆(3/4): A reserved racial drama by Rebecca Hall

Posted on November 23, 2021 by kaist455

Netflix film “Passing”, which was released several weeks ago, somberly trembles below the surface as examining its two contrasting African American main characters and their racial issues. While it sometimes feels a bit too reserved for you if you expect … Continue reading →

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Small Axe: Education (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A kid stuck at the bottom of the system

Posted on June 12, 2021 by kaist455

As your average constant movie reviewer, I was certainly quite interested in watching Steve McQueen’s exceptional movie anthology series “Small Axe”, which happened to be selected as one of the best works of 2020 among many film critics groups in … Continue reading →

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Small Axe: Mangrove (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): The Trial of the Mangrove Nine

Posted on June 11, 2021 by kaist455

During the latest Oscar season, there was a rather trivial controversy on Steve McQueen’s ambitious film anthology series “Small Axe”. While its first three films were respectively shown at a number of movie festivals including the New York Film Festival … Continue reading →

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LA 92 (2017) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A raw, vivid, and riveting presentation of the 1992 LA riots

Posted on October 9, 2020 by kaist455

Documentary film “LA 92” is a raw, vivid, and riveting presentation of the 1992 LA riots. While entirely consisting of a series of various archival footage clips, the documentary delves deep into the social and historical background of this shocking … Continue reading →

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Gook (2017) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): One long day of April in Paramount, California, 1992

Posted on July 19, 2020 by kaist455

Justin Chon’s second feature film “Gook”, which received the Best of Next Audience Award when it was shown at the Sundance Film Festival early in 2017, is an interesting but ultimately uneven mixed bag. At first, it attempts a mildly … Continue reading →

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Queen & Slim (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): A duo on the run

Posted on March 11, 2020 by kaist455

“Queen & Slim” is a little crime romance drama which follows the footsteps of “Bonny and Clyde” (1967) and many other similar films while also presenting its own mood, ideas, and sensibility. As a foreign audience outside the American society, … Continue reading →

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Maiden (2018) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Sailing Away

Posted on October 8, 2019 by kaist455

Documentary film “Maiden” presents a fascinating real-life story about a group of brave and strong women who attempted to show the world that girls can do anything. Although they naturally faced many troubles and obstacles including sexism from the very … Continue reading →

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