ok_english_bt Reviews

The Teachers' Lounge (2023)

German school drama with a 'pressure-cooker' atmosphere, probably raises more questions than it answers ...

[8/10 · 16 April 2024]

It's hard not to be utterly captivated by this brilliant German school drama! Directed by Ilker Çatak, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Johannes Duncker, and starring the wonderful Leonie Benesch as the idealistic teacher Carla Nowak, by confining all the action to parts of a school building 'Das Lehrerzimmer' builds a pressure cooker atmosphere as events spin out of control. I'll be honest, it wasn't quite what I was expecting from the pre-information ... but proved even better, this film is more of a thriller than drama! I love the way events are all told from Carla's point of view, she's really in the thick of it as she probes dubious school practices and has to deal with all fallout from accusing somebody of theft.

As a former teacher myself, I kept wondering how a British school might deal with problems differently, the German stereotype being perhaps for more rules, authority and order. The British word for 'Lehrerzimmer' is surely 'Staff Room' rather than the more friendly-sounding 'Teachers' Lounge', or is that a play on words by the film makers? Whatever the country or culture, I liked the way 'Das Lehrerzimmer' probes how a micro-community like a school might have to deal with the problems mirrored in the outside world. Benesch's performance is understated, earnest, masterful, but she's also well supported by a whole host of interesting characters, both teachers and pupils (most with no acting experience) to great dramatic effect.

The effects and unintended consequences of accusing people without proper evidence or authority raises more questions than it answers, but ironically that works so well in 'Das Lehrerzimmer', a must-see!

Traces (2019–2022)

Plodding British crime drama series ... Vanilla!

[5/10 · 16 April 2024]

I don't want to be too unkind about 'Traces' ... and don't really want to pick apart this rather plodding Val McDermid-inspired British crime drama series. The production seems full of good people and intentions, but for Series 1 at least, the pace is slow, characters mostly underwhelming and events are plausible but drawn out in a rather convoluted way ... and there's some very odd cinematography with an over-reliance on (at times, ugly!) headshots of people! Was it made under Covid restrictions? 'Traces' tests one's patience, and I'm afraid it left me without a trace!

Ironic, too, that feminist writer McDermid's 3 central characters at the fictitious 'Scottish Institute of Forensic Science and Anatomy' (SIFA) in Dundee Scotland are so wishy-washy and non-descript. Surely the idea of creating dramas like this is to showcase strong women characters and acting talent? Molly Windsor just about holds her own as the Lab Technician Emma, angst-ridden, traumatized, driven to find the truth about her Mum, but she's paired alongside a much older Martin Compston ('Line Of Duty' etc.) who plays Daniel from a construction company embroiled in a fire scandal under investigation in what is supposed to be a whirlwind romance. Believability stretched to the max.

Good intentions are not enough to create a gripping crime series. By episode 3 of Series 1 I'm fed up and don't really care about any of the characters. Emma, I'm thinking, don't worry about Daniel, a lot more fish in the sea! My feelings about 'Traces' entirely. Vanilla! I won't be watching Series 2.

The Sketch Artist (Portrait - Robot) (2021–2023)

French-Canadian 'Mentalist'-like Series comes good by the end of Season 1

[7/10 · 29 February 2024]

It took me a while to warm to this original crime drama series about a police sketch artist who helps to solve crimes investigated by the Montreal Police by using all her skills and emotional intelligence to create electronic 'identikit' profiles of both victims and suspects. Éve Garance (played by Rachel Graton) is surrounded by a rather oddball bunch of colleagues, but while they all contribute something interesting, her civilian background and kind of superpower of 'reading' people make Éve central to solving each crime. The final 'piece' in the 'jigsaw', if you like, and in that sense 'Portrait-Robot' AKA 'The Sketch Artist' is reminiscent of CBS's wonderful 'The Mentalist' in the noughties.

Credit to all the actors and production staff involved, particularly Sophie Lorain who plays Maryse Ferron, Éve's logic-obsessed wheelchair-bound boss and Alexis Durand-Brault who directs the action (Lorain and Durand-Braul also wrote the series), and the other co-stars Rémy Girard as the moribund veteran 'hack' detective Bernard Dupin and his rookie sidekick crime scene technician Anthony Kamal (Adrien Bélugou) add a bit of intrigue and humour to the proceedings. It wouldn't be 'noir', of course, if Éve didn't have some sort of personal issues, but the on the whole the 2-episode story arcs steer clear of the worst clichés and I felt there was enough by the end of Series 1 to want more. I watched 'Portrait-Robot' on British television as part of the 'Walter Presents ...' features of mainly foreign language crime dramas on Channel 4, but would imagine the series is widely available. Give it a go, why don't you?

The Time It Takes (2021)

Very watchable Spanish romance with clever fading story arc in its pocket-size episodes ... what's not to like? :)

[8/10 · 20 November 2023]

Somebody told me the same about grief ... remember the person each day but slightly less each time. Eventually the memories fade, and the hurt and the loss with them. Nice idea, if only life were that simple?

Lina & Nico have a painful break-up and 'The Time It Takes' recounts moments in their 10 year relationship from Lina's point of view. The novelty about this Netflix miniseries is the deliberate present-past split in its 15-minute episodes with the past counted down one minute less each time. Present becomes more and more important than past ... and Lina moves on with her life. It's an enchanting way to tell a beautifully simple albeit quite sad story ... and with a twist at the end, of course!

Nadia De Santiago & Álvaro Cervantes are excellent in the leads, well supported by the rest of the cast and some thoughtful writing (De Santiago contributed to it) in what is quite a nice low-key "don't make a big fuss" sort of production. I liked the way the past would blur into the present but with a swift return at the end of each episode as Lina faces important life choices and puts the past behind her ... or does she?!?

Other reviews point out it would be good to shoot the series again but from Nico's point of view. Presumably the program makers have already considered this logical sequel? Recommended.

Deutschland 89 (2020)

Climax to this cleverly written East German spy drama ... a lot of fun but with dark undertones

[8/10 · 4 November 2023]

Save the best for last! Sequel to Deutschland 83 & 86, 89 takes up the story with the events leading to the collapse of the Berlin Wall. Probably like 'The Crown', what with my lack of historical knowledge I'm never quite sure if what I'm seeing is a 'recreation' or 're-imagining' of history? Whatever, creators Anna & Jörg Winger again impressively combine drama, history and old news archive footage of the time to show the unravelling of the East German State (DDR) and its infamous Stasi and spy agency HVA in what is obviously a critical moment in German history. For the last installment of the trilogy, new characters appear alongside the regulars, like the excellent Svenja Jung playing Nicole, Martin's latest love interest, and Raul Casso as Valdez an underhand CIA agent in Berlin trying to recruit Martin. The series remains pretty faithful to its origins, so clear 'threads' run throughout this 3 year update. Spy Martin Rauch played by Jonas Nay, Maria Schrader as Lenora Rauch his cousin and HVA handler and Sylvester Groth her boss Walter Schweppenstette are outstanding as usual, and well supported by the rest of the cast, no weak links really. The production qualities make Deutschland exciting to watch, exquisitely shot mostly in and around Berlin with some lovely attention to detail like the typically garish & kitsch 80s decor and quaint ancient-looking computers, all of which add up to a wonderful hit series.

Deutschland 89's remembered history looks rather dated admittedly, but isn't that the point as it loses nothing of the power and dynamism that gripped the first 2 series? This one has the odd quirks of characters adjusting to the new realities, intelligence agencies aware of what's coming down the tracks who then try to disappear into civilian life and not leave any trail behind them. There are some quite funny moments, for example where leaders of HVA relocate to a villa in Sorrento, Italy, and plot their re-entry into capitalist society, hilarious. Other agents try to infiltrate Western Germany and prepare for unification, Martin & Nicole even find themselves in Timisora, Romania, on the cusp of revolution. Lots of good 'moments' in amongst its 8 episodes.

At heart though, there's a darker side to Deutschland 89 with its impending social upheaval, terrorist threats and the undoubted soul-searching of a country about to reinvent itself for the 4th time in the 20th Century. Which might explain why a German series took off in other countries before it became a hit at home. Originally relayed by Sundance TV and Germany's RTL, it was picked up by Amazon Prime for 86 and 89 and is now rightly one of the most popular foreign language spy dramas ever. Paula Milne & Oliver Hirschbiegel mini-series 'The Same Sky' follows a similar storyline of an agent being posted in West Berlin, and is also worth a look.

And doesn't Deutschland 89 have one of the best endings in a drama series ever, even if it's a bit make believe? Particularly, with the timely reminders that the end of the Cold War, or 'The End Of History' as it came to be known, doesn't mean the end of the world's problems. We can but dream ... highly recommended.

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda (2017)

The quiet reflections of an artist wrestling with his own sense of mortality ... will be sorely missed

[7/10 · 20 October 2023]

Ryuichi Sakamoto almost needs no introduction, but Stephen Nomura Schible's 2017 tribute to the Japanese composer confines itself to the period 2011-2017, following the Fukushima Nuclear Accident in 2011 which awakened his environmental activism and a cancer diagnosis he received around the same time. Although the film does give a potted history of Sakamoto's long and illustrious career, first as a member of electro-pop pioneers Yellow Magic Orchestra, and then as a solo and collaborative recording artist, 'Coda' is more a reflection on the difficult and transformative period in which the artist rebuilds his career while actually all the time wrestling with a sense of his own mortality. It's a fascinating glimpse into his artistic life at the time rather than anything to do with his personal life. The musical culmination of the period was the fine electro acoustic and ambient album 'Async' also released in 2017.

There isn't a lot of speaking in 'Coda', as the film maker does his work and lets the sounds and music do most of the talking. At times, Sakamoto appears flustered and awkward, yet remains interesting and thoughtful, willing to adapt to shine a lot on a whole 'artistic process'. Strangely, I think the film works best in the way it plods. Other reviewers have commented 'Coda' was a 'missed opportunity' for doing a great retrospective on the artist. I think that will surely come, particularly after Sakamoto's recent passing on 28th March this year, although I don't envy the film maker who takes that particular task on, as his career is immense and multi-faceted. Surely better to narrow the focus and hone in on certain aspects of the artist's work, which is I think what Schible has done?

Without being earth-shattering, 'Coda' is a sympathetic portrayal of Sakamoto as contemporary artist. The bits focusing on his love of film and books are what I'll take most from the film, perhaps best illustrated in the songs 'Andante' and 'Solari' which are also both on 'Async' (Andrei Tarkovsky's 1972 film 'Solaris' was one of his favourites, Russian composer' Eduard Artemyev's soundtrack influenced a lot by Bach which Sakamoto often incorporates into his music).

The parts showing Sakamoto pottering around with 'found' sounds are very endearing, rainfall, crisp forest undergrowth, even the bashing of dumped rubbish parts to create percussion, along with more conventional instruments like the ancient Japanese Shamisen (like a lute), wind bowls and bowed cymbols, and mustn't forget the 'Tsunami' Piano ("retuned" from nature after the earthquake of 2011), all of which Sakamoto ingeniously incorporates into his electro acoustic music produced in his home studio in New York where he lived for many years.

By throwing himself into his work during cancer remission Ryuichi Sakamoto was able to tap into a well of creativity, something he was able to maintain until this year when sadly he passed away after a second bout of cancer. He will be sorely missed.

The Outwaters (2022)

'Found Footage' Horror ... 30 minutes too long! (Alternative Title: The Mamas & The Papas make a video in the Mojave Desert ... but then things get weird!)

[4/10 · 22 September 2023]

I watched Robbie Banfitch's 'The Outwaters' after reading positive reviews (a weighted average score of 74% based on 65 reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes site is usually a reasonable guide). Rather than dismiss this mess of a film out of hand I decided to try and better understand it. I failed.

It doesn't take long to get the basic idea: 4 free-spirited kids head out to the Mojave desert to make a music video (Banfitch himself plays the camera and AV operator, joined by Angela Basolis, Scott Schamell and Michelle May, for the modern-day equivalent of 70s hippie combo The Mamas & The Papas), they mess about a bit and then things go awry. It's a familiar trope of 'found footage' horror. And we watch how events unfold through 3 memory cards presented to the authorities, with all 4 people now reported 'missing'. Throw in ideas of strange paranormal activity, weird space monsters, and the kids ended up in a 'restricted zone', naturally ... all good so far. For me personally though, this film has run its race after about an hour. The next 50 minutes plays out like some sort of a bad acid trip, an interminable mess of camera experimentation and effects, painful to sit through. Did the reviewers actually watch the whole of the film? And what state were they in at the time?

You could get away with another 10 minutes, 15 minutes tops, as main character 'Robbie' stumbles about in the night desert trying to grasp the horrors of what just happened. The rest of the film is shot in a hallucinatory state, and he carries on filming for some reason? The flaw is obvious. This can't be 'found footage', can it? He might be hallucinating, we might be hallucinating ... but the camera CAN'T BE hallucinating! Either those things actually happened, or they didn't? 'Found Footage'? The rest of the film was lost on me with all its 'clever' effects and hammed-up gore.

It's worth bearing in mind the real power of this horror subgenre is probably in what you can't see as much as what you can (eg The Blair Witch Project), fears of the imagination etc. There was little of that and rather too much of Banfitch's aimless experimental filming, like he was trying to create some sort of art installation. And that annoying spotlight, what's that all about? Spotlights on a stage? So, very little to make you quake in your boots, instead, things dragged on ... and on ... and on!!! That's a hell of a lot of battery life you got there buddy! Ridiculous!

No, Sorry, I search for the good in most things, but a lot of post-production would be needed to mitigate the self-harm Banfitch does to his film 'The Outwaters'. It's a 'No' from me, I'm afraid.

Enys Men (2022)

A film in which nothing happens ... or does it? :)

[6/10 · 12 September 2023]

Bit of a head-scratcher this one? Film maker Mark Jenkin deepens his unusual cinematic technique with budget experimental horror 'Enys Men'. His follow-up to 2019's breakout success 'Bait' also builds its abstract narrative with pictures rather than dialogue. Images are paraded as a series of 'semi-stills': a worried facial expression, a boiling kettle, a violent sea wave, the hostility of the elements, a distorted radio sound ... the Cornish writer/director's latest hints at action without apparently providing any!?

And that's the trick of it. 'Enys Men' works on a simple narrative device. The researcher played by Mary Woodvine in the story treads a familiar path each day wandering around this small uninhabited island ('Enys Men' is Cornish for 'Stone Island') she has made her home for the period as she studies a rare flower. We get to see the same pictures over and over, but things appear to alter as she loses her grip on reality ... or does she? Mishaps occur, people appear and disappear around her, but it's hard to tell if this is really happening?

So, the narrative in 'Enys Men' doesn't so much come together as fall off the wall like flakes of plaster ... miners stare up out of a mine shaft, the battered old sign marking a shipwreck down at the island's jetty hints at a tragedy years before, the strange 'appearances' of people to the researcher's vision, a priest, a young girl, a lover, the anxious voices on her radio trying to make contact ... hard to untangle all the 'threads' and decide what's real and what's imagined? Jenkin's earlier film 'Bait' had more conventional storylines, this one leaves us in mystery mode and with the feeling of impending doom. In other words, the film menaces and 'threatens' drama but opts to not to provide any?

The film ends as quietly and uneventfully as it begins. Folk horror works by entering our psyche, playing on our worst fears, frightening us. Jenkin uses 16mm film like in 'Bait' but without the 'box' screen. The film was made during Covid-19 lockdown under filming restrictions and the crew took it upon themselves to make a low-Carbon film. I scratch my head about it all, but feel shaken up by the end, so I think the film did its job. Jenkins will no doubt turn his lens on similar objects in the future, and apply the same techniques that mark him out as such an original film maker.

Couples Therapy (2019–2024)

Absorbing watch ... but only if you can avoid judging people!

[8/10 · 10 September 2023]

Josh Kriegman's 'Couples Therapy' for Showtime gradually won me over. The therapy sessions conducted by insightful Orna Guralnik are probably the best the film-makers can do to be authentic. I would imagine the show focuses on 'successes' rather than 'failures', as participants would withdraw anything they weren't happy with, who knows what ended up on the cutting room floor? The candour and attitude of the participants, revealing, engaging, thoughtful ... even surprising in the outcomes experienced all suggest the documentary series manages to remain true to the processes of therapy, what Guralnik describes as 'The Work'!

I definitely grew into the series, struggling not to judge the participants in Seasons 1 & 2, but gradually won over by Season 3. The people the program makers chose to participate are emotionally intelligent, from different backgrounds, and certainly open to working on their relationships. The mistake I made early on was to look at each couple's situation from an individual's 'mindset', but Guralnik says that her aim in the sessions is to focus on each couple's dynamic and help them to work better on that. I don't think it's about judging people individually. Once I got over that hurdle, I ended up enjoying 'bumper' Season 3 with its 2 'sets' of couples (there was 4 couples in each of Seasons 1 & 2, but then 8 in Season 3).

Interviews are conducted professionally and with respect, it's hard not to get drawn into the private lives and emotional 'struggles' going on with each couple. We don't get to know that much about their lives outside therapy, just as well I think. I can't pretend to understand or empathize with everyone, the work of a therapist has so many aspects to it which would be beyond my abilities. Interviews are conducted with a camera behind a one-way mirror, so you do get to feel as if you're spending time with them alone with the therapist.

Sometimes the processes are quite frustrating, 'breakthrough or breakup' I kept asking myself, but the whole series made me appreciate the value of therapy, quite heartening for the human condition, particularly in our conflict-heavy current world. In 'Couples Therapy' participants learn to talk and listen more to each other, that's a great inspiring thing in my view. I was very touched by Josh & Natasha's story, for example, in which Guralnik actually admitted that she was struggling to understand and help them, and ended up consulting her counselor Virginia Goldner but also other therapists, makes you aware of the idea of support networks 'who counsels the counselor?' etc. Also impressed with the way Cyn & Yaya resolved their differences with love and maturity ... and fun!

I think there's a lot going on in 'Couples Therapy'. It's easy to be dismissive. I guess not everybody would enjoy the series in the same way therapy doesn't work for everyone. I do think it's brave to put all your insecurities and anxieties 'out there' to be scrutinized, brave or foolish, sometimes I can't decide? Interesting, too, that the series was actually made during the Covid-19 period, so they had to adapt a lot of programming around the lockdown restrictions (which were quite strict in New York where the series was filmed). The George Floyd murder in 2020 also impacted some of the black couples, and Guralnik also advised a Palestinian which I thought was very interesting given her Jewish heritage (she had to check herself and bring that into the discussion). Guralnik and her team are all involved in New York University's Post-Doctoral Programme in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis.

So, absorbing viewing if you can get over the initial biases and scepticism. Another 'side' of the US, impressive in a way. I hope the program makers decide to continue with the series, I imagine it opens up many things for Guralnik, now a celebrity, who demonstrated great abilities in her many roles in the series. Well done to all involved.

Return to Seoul (2022)

Honest cliché-free drama about a French adoptee connecting with her Korean identity ...

[8/10 · 7 September 2023]

I'd probably put Davy Chou's 'Return To Seoul' in a time capsule for people to discover in the Year 2100. File under: 'Contemporary Drama, 2022, Covid-19 era'. French adoptee Frédérique "Freddie" Benoît's personal odyssey in search of her Korean heritage is a bumpy road full of moral and psychological complexity and leaves her with many unresolved issues ... a bit like life itself!? Ji-Min Park gives a full and frank account of herself in perhaps a career-defining role, a real instinctual on-screen presence, great to watch, well supported by an ensemble cast of mainly Korean actors (particularly notable are Guka Han as Tena the hotel worker who helps Freddie on her journey, and Oh Kwang Rok who plays Freddie's biological father working out his regrets of giving her up for adoption).

The film contains many quirks and features, which are all worth discovering, and its cross-cultural references are fascinating and often stark as a French Gen-Z (Freddie is 25 at the beginning of the film) comes up against the Korean society facing its own struggles with change and modernity. Even an apparently neutral act like pouring your own drink becomes politically 'loaded' across the cultural divide! Chou's highlighting of cultural norms in translation is also noteworthy (and quite amusing sometimes, some things you just can't say in some cultures!). It was nice the way characters like Tena and Freddie's biological aunt played by Kim Sun Young were so sensitive in the way they handled things that could so easily get 'lost in translation', very well done.

International cinema at its best, oddly the film was nominated for a 2023 Academy Award for 'Best International Feature Film' as the Cambodian entry (reflecting Chou's ancestry, although the film maker himself is actually French). 'Return To Seoul' benefits from its honest rendering of the subject matter. Life and people interactions are seldom smooth sailing like a Hollywood epic, but there's still plenty of joy to be had in the tender moments. The climax of the film, I suppose, is Freddie's eventual meeting with her biological mother, which underlines the value of film over other media, packing such an emotional punch in its few minutes. The film also brings into focus some of the issues surrounding adoption, and Chou's study of the processes and protocols in the Korean system are instructive and fascinating. The film is even dotted with songs by veterans of French pop Jérémie Arcache and Christoph Musset (of the pop rock band Revolver) and those interludes work fabulously as a musical backdrop (particularly the nightclub scenes). This film is a major achievement deserving of all its praise.

Król (2020– )

Polish Peaky Blinders comes good in the end but sacrifices drama for Tarantino-esque violence

[7/10 · 14 August 2023]

In some ways, Jan P. Matuszynski crime noir 'Król' (or 'The King Of Warsaw') is as enjoyable as dramas set around the same time period like 'Peaky Blinders' and 'Babylon Berlin'. The adaptation of Szczepan Twardoch's best-selling novel for Canal+ doesn't flinch from its themes of gangland violence and the struggles of Warsaw's criminal underworld prior to the outbreak of WWII. But while the other two series allow their stories and characters to develop, Krol plays out over just one 8-episode season, and it looks like some of the drama was lost in all the blood-curdling violence. A major blood-letting appears to occur each episode, fair enough I suppose in a picture about crime and gangs, but the ominous rise of Fascism and the social and political upheaval it caused all over Europe are integral to the story. Its characters are a mix of fiction and history, so it would be a mistake to gloss over the dramatic detail of the story, and in fact a surprising choice given that Twardoch co-wrote many of the series' episodes.

'Król' is still impressive with its recreation of street scenes, cafes and bars and places depicting the cultural life of Warsaw during such a combustible time in the city's history. The acting is top notch, too, with Michal Zurawski excellent lead as boxer Jakub Shapiro chief enforcer for his gangster socialist boss Buddy Kaplica (played by Arkadiusz Jakubik), and notable performances among many of the ensemble cast, particularly Aleksandra Pisula who plays Jakub's long-suffering wife Emilia and a stylish performance by Lena Gora as the chief prosecutor's daughter Anna Ziembinska who Jakub has an affair with.

Personally, out of the 3 dramas, I thought 'Babylon Berlin' dealt with the historical period in a more authentic way than the other 2. For 'Król' that may be a missed opportunity, something which the series fails to address properly until the final episode. Poland had the highest Jewish population of any European country prior to the World War II, about 3 million, of which 374,000 lived in Warsaw. 85% of Polish Jews were murdered by the Nazis. You can get tired of all the violence in 'Król', but the real drama comes right at the end as a result of a decision Jakub makes which impacts profoundly and tragically on his family as Jews. So, my advice to the makers would be either increase the budget of the picture to make more episodes and seasons, or scale back some of the expensive 'effects' like the violent stunts and street scenes, concentrate on the story instead. You can still admire 'Król' as a beautifully conceived period drama and social history entangled with gritty gangland violence, but be patient as the storyline doesn't really comes good until the end!

To cap it all, marvel at composer Atanas Valkov's soundtrack of themes around the sounds of Jewish music created with traditional instruments like the zither, which adds a musical slowburn and energy to the unfolding events, and provides a neat sonic 'thread' that runs throughout the series.

Teenage Bounty Hunters (2020)

'Clever, quirky, oddball, a lot of fun ... worth a Season 2, surely?'

[8/10 · 13 August 2023]

Kathleen Jordan's 'Teenage Bounty Hunters' invites us into the oddball world of Sterling and Blair, coming-of-age teen twins struggling with their lives in Junior High 'Bible Belt' Atlanta Georgia who partner a veteran world-weary bounty hunter to pay for damaging their parents' SUV ... tentative first steps, but 10 episodes and multiple plot twists later the series romps home very enjoyably. In fact, the makers crammed so much into the finale, I wondered how and why they did it really?!

There's a lot of fun to be had from this Netflix dramedy. Brilliant leads from Maddie Phillips as Sterling and Anjelica Bette Fellini as her 'twin' Blair, great chemistry together, and well supported by an ensemble cast, most notably Devon Hales as the sisters' jealous nemesis April and the amazing Kadeem Hardison who could probably make any character work for him playing the grumpy wizened bounty hunter Bowser. Lots of quirkiness and oddball behaviour every which way you turn, from socially interesting characters who all have some kind of back story (possibly meant for spin offs?), in what may end up as a roundabout comment on where US society is at the moment, who knows?

Then there's the 'Jenji Kohan' factor! The writer/creator/producer always adds something magical to the work she's involved in ('Orange Is The New Black', 'Weeds', 'GLOW'), and although her contributions here are limited to executive producer and the writing of just one episode, 'Teenage Bounty Hunters' surely felt Kohan's influence? There's also a nice comic-style to the way the series is presented, the 'look' of a story being put together on a smartphone etc., and the sisters play with a sort of 'twinternity' cleverly captured in the filming making.

It's a mystery the show was cancelled, particularly when you factor in its critical reception which is pretty good? No references are made to Covid on screen, so presumably production was completed before the pandemic broke. Distribution for the series and its reception may have taken a hit from all the upheaval. 'Teenage Bounty Hunters' builds to an important point in its story by the end of Season 1, definitely worth a Season 2!

Limbo (2021)

Intense crime noir ... Limbo in name ... limbo by nature!

[8/10 · 7 August 2023]

Director Soi Cheang's dystopian crime noir didn't have the best start in life. Filmed in Hong Kong over 3 months from September 2017 it was canned when it didn't pass the Chinese censors, subdued by street protests in 2019 and mainland China's increasing belligerence towards the peninsula, and then to cap it all the Covid-19 pandemic! All this meant 'Limbo' didn't see the light of day until its premier at the 71st Berlin International Film Festival on 1st March 2021. Phew!

These setbacks don't seem to have blunted the film's impact and appeal. The claustrophobic thriller follows a police hunt for a fetishistic killer through the dark alleys and decaying apartments of Hong Kong's dark underbelly. Veteran bad cop Cham Lau played by Ka-Tung Lam constantly clashes with his 'by the book' rookie partner Will Yam (Mason Lee, actually Ang Lee's son would you believe?) as Cheang turns the cop buddy movie on its head. Lam carries a dark secret which flashes into view when the pair meet druggie gangstress Wong To (played by Yase Liu in what is probably the film's standout performance, although the intensity of Lam's character pushes her hard!) who offers them information to solve the crime. The film is tightly wound around the relationship between these three in their pursuit of the Japanese killer Yamada Akira (Hiroyuki Ikkeuchi) left cleverly faceless and a constant threat lurking somewhere off camera.

Cheang brought writers and creatives over from Milkyway Image, epic Hong Kong film maker Johnnie To's production company, to create a stunning movie that works on many levels. The film is perceptively shot in black and white which lengthens the night shadows (most of the action takes place at night!) and gives everything a creepy starlit quality. Set builders have constructed monstrous edifices of rubbish which gleam like jewels in the black midnight rain, and the protagonists often find themselves trawling through filth and trash so close up it crawls all over you like a rash, visceral! The elements of chase include martial arts and gruesome fight sequences which tie in with the killer's twisted lust for limbs and amputations in his victims, hence the title 'Limbo' ... but the film maker drags you back into reality with shots of metro carriages, passing traffic, a street vendor ... before soaring skywards with drone shots panning over the a Bladerunner rainstrewn city below ... what a visual feast!

The film's tortured history appears to make it 'Limbo' in name... and limbo by nature! Perhaps Cheang can take comfort in knowing many of the cinema greats were slow starters: Bladerunner, Donnie Darko, Labyrinth, Shawshank Redemption, Rocky Horror ... Post-pandemic, the world finally seems ready to wake from its slumber, and 'Limbo' and a great many of the other 'missing' films of Hong Kong may blossom yet!

A better informed review than mine: Review: 'Hong Kong Neo-noir "Limbo" Is Dark in More Ways Than One' by Justin Chor Yu Liu, 14th July 2022, Cinema Escapist.

M3GAN (2022)

Punchy Child Robot Horror ... lots of gruesome fun!

[7/10 · 5 August 2023]

Blumhouse's 'M3GAN' ("Model 3 Generative Android") is a lot of fun rather than anything consequential, and should be enjoyed in the spirit in which it was intended. The idea of technology becoming "self-A-V-V-A-R-E" (Arnie) and taking control is hardly new (1968's '2001 A Space Odyssey' and 80s and 90s Terminator movie series, case in point!), but the recent advances in machine learning, AI, chatGBT etc., and challenges they pose, give the film added relevance in 2023. Can robots learn, do they indeed acquire true feelings and thoughts, and what influence will they have on things like family life and the processes of bringing up children? In short, how long before humankind's great tech experiments start unraveling?

What I love about 'M3GAN' is the Allison Williams character Gemma, a talented tech toy maker and robotics engineer who doesn't understand children very well until her robot starts having its own ideas!? Wonderful! The film follows type, a sort of toy-sci-fi horror in the style of the 'Chucky' franchise and many others. Tension is well layered (the writers of 'Saw', 'The Conjuring' and recent mystery horror 'Malignant' doing their thing) and there's capable direction and acting (Williams does angst very well, another solid performance with lots of good support, too).

A bit too much CGI for my tastes, which can give 'M3GAN' the overall 'feel' of a budget flick, particularly in the editing, but the film's gruesome thrills make for plenty of fun and excitement. I won't spoil the surprises ... it never ends well though, does it? :) Worth a watch ...

Nelly & Nadine (2022)

Remarkable love story, movingly told ...

[8/10 · 19 May 2023]

Magnus Gertten's 2022 documentary 'Nelly & Nadine', the classic love story of 2 survivors of the Nazi concentration camps of WWII, is also a film about film-making. Gertten patiently constructs a fragmented narrative to reflect his main subject's trepidation. Sylvie Bianchi is the granddaughter of Nelly Mousset-Vos, a Belgian opera singer who fell in love with a mysterious Chinese national Nadine Hwang when they met over a rendition of Puccini's 'Madame Butterfly' on Christmas Eve 1944 at Ravensbrück. In 'Nelly & Nadine', this farmer's wife in idyllic Northern France embarks on a personal journey in relation to this remarkable couple.

It reminds me of another recent film, 2022's 'Three Minutes: A Lengthening'. Bianca Stigter's forensic examination of old cine film of a Polish village immediately before the Holocaust (based on the book 'Three Minutes In Poland' by musician Glenn Kurtz published in 2014) uses the moving images of people and place as a research tool for examining bite-sized pieces of erased history. 'Nadine & Nelly' starts with the archive of women refugees liberated by the Red Cross disembarking at Malmö, Sweden, on 28th April 1945, Gertten (who has made two other films about women shown in these pictures, 'Harbour of Hope' (2021) and 'Every Face Has a Name' (2015)) lets the camera hover over Nadine Hwang's intriguingly long gaze. What is she thinking? How did she get here? And we're off ...

It's fair to say there are bumps in the road. Sylvie's grandmother left behind a mysterious Pandora's box of documents. By presenting 'pieces' of a story , the film raises as many questions as it answers. Gradually, a little frustratingly at times, it sets out to answer them, so I did eventually find out what I wanted to know. Probably history will take care of the rest, but for the purposes of this film 'Nelly & Nadine' is a beautiful story that affected me very deeply.

A couple of noteworthy things. Reels of Super 8 film are very illuminating, mostly shot by Nadine during the couple's life in Caracas after the war, adding 'colour' and intimacy which a still photo would struggle to convey. There is also powerful prose and poetic verse, entries from Nelly's diary manuscripts which the couple worked on together after the war with a view to publishing (rejected, strangely, possibly because of the nature of their relationship and social taboos of the time). Pure horror is Nelly's account of the couple's first separation "At the top, crowning the mountain, lies the camp, Mauthausen, the antechamber of hell", the 5 days and nights of the train journey described in harrowing detail along with the still image of the infamous 186-step 'Staircase Of Death' carved out of stone up which quarry workers were forced to carry huge slabs of stone until they dropped dead.

The film contains many other aspects, not least highlighting the journey of discovery Sylvie goes on, but 'Nelly & Nadine' comes good by the end, so it's well worth watching Gertten & Co.'s account of this remarkable couple's life. British viewers can watch on BBC iPlayer as part of the 'Storyville' collection of award-winning documentaries.

Speak No Evil (2022)

Shocking, morally ambiguous, didn't ring true for me ... disappointing!

[3/10 · 13 February 2023]

Christian Tafdrup's 'Speak No Evil' left its mark, but I didn't think it was particularly great horror. The film's direction made a promising story rather plodding and predictable. I wondered if Tafdrup wanted to contrast cultures, easy-going Dutch v stiff strait-laced Danish etc., but the Danes have a reputation for being pretty wild and rebellious so that left me confused. Then as the story unfolded, it was harder and harder to understand how the Danish couple could really get trapped by their Dutch hosts. They picked up on the early 'warning signs' and apparently missed several opportunities to escape which no serious captor would have given them. In other words, 'Speak No Evil' has a plot with more 'holes' than a Swiss (Dutch?) cheese! The ending is dark and shocking, but happens at such a snail's pace its surely begging for a final 'twist', no? Does the director want to make a point with such an obvious but surely wrong ending? 'Speak No Evil' is morally ambiguous, but not in a good way. It's not convincing either, and even its darkly menacing soundtrack designed to tug at the emotions can't disguise the feeling of disappointment I was left with at the end of this depressing film.

Burning Cane (2019)

A painful watch

[3/10 · 25 November 2022]

Awful, 'Burning Cane' didn't do anything for me personally, and I'll explain why.

When I come to a film and I'm trying to grasp what it's all about, 3 main questions pop into my head, quite instinctively: 1) What's the 'angle' here, who's point of view is represented by the film maker and why?

2) What's the overall message of the film?

3) Why did they make this film?

I'm afraid to all 3 questions, I just drew a complete blank. Alcoholism? Abuse? Poverty? Depravity? God? Hope? Despair? I've no idea at all! Even the film making itself was desperate, long shots in poorly lit rooms, what were we even meant to be looking at? Film maker and writer Phillip Youmans, you offered us so much gloom and despair in this short chronicle of human misery, and so little hope. Even if you were trying to make a social comment on the lives of black Lousianians what was it, exactly? And how awful to show people in this desperate plight. Give us some hope, please. Even the central mother character goes off the rails by the end. A pointless film, painful to watch without anything uplifting or hopeful about it. Why did you make this film? I have no idea? Awful.

Sr. Ávila (2013–2018)

Season 1 ... Does it get better? No, then avoid unless you like pointless torture and killing!

[4/10 · 4 September 2022]

'Sr Avila' isn't without its merits, but there's only so much torture and killing you can stomach in one sitting. I was drawn to it because of Tony Dalton's Lalo in 'Better Call Saul', and he plays another violent character in this Mexican series, a hitman masquerading as a funeral director. Lots of 'kills', obviously, but the long drawn-out violent scenes could do with editing and better direction. We also don't get to know the other characters well enough to see they deserve to die, so the 'hits' often seem cruel and pointless. Not enjoyable, I kept thinking 'what's the point of all this?' I don't understand the high ratings, does it get better after Season 1? There are many good series that deal with gang and cartel violence. Try the Argentinian prison drama 'El Marginal', for example, gritty, violent, high end production values, and storylines that are a lot better thought out.

Irma Vep (2022)

Assayas TV revisit worth watching but lacks some of the punch Maggie Cheung brought to the original

[7/10 · 13 August 2022]

Olivier Assayas' TV adaptation of 'Irma Vep' is enjoyable enough, but doesn't quite match up to the 1996 motion picture 😊 The latest version owes a lot to series like 'Call my agent', funny bizarre moments set to quality writing, acting (Macaigne, Hamzawi and Balibar are all noteworthy, some nice cameos, too) and production. For me, it just lacks the intrigue Maggie Cheung brought to the original, itself a film-within-a-film about an obsessive French director's remake of Louis Feuillade's 1915 silent film 'Les Vampires' and his attempts to cast a Chinese actress in the role of Irma Vep. The odd reactions to Hong Kong actress Cheung who plays a fictionalized version of herself, her own beautiful vulnerability and the wonder of it all, drama, eccentricities, the 'explosive' bon viveur of the French film entourage, punk cinema ... casting a Hollywood star is a bit of an anticlimax. With reboots, either stay true to the original or try something radical, 'go big or go home!' etc. What do I know? Assayas introduces a global perspective to his latest work, and a wonderful soundtrack is a given in his films, but watch the 1996 cult classic to remind you where it all comes from.

Canola (2016)

Beautiful story ... floods of tears!

[9/10 · 21 October 2020]

It's a while since I cried in a movie, but this one blindsided me with its central idea, brought me onside with its sentimentality, and finally moved me to tears. I thought perhaps for maximum impact they could have ended it 10-15 minutes earlier, but actually the ending was also inspired. Rolling the final credits alongside the artist's paintings reminds you of all the great moments in the film. In the last 5 years I've seen quite a lot of Korean movies, and not a bad one among them. They clearly punch above their weight in this industry. Hong Seung Yoon's 'Canola' reminded me how emotionally-charged this medium can be when it's done well. Open the floodgates, let the feelings flow ...

Out in the Open (2019)

Hardly an original theme ... still a darn good (Spanish) western!

[8/10 · 20 October 2020]

Weren't a lot of the original 'spaghetti' westerns shot in Spain? You can see why from the rugged dusty landscapes of Andalucia Benito Zambrano uses in 'Intemperie'. Rather clumsily titled 'Out in the Open' in English, doesn't really capture the essence of this chase western, 'Runaway' or 'On The Run' would be better. Without wanting to repeat the information provided by other reviews which is excellent, just wanted to add my voice to those who enjoyed the film. The 3 leads are outstanding and worthy of note. What an actor Luis Tosar is, in this role playing the war veteran turned nomadic herdsman 'Moor', so much screen presence, but also Jaime López is compelling as the child runaway, and Luis Callejo chillingly psychotic in the role of the cruel landholder. Many other aspects of the film are admirable, I'll leave people to make up their own minds ... highly recommended!

Babyteeth (2019)

Reminds me why I fell in love with film as art medium

[9/10 · 30 September 2020]

So many things to like about Shannon Murphy's 'Babyteeth'. A moving story and lovably dysfunctional characters, adapted from Rita Kalnejais' play, first staged in Sydney in 2012. The director's roving eye brings the strange and sublime to everyday things (places, too, the film was mostly shot in St Ives, Sydney suburbia). An unusual love story rolls along in a spirit of wild abandon ... fresh, anarchic, illuminating ... love can do that to people! The dazzling little skit set to Vasti Bunyan's otherworldly 'Diamond Day' is worth the film's price of admission alone.

I won't win any prizes for saying there are great performances, particularly from Eliza Scanlen as Milla, and Toby Wallace as her druggie older boyfriend Moses (Essie Davis is also notable as Milla's mum Anna, trying desperately to do right by her sick daughter), and that 'Babyteeth' is enchanting and should sear it's way into your consciousness.

In fact, 'Babyteeth' reminds me why I fell in love with film in the first place, a credit to Shannon Murphy and all the filmmakers involved.

Vitalina Varela (2019)

Disappointing arthouse film ... rich symbolism, but a plodding story with actors in stasis

[4/10 · 10 September 2020]

I came to Pedro Costa's 'Vitalina Varela' with quite high expectations. Its expressionism, artistic camera work and oddly-staged lighting (filmed initially in the pitch darkness of night, objects and faces duly highlighted, gradually easing towards daybreak and sunlight) are dashed by a painfully slow story delivered by actors who barely move. Social realism is one thing, most scenes are apparently shot in slum places with non-professional actors, but having people who can act and a dialogue beyond meandering prose is surely the way to go. Even art shouldn't be this painful!

Ozark (2017–2022)

Somebody needs to say it ... good but not great since Season 1!

[6/10 · 21 June 2020]

Those of us watching since the beginning know that 'Ozark' changed its direction in Season 2. A lot of the plot choices at the end of 2 were dubious imo, killing off important characters etc. Worse than that, the family dynamic changed. I think I understand the changes, but don't like them. Particularly now in 3 where there is constant power play between the couple Marty & Wendy. They meant Wendy to be seen as powerful, but she just comes across as tyrannical. In 1, the family fought for their survival against he Cartel, 3 they now fight each other and the Cartel wins. Add to that this constant flow of plot and subplot twists. Good because they keep the action flowing, but plausible ...??? I don't think so! Too many writers with different ideas possibly? It's not all bad, suspenseful, scary (the violence!), great character-acting (Bateman, Linney, Garner, particularly Janet McTeer as the evil Helen), not lost on me, but Ozark in 3 just seems congested and moving in a wrong direction. Good but not great!

Persona (2018– )

Far too long, but great 'elements' and an impressive finale make this intriguing Turkish crime drama worth the struggle

[6/10 · 17 June 2020]

I wouldn't want to get carried away with 'Sahsiyet'. Its 12 hour-long episodes make it quite heavy-going. There's actually a great storyline which becomes clear at the end, but I think it could have been dealt with much more quickly (6 long or 12 short episodes, would surely be enough?). I also found the characters quite difficult to get along with, even the more sympathetic ones like the woman police detective and her journalist boyfriend. In short, I was bored by a lot of 'Sahsiyet'. I struggled on, partly because of the time I'd invested, and there was just about enough to pique my interest. The central idea is intriguing, a man going on a killing spree as he loses his memory through Alzheimer's. Meantime, a strong cast of actors try to make things work (not their fault the writing often wasn't good enough), there are high-end production values which 'wow' occasionally, and Istanbul, of course, always interesting. Did anyone else notice how good the soundtrack was? There's clearly something about Turks and music, film makers who understand how to use it in drama. The series didn't really hang together for me, despite all these great 'elements'. The tempo is just too slow, not enough editing and cutting to sharpen the focus and heighten tension as events take place.

Anyway, I'm glad I stuck with 'Sahsiyet' because it came good at the end. Look out for the amazing aquarium scene, a visual 'feast' and very surreal, typifying the best parts of this series. Just a long time getting there.