BFI Flare Review: Dramarama
It’s not so long ago that being a nerd largely meant a childhood of bullying and constant abuse. To be different at school was almost asking to become a target. The worst part is the feeling that you’re all alone. Today, that situation, to a large extent, has been turned on its head. Nerdism has …
HRWFF Review: A La Calle
the spectre of Hugo Chavez looms large over Venezuelan society, years after his death. His movement gained huge popularity and he became an almost messianic figure, in and outside of the country. At one time ‘Chavismo’, a mix of left-wing populism and social reform, was a potential competitor to capitalism. However, any improvements often came …
BFI Flare 2021 Preview
The 35th edition of BFI Flare, London LGBTIQ+ Film Festival, will take place online between 17 and 28 March. One of the oldest and most prestigious queer film festivals in the world, this year there’s another impressive line-up with some of the best new LGBTIQ+ cinema from around the globe. This year, the line-up is …
Film Review: My Father And Me
Nick Broomfield has been an ever-present on the documentary circuit since the late 1970s. He is considered to be, inside and outside of the industry, one of the greatest factual filmmakers of his generation. His work is a mix of investigative reportage into difficult subjects and profiles of some of the most influential names within …
Blu-Ray Review: The Invisible Man Appears/ The Invisible Man Vs. The Human Fly
Since featuring as the protagonist in the H. G. Wells’ novel, first serialised in 1897, the eponymous Invisible Man has been a frequent figure in popular culture. However, the idea of invisibility is a concept which harks back to Greek and Roman legend, and beyond. The fascination with this character or idea is not merely …
HRWFF Review: The 8th
Whilst many people in the UK might look on at Ireland with a little jealousy at the moment, the Emerald Isle is by no means perfect. The country is progressive in many ways but, largely due to Roman Catholicism still being the predominant religion, has been often backward in many areas of social policy. Contraception …
French Film Festival UK: Love Affairs
No one does amour quite like the French. Looking in from the outside, it seems to play an important part in their national psyche. Those tangled and complicated webs which spin out across relationships seem to be prevalent in the arts. French cinema reflects this, with a perennially prolific output of romantic comedies and drama. …
Blu-Ray Review: Viy
Delving deep into Ukrainian folklore, Nikolai Gogol’s Viy remains a perennial favourite across Russia. Since it’s first publication as part of a novella in the 19th century, it has captured the imagination of countless generations. Whilst there have been many adaptations, Konstantin Ershov and Georgiy Kropachyov’s 1967 film still remains the most notable. Indeed, it …
Film Review: The Winter Lake
There’s nothing as queer as folk, and the smaller the community, the stranger its denizens. Small isolated villages and towns are often a law unto themselves, with unwritten rules and taboos silently governing the strangest things. If you’ve ever lived in one of these places you will know just how quickly gossip spreads and how …
Film Review: Verdict
On the face of it, The Philippines is a surprisingly progressive country when it comes to women’s rights. Indeed, in the Global Gender Gap Index for the World Economic Forum the county currently places impressively at sixteenth in the world. In reality though, whilst there has been significant progress, there are worryingly high levels of …