Film
Glasgow Film Festival Review: BIG vs SMALL
Small, but mighty, Joana Linhares de Andrade constantly defies expectations. The pint-sized Portuguese has the heart of a lion and is the only woman from her country to surf the big waves. However, while nothing seems to faze her, she does have one phobia. Along with many other athletes in her field, she shares the …
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
Hungary is a nation with a proud history of producing a rich and diverse range of cinema. The turbulent nature of the country’s social and political struggles has been reflected in its filmmaking, with the likes of István Szabó, Miklós Jancsó or Béla Tarr leading the way. However, since the foundation of the National Film …
Film Review: Kombinat
It can be hard to comprehend just how vast Russia is. Even after the dissolution of the old Soviet Union, it remains by far and away the biggest country in the world. Spanning two continents, it’s home to a rich culturally varied and ethnically diverse populous. However, whilst the iron curtain may have fallen decades …
Blu-Ray Review: Kagemusha
Tatsuya Nakadai was one of the best known and most celebrated Japanese actors of his era. He’s probably best known for his partnership with director Masaki Kobayashi, for whom he starred in The Human Condition trilogy, Samurai Rebellion, Kwaidan and many others. However, he also worked with most of the generation’s greatest filmmakers from the …
Film Review: Son
The bond between mother and child is unique and begins in the womb. This closeness continues after birth, and whilst this physical and emotional connection gradually wanes over time, it’s often the strongest attachment we’re ever likely to have. The maternal relationship with a son is distinct in its own way and boys are often …
Film Review: Into the Darkness
There’s nothing us Europeans seem to like more than a jolly good war story starring a handsome, intelligent and brave nationalist hero. Indeed, if you did the maths and counted everyone who claimed to have been a partisan or resistance fighter, it’s surprising that the Nazis weren’t simply crushed by the sheer weight of numbers. …
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Eye of the Storm
While James Morrison may not be a familiar name to most, he has played an important role in post-war Scottish art. Indeed, the Glaswegian has often been credited by many as helping to rejuvenate landscape painting in Scotland. His career spanned over seven decades, beginning with tenements of his native Glasgow and ending with countryside …
Glasgow Film Festival Review: Black Bear
We do not live in a meritocracy and there is no job sector where this is more evident than the film industry. It’s a vocation overpopulated by wealth, nepotism and privilege. A world in which Christopher Abbott casts a rather unique shadow, slowly working his way up and consistently impressing. Since his debut in Martha …
Glasgow Film Festival: Redemption of a Rogue
One of the most well-known stories in the Bible is that of the Parable of the Prodigal Son. The younger brother leaves home and squanders his life and wealth, only to return home and be fondly welcomed back into the flock by his father. Over the centuries, this idea has been adapted into literature, art, …
Film Review: Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché
Marianne Joan Elliott-Said was one of the most influential musicians and artists of the late 1970s. After watching an early Sex Pistols gig on Hastings pier, she put an advert in Melody Maker looking for ‘young punx who want to stick it together’. She became Poly Styrene and they became the X-Ray Spex. As a …