A time capsule of a Varda's Montparnasse, a slice of 70s Paris. Portraits of shopkeepers and tradespeople, from whom we hear a few anecdotes: where they were born, how they met, what dreams fill their nights. The image is soft and flattering, and there is a sense that our protagonists, unused to the eye of the lens, are acting their best selves. Some dream only of their daily toil, others of escape, others not at all. One woman looks exactly…
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Something Like a War 1991
I've read my fair share of very critical academic literature about the failures of "western-led development" and all the racist, eugenicist, coercive endpoints of population bomb arguments, but Something Like A War gives all that a shape, a terrifying realness. Dhanraj is so efficient in her juxtapositions of official words against ugly facts & in diagnosing a sick system that weaponises the relative poverty of some against others who are poorer still. Thankfully we are also allowed a window into a conversation between women - who know and say what is wrong, and share their experiences in solidarity with one another. Still, I'm so angry.
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Sucker Punch 2011
I heard the arguments in favour and they unfortunately did not convince me this should be reclaimed. Some of the action looked cool enough and Oscar Isaac steals the show, but there's barely any story to latch on to, the fantasy layers are too disconnected from one another, and the video game action sequences rapidly decline in quality and inventiveness. As for the feminist take, I guess Snyder really did try.
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Arrival 2016
I loved this when it came out and it holds up. There are flaws (1) but each has a counterpoint (2) and I really appreciate how the non-linearity idea is worked into the script and editing, so that the twist "hits" on all levels. Not gonna lie, I shed a tear even though I was watching this on my phone on the train. Might be because I was fighting intense jetlag but, hey, 5 stars.
(1) a completely determinist take…
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Parthenope 2024
There are many interesting questions to ask about exceptional beauty: how it shapes how people are treated, whether it may be a curse, how to live with its absence once it goes. The lead actress Celeste dalla Porta is truly breathtakingly beautiful, and her screen presence alone was enough to make me think about desire and stardom and sadness. I say alone, because Sorrentino does very little that's helpful. In every scene he makes her pose, clad in high-end clothing…
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