film reviews
Explore a range of experiences, from Hollywood blockbusters to art and indie films. We offer thoughtful insights, in-depth analysis, and suggestions to help you discover both new favorites and timeless classics.
Review by James Carneiro | Sep 10, 2025
Paul, a young idealist trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life, takes a job interviewing people for a marketing research firm. He moves in with aspiring pop singer Madeleine. Paul, however, is disillusioned by the growing commercialism in society, while Madeleine just wants to be successful. The story is told in a series of 15 unrelated vignettes. Masculin Féminin was intended as a representation of 1960s France and Paris.
Review by Aaron Jones | Aug 29, 2025
An alcoholic falls in love with and gets married to a young woman, whom he systematically addicts to booze so they can share his “passion” together. An Academy Award went to the film's theme music, composed by Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The film received four other Oscar nominations, including Best Actor and Best Actress. In 2018, Days of Wine and Roses was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Review by Max Palmer | Aug 15, 2025
Edward, a gay novelist saddled with caring for his elderly mother, finally finds himself on the brink of literary success. With pressure to go on a US book tour mounting, the last thing Edward needs is his friends jetting off to Spain for an impromptu Pride holiday, leaving their mothers on his doorstep! Over a chaotic weekend, he has to juggle his burgeoning career with the care of four eccentric, combative, and wildly different ladies. It is an Irish-set, English-language remake of the 2008 Italian film "Mid-August Lunch."
Review by James Carneiro | Aug 07, 2025
Set in 1980s Los Angeles, the film follows the romantic lives of several characters in and around a dive bar, including its owner, Eve; Mickey, a drifter recently released from a psychiatric hospital; and Nancy, a French radio host of a romance advice show who has recently become Eve's roommate. Choose Me was screened out of competition at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival, as well as other festivals, including the Toronto International Festival.
Review by Max Palmer | Jul 11, 2025
A memory-wiped and defective cyborg sex slave is tossed onto the streets and taken in by a homeless woman while his corporate creators hunt him down. 964 Pinocchio was created on a low-budget using guerrilla-filmmaking techniques, with scenes in filmed in Tokyo utilizing reactions from real crowds of people. It is widely considered as one of the best examples of the underground Japanese Cyberpunk genre.
Review by James Carneiro | Jun 20, 2025
Unsuccessfully trying to close old family wounds on a trip back to the Rhode Island home of her miserable childhood, a troubled young woman finds her new friendship with a neighbor has her stuck in another family drama. What begins as a search for peace turns into a haunting mirror of everything she hoped to escape.
Review by James Carneiro | Jun 07, 2025
Shareen and Claire, a lesbian couple living on Staten Island, find themselves ensnared in a vast conspiracy involving a ghost ship of nuclear refuse, ominous television commercials, and deadly cat food. Fresh Kill was an official selection at the 1994 Berlin International Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival and is noted for its influence on hacker subculture.
Review by Aaron Jones | May 28, 2025
Set in the small, mountainous village of Vermiglio during the waning days of WWII, a series of dramatic, consequential events unfold after the arrival of a taciturn Sicilian soldier, who hides out in town after deserting the army. While there, the soldier develops a romance with a provincial family’s eldest daughter. The film premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Grand Jury Prize.
Review by James Carneiro | May 18, 2025
Starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni, the film consists of three tales of very different women using their sexuality as a means to getting what they want. The film won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 37th Academy Awards, as well as the Top Foreign Film prize from the National Board of Review.
Review by James Carneiro | May 09, 2025
The film is based on John Osborne's play about a love triangle involving an intelligent but disaffected working-class young man (Jimmy Porter), his upper-middle-class, impassive wife (Alison) and her haughty best friend (Helena Charles). The film and play are classic examples of the British cultural movement known as kitchen sink realism and one of the first works of the British New Wave.