A knowing film can be a tricky thing. Make the knowing winks too subtle and it can go over the viewers’ heads. Be too obvious and the nudges become as distracting and irritating as actual elbows in the ribs. This does not stop many a filmmaker from tipping their hat […]
Vincent Gaine
Infernal Affairs Trilogy (2002/3) A Significant if flawed Film Trilogy (Blu-Ray Review)
In 2002, the producing-writing-directing team Andrew Lau Wai-Keung and Alan Mak released Infernal Affairs, a distinctive crime thriller that exploded across Hong Kong cinemas and had a worldwide impact. The film garnered multiple awards including Best Film at the 22nd Hong Kong Film Awards and Film of Merit at the […]
She Said (2022)A call to arms for the power of voices (Cinema Review)
Roger Ebert famously wrote that cinema is an empathy machine, a medium that can present the position of those you have little in common with and allow you to relate to them. She Said is a story that takes the position of women and makes it entirely relatable for a male […]
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) The Social & Political Consciousness of the MCU (Cinema Review)
Modern science knows more about the surface of the moon than the ocean. It is perhaps therefore fitting that after many excursions through space, it is the thirtieth entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that ventures into the deep. Furthermore, Ryan Coogler’s follow-up to the 2018 groundbreaking, box office conquering, […]
Dear Zoe (2022) Sadie Sink and the humanity beyond Cliche (VOD Review)
The voiceover is a tricky cinematic device. It can be overused and feel both clumsy and obvious; or appear as a heavy-handed technique at the beginning and end of the film to explain what the audience should feel. If used precisely, it helps draw the viewer into the world of […]
The Vanished (AKA Vanishing) (2022) Intelligent International Thriller of social connectivity (VOD Review)
Globalisation can be expressed without globetrotting, as multiple nationalities come together in particular locations and productions can utilise a range of global influences in their production. Such a film is Vanishing, also called The Vanished, depending on which site you find it on, or indeed ‘Salajin’ or ‘salajineun’ in Korean. […]
Eve’s Bayou (1997) A Lingering, Compelling and Emotional Icon of Modern Black Cinema (Blu-Ray Review)
DISCLAIMER: This review is written by a white man with all of the privilege and bias that entails. Eve’s Bayou has earned a place within black film history since its release in 1997. Selected by the US Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry for being ‘culturally, […]
Mean Spirited (2022)Youtuber Found Footage’s buzz harshed by incessant Bro Chatter (Festival Review)
Horror fans are accustomed to certain tropes, and one of those is that any time a group of young people head off on a trip it is going to go wrong. From The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to The Evil Dead to Wrong Turn to The Cabin in the Woods, this […]
The Twin (2022) Ambitious Horror if full of contradictions (Blu-Ray Review)
The Twin is a film that offers many horror devices and tropes. Some of which are unsettling and startling, others are likely to leave the viewer asking what was the point of that? Taneli Mustonen’s blend of Midsommar and Rosemary’s Baby is reminiscent of various more accomplished horror films, and […]
They Live in the Grey (2022) The Desperately Sad, Haunting Horror of Grief (DVD Review)
Horror cinema, like science fiction, is often reminiscent of other entries in the genre. See one horror film and it will likely remind you of others. Such is the case with They Live In The Grey, the third feature from writer-director duo Abel and Burlee Vang. While it is somewhat […]