Blu-Ray Review: Burning an Illusion
While Britain, relatively speaking, is a multicultural and diverse nation, this hasn’t always been reflected in popular culture. The experiences of the ‘Windrush generation’, and their children, have only been captured on film fairly recently. Indeed, when Burning an Illusion was released in 1981 it was only the second British film directed by a black …
Blu-Ray Review: Love
During the Cold War, communist states were great supporters of their filmmakers. As long as they were telling stories which aligned with their ideology, that is. Writers and directors regularly walked a tightrope between individuality and prison. This reflected daily life for ordinary citizens. Living in a society where anyone could be an informer and …
Film Review: Bloody Oranges
The last decade has seen a wave of populism spread across the world, eking into all areas of politics and everyday life. France is no exception. While they might have a smooth operator in charge in the shape of Emmanuel Macron, he is very far from being universally popular. Indeed, a country with such a …
Film Review: Funny Pages
What do you want to be when you grow up? A question asked to generations of children and young people across the world and throughout history. If, like me, you had no idea what career you wanted to pursue, it was a particularly frustrating inquiry. Although, there’s no magic age when you suddenly receive an …
Film Review: House of Darkness
When it comes to identifying the problem, more often than not the answer is ‘men’. Whether that question is around safety on the streets, sexual assault, harassment in the workplace or a myriad of other things. There’s an entitlement which often follows us around, backed up by the physicality which usually comes with being born …
Film Review: Hockeyland
North Americans have a rather unique relationship with high school and college sports. While it differs from place to place, football, baseball, basketball, hockey and wrestling, amongst others, take up a disproportionate amount of time and money. These teams can often become the heart of a community. Fostering intense rivalries with local adversaries and providing …
Film Review: We Are as Gods
While the name might not be familiar, you’re likely to at least be aware of some of Stewart Brand’s ideas and concepts. He is a pioneer. A futurist. A man who has always been ahead of the curve, but not always, it could be argued, travelling in the right direction. He’s perhaps most famous for …
Film Review: Our American Family
There are few things more vicious than generation cycles of addiction. They destroy both families and communities. While genetics play a part in this, socialisation, environment and homelife are also huge contributing factors. Children who witness alcohol and drug abuse in the home are more likely to become addicts themselves. Childhood trauma, often caused as …
Film Review: Burial
When Adolph Hitler committed suicide in his bunker on 30 April 1945, it brought to an end the most horrendous and brutal period in modern human history. The Third Reich collapsed a few days later and the Nazis were, to all intents and purposes, no more. That didn’t stop some fanatics carrying on, even to …
Film Review: Dry Ground Burning
The rise of Jair Bolsonaro’s right-wing mix of populist nationalism and hyperbolic authoritarianism has made life increasingly difficult for anyone who finds themselves in a minority group in Brazil. While the militarised police take an increasingly robust stance towards crime, anything deemed even marginally liberal often finds itself in conflict with the law. The pandemic …