Curzon Artificial Eye
Film Review: Natural Light
Despite what we might be led to believe, for the most part soldiering involves a lot of waiting around and generally doing very little other than simply being somewhere. This, for obvious reasons, does not often make for scintillating entertainment. Unsurprisingly then, most films that hit our screens either greatly lesson this aspect of war …
Film Review: Playlist
The great European capital cities have always been a huge draw for the young people of a country. Like moths to a flame, they descend on the bright lights. Excited by the endless possibilities and myriad opportunities. If you want to make it in the arts, you need to be in London, Lisbon or Madrid. …
Film Review: Next Door
If you watch European cinema at all regularly, you’ll recognise Daniel Brühl. He has one of those memorable faces. You might not be able to quite place him straight away, but he’s most famous for his starring role in Good Bye Lenin!. Also receiving awards for performances in The Edukators and Love in Thoughts. The …
Film Review: Ninjababy
We live in a patriarchal society where women’s roles have been reduced and restricted for centuries and more. Today, in many traditional countries their ‘job’ is basically to be an obedient daughter, mother and wife. Forced to cater to their husband’s every wish. Often little better than a slave. Even in more progressive nations, women …
Film Review: Apples
Hot on the heels of the 2008 financial crisis and spearheaded by Yorgos Lanthimos’s Dogtooth, the Greek ‘weird wave’ has been one of the more unlikely cinematic movements of the 21st century. Whilst the Athenian has been its most successful cog in the new wave, he is by no means alone. Athina Rachel Tsangari’s Attenburg …
Film Review: Quo Vadis, Aida?
The United Nations (UN) was formed after the end of World War II, established on the principles of maintaining international peace and security, mutual cooperation and harmonizing relations across members states. One of the organisation’s most high-profile responsibilities is providing peacekeeping forces in conflict zones around the world. However, it has received criticism for inaction …
Film Review: Memories of Murder
When Parasite won the Best Film at the 2020 Academy Awards, it became the first non-English language film to perform this feat. However, director Bong Joon-ho has been thrilling audiences for twenty years since his feature debut, Barking Dogs Never Bite. Snowpiercer, Okja, Mother and The Host have wowed festival audiences and indie film fans. …
LFF Review: So Long, My Son
When the Communist Party decided to relax the one-child policy in 2013, and subsequently changed the national family planning to two children per couple, it marked the end of a controversial and disquieting era in China’s history. Whilst adherence to the law sometimes depended on where you lived and your economic position, it has caused …
LFF Review: The Whistlers
The Romanian new wave is arguably the most interesting current movement in modern cinema. Of those directors working under this banner, Corneliu Porumboiu is possibly the most interesting. With award-winning films such as 12:08 East of Bucharest and The Treasure, he has wowed audiences on the festival circuit. His new film, The Whistlers, is his …
Film Review: The Souvenir
Joanna Hogg is undoubtedly one of the most unusual and singular voices working in British cinema today. Her work resides in the world she knows. A world of privilege, art and wealth. Whilst this approach is undeniably refreshing, it has come in for criticism. However, her work to date, Unrelated, Archipelago and Exhibition, demonstrate an …