Film Review: Vortex

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Category: Cinéma - Movies

Published: Saturday, 07 May 2022 10:07

Written by Gilbert Seah

VORTEX (France 2021) ***

Directed by Gasper Noé

Filmmaker Gasper Noe has never failed to astound audiences - though not always in a good way.  Take his SEUL CONTRE TOUS.  In the film’s last 10 minutes, a warning appears on screen with the image of a clock ticking, that if one thinks one cannot stomach what is to come, then leave the cinema within one minute.  When I first viewed this film at TIFF, most of the audience did not leave.  But when the last 10 minutes of film unfolded which involved a father raping his retarded daughter, a quarter of the audience walked out.   His last film CLIMAX which displayed the best of dancing also created quite the stir with the dancers all high on the LSD laced punch.  The best Noé film remains his first short hour feature CARNE with Jean Much Godard-like titles and the film displaying humour and oddity.

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Film Review: Petite Maman

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Category: Cinéma - Movies

Published: Tuesday, 03 May 2022 20:52

Written by Gilbert Seah

PETITE MAMAN (France 2021) ****
Directed by Céline Sciamma

Mesmerizing, beautiful and magical, director Céline Sciamma’s latest film about loss and discovery from the point of view of a young girl, Nelly (Josephine Sanz) is an unforgettable film that is a must-see.  This is the director that has amazed critics with festival hits like PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE and demonstrated her smarts with her script for the amazing animated MA VIE EN COURGETTE, nominated and should have won the Oscar for Best Animated feature.  

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Film Review: The Takedown

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Category: Cinéma - Movies

Published: Friday, 06 May 2022 01:11

Written by Gilbert Seah

THE TAKEDOWN (France 2022) ***1/2
Directed by Louis Leterrier

English-speaking cinema goers have their pro-Idris Elba, A Brit starring in both English hits such as THE HARDER THEY FALL, THE SUICIDE SQUAD and CONCRETE COWBOY.  On the European side, French cinema has had OMAR SY, who rose to fame with the French comedy hit UNTOUCHABLE (remade into a Hollywood film), SIMPLY BALCK, POLICE, while also crossing the Atlantic, starring as Hemall in the Marvel films AVENGERS and THOR, as well as the JURASSIC WORLD films.  His test film, on Netflix, shows Sy in top form, both in action and comedy, a French outing despite its English title.  Sy is the main one who makes the action comedy work.  THE TAKEDOWN is directed by Louis Leterrier, no stranger to action films THE INCREDIBLE HULK, CLASH OF THE TITANS AND FAST X.  So, expect lots of action and comedy in THE TAKEDOWN.  One would not be disappointed.  As a bonus, the film displays the gorgeous French countryside from Bordeaux to the French Alps.

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Film Review: My Little One

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Category: Cinéma - Movies

Published: Monday, 02 May 2022 22:06

Written by Gilbert Seah

MY LITTLE ONE (Desert) (Switzerland 2019) ***

Directed by Frédéric Choffat and Julie Gilbert

In films, when foreigners arrive in another land, they do weird things whilst they themselves are deemed weird.  In MY LITTLE ONE.  Alex and Bernardo, who are summoned to the Arizona desert by Jade, a woman they both loved but haven’t seen in 10 years.  The opening scene where they meet each other in the Arizona desert, sitting French, should invoke enough curiosity.  The desert is captured on camera in all its barren intensity and stark landscape by Pietro Zuercher’s camera.

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