Drama Tag Archive
It Comes at Night
Though not intended as such at the time, Trey Edward Shults’ It Comes at Night has taken on a different weight in the post-pandemic world. Originally released in 2017, Shults’ sophomore feature is a study in the anxieties and losses one family weathers whilst trying to survive a viral apocalypse. In Shults’ film, an unexplained […]
Beau Is Afraid
On release, Ari Aster’s Beau is Afraid quickly became one of those contentious litmus tests for cinematic boundaries, creative freedom, and personal taste. The people that loathed the film called it the result of an indulgent director and a permissive studio. The folks that loved it cited pretty much the same. Either way, Aster, a […]
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When Ti West first burst onto the scene nearly a decade ago, it was with style, grit, and savvy. The one-two punch of retro-fitted occult babysitter flick House of the Devil and surprisingly endearing, but terrifying, docu-horror The Innkeepers announced a major genre talent. Here is a guy who can deliver effective, stylish, thrills and […]
Aniara – EIFF 2019
Earth is fucked. We all know that, and Sci-fi is increasingly interested in how to deal with how fucked we are. Aniara, from directors Pella Kagerman and Hugo Lilja, is an epic human-centric look at post-Earth life. Aniara starts off in a well-worn futuristic world where humanity is slowly being evacuated to communes on Mars […]
First Reformed
Paul Schrader has had a reputation for weighty mainstream releases since penning the script for Taxi Driver in 1970.
Swinging Safari – EIFF 2018 Review
Since his debut feature film in 1993, Australian auteur Stephan Elliott has made 10 films, none more successful or iconic than the exuberant drag queen road movie, Priscilla Queen of the Desert. The
Pilgrimage – EIFF 2017
Whilst most of the praised Irish produce of the past few years has been horror, Brendan Muldowney’s Pilgrimage provides an unforgiving trip into the rarer realm of British swords ‘n’ sandals adventure. The film follows a group of priests who leave the rural confines of their secluded abbey to escort a holy relic on a […]
Rage – EIFF 2017
Following in the footsteps of complex murder dramas like Memories of Murder and I Saw the Devil, Rage, from Japanese director Sang-il Lee, has a tense yet tender approach to traditional thrillers. In it, three seemingly unrelated stories of love and loss slowly draw together around a vicious murder.
The Demons – GFF 2017
French Canadian film The Demons, from director Philippe Lesage, peaks behind the curtain of suburban civility for a slow but powerful discussion on childhood, sexuality, and social relationships. In it, an adolescent boy named Felix begins to encounter the adult world in subtle, but dramatic ways. Lesage is clearly an inquisitive and open-minded documentarian whose curiosity allows him to pry the deepest most private parts of life without seemingly rabidly intrusive. That’s an important […]
Seat in Shadow – EIFF 2016
Accomplished sculptor and avant-garde artist Henry Coombs arrived at Edinburgh film festival this year with his psycho-drama directorial debut Seat in Shadow. It’s a studied and emotional look at artist and muse, a close-up look at alienation, and an uplifting expose of life and love through the prism of gay experience.
