“Workers of the world unite; you have nothing to lose but your chains” There are many quotes by Karl Marx that can be used to preface a discussion of The Working Class Goes to Heaven (Italian: La classe operaia va in paradiso), in which director Elio Petri carves one of the most scathing and unsettling…

Many of us take our position in life for granted – even if one doesn’t live a life of luxury, there is still consistency and comfort that guide our daily routines, which is something that is unfortunately not a universal experience, particularly for those in developing countries or those ravaged by war, civil unrest or…

Life is filled with countless challenges, and we all approach them differently – for Lucia, her dream has always been to become a harpist, following in the footsteps of her father, who has played the harp for years as part of their small Yoreme community in Northern Mexico, where it is a cultural tradition that…

One of the wisest pieces of advice that I have ever encountered was when I was told that the only person stronger than the one who fights is the one who manages to resist since it takes more strength to remain stoic than it does to react in anger. Obviously, this is a nebulous concept…

There have been few filmmakers more dedicated to the subtle art of exploring everyday life than Mia Hansen-Løve, who has constructed an entire career out of a very specific kind of delicate, earnest social realist drama that strives for authenticity and in the process provides meaningful insights into the lives of ordinary people as they…

An important question that we often need to ask is whether we can excuse a deeply flawed film based on the value of its message. Objectively, the answer should be resoundingly negative, since art should not be judged more leniently based on the ideas that went into its creation. Unfortunately, we don’t like in a…

It is generally agreed almost universally that Preston Sturges was one of the greatest writers and directors to work during Hollywood’s Golden Age – and when discussing someone whose peers and collaborators include the likes of Ernst Lubitsch and Billy Wilder, it is clear that we are looking at someone quite special. He made several…

The social and political history of Portugal is fascinating, but also not widely known outside of those who come from the country or make up part of its extensive global diaspora. However, it is extremely difficult to find a work produced in the 20th century (or even to the present day) that doesn’t address the…

One of the more unconventional tragic figures in the history of literature is Heinrich von Kleist, a marginally well-known poet and writer whose most notable contribution to the culture was actually his suicide – not necessarily the act itself, but the journey he took towards ultimately ending his life, which was well-documented as being a…

By this point in this career, Hirokazu Kore-eda has done more than enough to prove himself as one of our greatest living filmmakers. In recent years, he has expanded on his own repertoire by stepping outside of his native Japan and looking at other countries, with his first film made in another language being the…