There is a moment towards the end of I’m Still Here (Portuguese: Ainda Estou Aqui) where the older Eunice Paiva sits at a table at what appears to be an informal family celebration – the rest of the room is lively, while she sits in pleasant silence, observing her children and grandchildren. Yet, no one…
The Bellboy (1960)
There has never been someone like Jerry Lewis, someone whose contributions to the world of entertainment are so immense, he is often viewed as one of the pioneers of modern American humour, a figure that helped bring to life a very specific kind of storytelling that was built on the collision of many different styles….
Sebastian (2024)
Nearly half a century ago, Derek Jarman made Sebastiane, an experimental masterpiece that looked at the trials and tribulations of the titular saint as he underwent persecution for his homosexuality and refusal to abide by the social convention in Ancient Rome, which resulted in his martyrdom that many still view as a tragic demise for…
The Other Way Around (2024)
Life is filled with events that we celebrate – births, marriages, birthdays and anniversaries, and there are even cultures where it is tradition to turn a funeral into a festive occasion, paying tribute to the dearly departed. Yet, there are a few moments in life that are rarely celebrated, at least in the conventional sense,…
Wicked (2024)
The world of L. Frank Baum has been a part of our lives for over a century – and whether we were raised with the iconic 1939 adaptation of The Wizard of Oz or any of its other versions or works inspired by his magical writings, it has infiltrated the culture in many ways. One…
An Angel at My Table (1990)
While it is logically implausible (since everyone needs to start somewhere), it has always seemed like Dame Jane Campion has been considered one of our finest filmmakers regardless of what stage of her career we are looking at – so imagining her being a young, rambunctious director that wasn’t the celebrated artist she is today…
Kinds of Kindness (2024)
Over the past fifteen years (slightly more if you were one of the forward-thinking viewers who leapt onto his wavelength earlier in his career), Yorgos Lanthimos has steadily risen from the depths of the Greek Weird Wave to the status as one of the most genuinely exciting, talented filmmakers of his generation, and someone who…
The Piano Lesson (2024)
Few playwrights evoke such passionate discourse and praise when their names are mentioned, with this status being reserved for a select few artists who changed the way theatre functions, either narratively, in form or as a combination of both. August Wilson lived a comparatively short life when we look at it from a distance, but…
Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
When an artist has been in the industry for long enough, it’s a challenge to not divide their career into different chapters, especially when their style and approach to filmmaking shifts over time. Not necessarily aligned with quality, but more in how they develop their ideas and the kinds of subjects that they pursue at…
The Room Next Door (2024)
Death is a subject that has been explored from every conceivable angle, but yet we are no closer to understanding its nuances or nature than we were at the dawn of humanity. This has only added to the complexity of dealing with the topic since death is perhaps the only universal inevitability, yet no one…
The Postmodern Pelican 