By: Amanda Guarragi Justine Bateman’s directorial feature debut has rich experimental elements and an internal dialogue that all women can relate to. Olivia Munn stars as Violet, a Los Angeles–based film executive, who has worked extremely hard to gain status in an industry still dominated by older white men. Nowhere is this more apparent than in her relationship to her boss (Dennis Boutsikaris), who exerts … Continue reading TIFF ’21: ‘Violet’ Review
By: Amanda Guarragi Apichatpong Weerasethakul Memoria is beautifully striking in its landscapes, as he delivers a character-driven story, about human connectivity through archaeological study. How truly connected are we to this world? How many generations have passed through us. From stories that are passed down through generations, or studying the actual land ancestors walked on, the human connection runs deep. Memoria centres on Jessica (Tilda Swinton), … Continue reading TIFF ’21: ‘Memoria’ Review
By: Amanda Guarragi Director Eva Husson’s Mothering Sunday is a period piece that explores the meaning of love and friendship. Jane (Odessa Young) works as a maid for the Nivens (Olivia Colman and Colin Firth), an aging home counties couple who, like so many other families, lost their sons on the battlefields of the First World War. Jane is having a secret affair with Paul … Continue reading TIFF ’21: ‘Mothering Sunday’ Review
By: Amanda Guarragi Julia Ducournau has done it again. Titane is such a bold entry in her filmography and it has left me speechless. The opening of this film sets the tone for familial relationships. The father/daughter relationship between young Alexia and her father was strained from the very beginning. An argument with her father in the car, eventually leads to a violent automobile accident … Continue reading TIFF ’21: ‘Titane’ Review
By: Amanda Guarragi Denis Villeneuve’s Dune can be seen as a culmination of his work that came before it. With Enemy and Arrival under his belt, Villeneuve explored the extraterrestrial and created creatures among the real world. The combination of the existential dread, with his visuals for his science-fiction films, have been elevated with the story from Frank Herbert. Villeneuve created a grand scale epic … Continue reading TIFF ’21: ‘Dune’ Review
Candid Cinema 