I’ve never have thought that the Ivory Coast but this film by director Philippe Lacôte is truly remarkable. Not only does it effectively showcase some of his people’s culture, it throws a bit about the country’s political turmoil and references some of the most ancient traditions of storytelling. All this plus it’s such a gorgeous film to boot! I’m not sure that the plot makes much sense and this certainly is in no way a real prison but that doesn’t matter at all as the film draws us into a world of its own that runs on its own rules.

This is a very shocking thriller on many levels and understandably ran into a lot of trouble with the censors of its era with its allusions to child rape. The main villain is unambiguously menacing and towards the end of the film truly monstrous, yet I liked the film more at the beginning when there was some doubt as to whether or not the protagonist is justified in deploying the full force of the law against the antagonist. I suppose it’s because times have changed so much that someone who a figure of authority invoking the law on his side is more frightening than a lone heinous criminal. While this ends up being a film that ramps up the tension effectively, I don’t like it much at all as I think it is both implausible and wants to deliver the wrong lessons.

So we finally get around to this, the film that was considered to be badly snubbed at this year’s Oscars, garnering 12 nominations but winning only one for Jane Campion as best director. I think this is a fair accusation given how the actual winners were mostly such safe choices and this film can be interpreted as a direct attack on the archetype of the Western cowboy. I have my issues with how it seems so unbalanced in terms of character development but my wife and I had plenty to discuss about it afterwards and that’s always a sure sign of an interesting film.

Most people who talk about this Icelandic film try to be vague on what it’s about, judging that its twist is too central to fully enjoying it. That makes it impossible to really delve into any discussion about it however so consider this a spoiler warning. Lamb is part horror film part folk tale and I love that the audience inevitably tries to imagine all kinds of outlandish explanations to explain what we see, yet the truth, such as it were, is straightforward and literal. This may not be scary per se but it is very disquieting to watch and that means it’s good.

With the recent announcement of the retirement of Serena Williams, it seemed like a good time to watch this. As per its title however it is really about the father of the Williams sisters, Richard, and the beginning of the career of Venus. Richard’s role as the parental figure who planned for and pushed them towards world-beating success is the focus. As far as I can tell, it does an excellent job at being reasonably fair and accurate about the double-edged nature of this kind of intense coaching since childhood. That marks this as a little different from the run-of-the-mill sports biographical film and perhaps worth watching even if you don’t care much for sports.

I don’t understand the social dynamics of the debutante balls that are at the center of this film but since neither does the protagonist, I suppose that is rather the point. My wife noted how this American film weirdly feels British and that makes sense too because they are in essence enacting a watered-down imitation of the social conventions of the British aristocracy. Anyway for these astute observations and an on-point characterization of these barely adults and their infatuations, I give this film full marks and thoroughly recommend it.

This is a tough film to evaluate. It’s simple enough to understand what is going on and even its themes are readily apparent yet you might still be left wondering what exactly filmmaker Edson Oda intends to convey in it. The problem is that the premise is so strange, so deliberately abstracted from everyday reality that it overshadows the relatively straightforward theme of appreciating life in all of its myriad aspects. In the end, I appreciate that such a film could be funded and made at all but even as a science-fiction fan I find it difficult to muster much enthusiasm for it.