Film Festival Coverage Hub - Reviews & Recaps

The Best Families – Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival 2021

“Why work if we can do it for you?” are the words at the bottom of a billboard with a white woman floating on a pool that starts The Best Families. The billboard hangs ironically above Luzmilla and Peta’s humble neighborhood in the suburbs. We see it as they start their long commute to work, switching their barren neighborhood for two aristocratic family houses in central Lima.

The two families they work for are stereotypically snobby. They look down on Spanish people that don’t measure up to their lineage and direct plenty of snide comments at each other to try and establish their superiority. Their snobbery is the target of this satire. Today, at their birthday get-together, an unexpected bombshell throws the event into chaos as a long held secret involving both households, crossing class and race, is finally revealed.

Whilst the chaos is unfolding inside their upper class bubble, there’s also chaos outside. The city is being taken over by a mass protest. However, despite the news attention, these two elite families are completely oblivious of the protests. Aerial shots of their living complex (two large houses surrounded by green gardens) marks their position of privilege. Their complex is the only greenery in the shot, and it’s surrounded by cramped urban development and the many people protesting. The shots highlight the stark division between the privileged rich and the rest of the country. It also shows the bubble they live in – they’re not aware of the people outside their property because they don’t have to interact with them. This means that they’re also a bit out of touch with society, making the satire all the more funny.

The unfolding secret creates drama that reminded me of the family chaos in Knives Out. Just like a whodunnit, we want to keep watching to find out how each family member will react. After all, who doesn’t like laughing at the snobby rich? It’s always comforting to know that they have just as much drama in their family as the exploitative reality talk shows focusing on the underprivileged – and us. However, it does end with a small gut punch. Despite the big reveals and controversy the film exposes amongst the aristocratic family, the film ultimately ends on a book-ended shot of the maids carrying out the same life they started with. No matter what comes to light, the wealthy will always hold their power.

Head to our LALIFF 2021 Hub for more reviews from the 20th edition of LALIFF.

Clashing Differences – Outfest Los Angeles 2023

In Clashing Differences an international women’s rights group based in Germany changes its original white-women led panel to avoid being ‘cancelled’. The updated panel however sees through their attempts to fulfill the diversity checklist in this satirical comedy.

It’s hard to get a satire right, especially when you’re satirizing topics that you can easily get wrong (such as racism), whilst keeping the tone light enough to maintain the comedy. Clashing Differences doesn’t get everything ‘right,’ but it is a pretty good attempt. The fourth-wall-breaking monologues from each character all pack a punch whilst conveying a wide range of experiences. It also always feels like the film is told from a multi-cultural perspective, by centering the non-White characters (bar-one) over white characters. That being said, the film does feel like it falls into its own trap. In trying to expose the tokenization of the multicultural characters it almost tokenizes the same characters. Each one of the characters covers a different multicultural reaction to their own tokenization.

However, the larger problem with Clashing Differences is the relationships between the characters. None of them get along through the majority of the film’s run time, clashing because of past relationships, and not just their ideas for confronting the international women’s group they’re there for. The only thing that ultimately brings them together are literal Nazis which gives viewers an out for thinking about all of the more subtle racism that the characters talk about beforehand (as Nazis always surpasses more subtle racism). It also feels like a tool to help end the film too.

Despite the convenient ending, Clashing Differences is still worth a watch. You’ll likely get some enjoyment from the satire of well-wishing white-led feminist groups and the drama fired up by conflicting views.

Hairareb (Namibia) – Pan African Film Festival 2022

Hairareb follows the relationship between Hairareb, a middle-aged farmer, and Innis, his new bride. As they begin to get comfortable with their new life together, the secrets behind their marriage and from their past lives roll out into the open, creating a whirlwind of trouble for their budding relationship. Can they weather the storm, or will they fall back to the mistakes they made in the past?

There’s a lot going on in the opening scenes of the movie. The opening scene shows a man riding a horse into the sunset accompanied by a loud soundtrack and voiceover like a Hollywood Western. It introduces us to Hairareb’s narrative voice. The next shows a young man unlocking a chest of someone’s mementos. It’s not clear whose mementos or how he’s related to them. The film doesn’t give too many clues in the next few scenes either as it jumps straight to Hairareb and Innis’ wedding. From there, the jumping back and forth stops for a while, until the film delves into the two main character’s past lives, which by this point at least, helps to clear up some of the confusion from the start of the film and provide a bit of character development. However, for the most part, Hairareb feels unfocused. The drought, relationships, character backstories, and life in rural Namibia are all sacrificed for the sake of creating domestic melodrama, leaving the film feeling pretty hollow.

As you’ll notice from the start, this is a domestic melodrama. The loud soundtrack and overwrought narrative voice give that away. The use of a narrator feels a bit unnecessary at times, as everything Hairareb says could be built into a more natural script. It feels like it has been included to cut corners in the character building and plot to advance the plot quicker. It’s also always full of writing that feels a bit overdone, especially when it’s read alongside an overbearing soundtrack that doesn’t leave anything to the imagination. The soundtrack also often gives away the direction of the scenes before they’re acted out. Upbeat musical interludes play a few scenes before the newlyweds are happy and the villains are given away before the reveals by the loud ominous soundtrack accompanying their face on screen. A little more subtlety may have created a bigger surprise for these reveals, however, viewers used to melodramas may not be as put off by these moments as it’s all part of the fun.

The language choices were also interesting. Whilst the film was mostly shot in English, there were some moments where the cast started speaking the indigenous Khoekhoe language. Presumably English was chosen for the film’s marketability abroad, but why not then just run the whole film in English for this reason? The Khoekhoegowab words seemed to be included randomly and not for certain characters or moments so it wasn’t clear why they were included. If the director wanted to include the language, it would have been great to have used Khoekhoe throughout the movie. I don’t believe it would have made much of a difference to the international audience viewing it and maybe the actors would have been more comfortable using it.

Overall, if you’re looking for a Namibian domestic melodrama, you’ve come to the right place. Every scene of Hairareb is filled with it, from the music to the relationship reveals. There’s also some beautifully framed shots of rural Namibia to showcase the landscape. However, if you’re not familiar with the domestic melodrama genre you’ll probably find this example overdone and lacking in substance.

Check back to our Pan African Film Festival 2022 page for more reviews coming out of the 30th edition of the festival.

Gibrey Allen on Becoming a Filmmaker and Directing Right Near the Beach

The debut feature from Gibrey Allen, Right Near the Beach, was one of our favorite films at the Pan African Film Festival 2020 in Los Angeles. It builds on the themes of grief and homophobia in Allen’s 2011 short film Excuses for Jeff with a unique visual style and soundscape which makes you feel like you’re in the film, right next to the characters.

So we’re excited to present a brief interview with Gibrey Allen himself. Scroll down for the interview, and be sure to follow Gibrey Allen on Instagram (@DearMayFilms) for updates on Right Near the Beach‘s release. You can read our review of Gibrey’s debut feature here.

First of all, what inspired you to become a filmmaker?

Before I started making films I was acting. I was always interested in film-making but the drive to create better roles than what I was been offered was the impetus.

I found that in my first project Excuses for Jeff. The end to end creative process was a both a great challenge and joy. Living every aspect of the film-making process gave me a greater purpose than playing a character. Creating and having control of how story is told, particularly stories about the black experience, is important. Stories that celebrate or show true conflict, or stories that aren’t trivial, are important to me. That is my film-making mission.

What drew you to the story of Jeff and homophobia in Jamaica?

Homophobia in Jamaica unfortunately is a very real and prominent thing. The music can sometimes inform this, as well as religion, laws and politics which in turn normalizes homophobic thinking. It makes you forget what every human being wants; love and acceptance. Migrating from Jamaica to New York, where sexuality is varied and open, made me see the LGBTQ community not for their sexual interactions but for the people they are. With the story of Jeff I wanted to tell a very human story, not the usual approach I have seen in films and documentaries. To tell and move a story with cinema; the music, the sound, and visuals is what I love about film-making. I didn’t want to lecture with this film, I wanted to appeal to the heart.

How was filming in Jamaica?

Filming overall was a good experience. Most of the issues stemmed from a budgetary stand point; a smaller crew and not being able to get all the locations we’d hope for. Early on we figured we’d embrace these things, looking at what we did have and use that to make an even more intimate story.

Did having Excuses for Jeff help in the production of Right Near the Beach?

Yes. Knowing the area and landscape helped. Forehand knowledge of some of the challenges and logistics, such transportation and accommodations. It also helped with the writing process because I knew which characters to tell the story best through.

How did you develop your process for your first feature film versus making you short films?

The feature was the same approach as the shorts. Not necessarily by design but because the feature was shot in three different trips over a year and a half. The scope of things didn’t become so grandiose and production didn’t become a huge moving thing.

What informed your visual style and soundscape for Right Near the Beach?

I want a voyeuristic view into the life of Mr. Jacob, the father. Almost like you’re eavesdropping on something you’re not supposed to see, someone in deep pain and mourning. The movement of the camera to react violently when he’s angry, the movement slowing down in the quiet and pensive moments. Terrence Malick’s visual language was a great reference and also Lance Hammer’s Ballast.

We embraced the nature sounds; the flora and fauna that are natural to the farm and rural setting. Quiet moments were also very important so you had time to feel and get pulled into the journey. For the Mike character we used more post-production sounds, sounds that call back to his past and childhood. More mechanical sounds which underscore the demons he’s living with.

What challenges did you face in building the style into the film?

The main challenge that we found was that we didn’t have lots of coverage on shots. With the one-take approach that we primarily used we had to shoot until we got the take that worked. This was also magnified because the cast were all local players. There’s a bit of safety in having full coverage, you can cut away to another angle or to other subjects if something doesn’t work with a particular take.

Do you feel like you made the film you set out to make, or did your vision for the film change in the film-making process?

Yes, the overall idea and feel of the story came through. However, the film process was very fluid and organic. We had to embrace everything that came along. Weather for example was a big one. It’s a tropical climate so it would rain or get overcast. Rather than waiting for these things to pass we used them to heighten moments in the film.

How is your release going so far?

No release yet as the hope is to build an audience and buzz through festivals before we take that step.

Where can readers catch the film next?

Not sure yet as COVID-19 has affected the festival run. Follow @DearMayFilms on Instagram for updates.

Do you have any projects in the works?

Yes, currently in pre-production on the next feature, also set in Jamaica. Can’t give much details yet but I can say it’s going be in the western style.

What films, books, music, art can we look up to get to know you better?

Films: The cinematic language I like are that of Terence Malick, Lars Von Trier, Steven McQueen (Please watch Hunger), Thomas Vinterberg. Pretty much anything that Roger Deakins and Emmanuel Lubezki photographs.

Music: Tons of Reggae; Beres Hammond, Peter Tosh, Bob Marley, Ken Booth, Toots and the Maytals. Blues, Folk music and anything that promotes me keeping my beard.

Follow Gibrey Allen @DearMayFilms on Instagram for updates on where to watch Right Near the Beach. You can read our full review of Right Near the Beach here.

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Shaina (Zimbabwe) – Pan African Film Festival 2021

Shaina (Shine) is a teenager who has a knack for making something out of nothing and could have a promising future as an engineer, except for the fact that she doesn’t believe in herself. When she and her best friends are faced with a host of grown-up problems – loss of loved ones, unpaid exam fees and the curse of “blessers” – they come close to giving up. Their story is one of forgiveness and friendship, of creating a new family from the people who love you, and of the very real girl power.

Once you see Shaina you’ll realize that this blurb is sugar coated. Her “grown-up problems” are a list of the very worst things that could happen to a kid: losing your only guardian, being unable to afford education, and stalkers that groom you. Based on what happens, this could be one of the most depressing films of recent times, in the same field as Capernaum, but it chooses not to be. Despite the awful conditions, Shaina is filled with vibrant colors, positive music, and dancing. It’s unrealistic hopefulness is present from the opening scene in which Shine digs for scraps in the local junkyard whilst uplifting music plays in the background. Even though it feels overly optimistic considering the circumstances, the hopeful portrayal of Shine and her friends is needed to prevent this from becoming poverty porn.

However, the credibility of the film isn’t helped by the clichéd characters. One friend resorts to prostitution to help get by, another friend is pregnant, and there’s a dodgy crime lord. It’s also not helped by what feels like an overwritten script which verbalized everything in the dialogue, leaving little to be said by the images.

Another thing that felt too obvious was the film’s love for capitalism. It’s presented as the obvious answer to Shine’s problems despite all the awful things that she has to deal with. It conveys that it’s no big deal that she has to raise money to pay for her school exams now that her family has died and people have stolen what was left for her education, because she can just become an ‘entrepreneur’ and make enough money by selling eggs after school. The movie chooses to use Shine’s inventiveness as a wonderful way out of poverty instead of examining why she has to make money to pay for her education after she’s left an orphan in the first place. Perhaps this isn’t surprising given that this is a film made with U.S. Aid. However, the focus on the American dream just feels like a hopeful distraction from Shine’s reality.

Check our Pan African Film Festival 2021 page for more reviews coming out of the 29th edition of the festival.