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If you’re a horror fan or someone who loves languages, check out this film. Edge of the Knife offers horror fans something different and film fans an opportunity to see the first film shot with a Haida cast, speaking Haida, on Haida land.
From: Canada, North AmericaContinue reading “Edge of the Knife – A Living Haida Legend”
Watch: Trailer, Buy on Amazon
Next: Antichrist, The Revenant, Tanna
Are blood ties stronger than spirituality? Find out in Cocote as one man returns home to bury his father. Is it worth sacrificing a stable Christian life in the city for a family life he has tried to leave behind.
From: Dominican Republic, North AmericaContinue reading “Cocote – Religion and Ritual in the Dominican Republic”
Watch: Trailer, Buy Direct, Kanopy, Hoopla
Next: Batuque, White Sun, Blue Ruin
Too Early, Too Late isn’t your typical documentary. Instead of following a person, animal, or political movement, it documents the landscape through a series of long sweeping shots of fields, land, and people. If you’re a people watcher, or someone who likes to sit on a park bench and contemplate the view, you’ll enjoy Too Early, Too Late. It requires patience, an open mind, and some open ears.
From: France, Egypt, Europe, AfricaRead The Full Review
Watch: YouTube, Rent on Amazon
Next: Playtime, Peace, Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania
If you’re a fan of indie films or telenovelas, you’ll enjoy Amor y Frijoles. It’s got the feel of a heart-warming indie film, but the romantic drama of a Mexican telenovela.
Amor y Frijoles starts with a load of establishing shots of the town of Ojojona as it wakes up in the morning. You’ll see shots of the churches, the streets, the butcher chopping meat, vendors preparing coffee, and the rural landscape which surrounds the town. It’s a typical Honduran town, and acts as a microcosm for the entire country.
This isn’t great news for Honduras. As whilst the town is portrayed well, the main characters are not. Firstly there’s Dionisio, Karen’s husband. He obviously doesn’t care for his wife as he comes home late every night and ignores her. Karen also suspects that he’s cheating, and he probably is, even if it’s never confirmed. Secondly there’s Ramiro, Karen’s best friends husband. At every opportunity he voyeuristically checks out Karen. There’s even one obvious shot of him gazing at her boobs.
Dionisio and Ramiro compose a pretty awful picture of Honduran men. But luckily(?) for them Karen stoops to their level and therefore half vindicates their awful behavior by having a one-off affair with Ramiro, her best friend’s husband! The drama!
There are so many extra-marital affairs because they are all bored. Karen cooks baleadas in the morning before she goes home and watches hours and hours of reality and religious TV. The directors show her following the same mundane routine everyday. It’s obvious she’s bored, but she’s too stuck by her routine to break from it. Therefore, it’s no surprise that when the TV breaks, she looks to other entertainment to fill the void.
This is also true for Ramiro, Karen’s best friends husband. He’s never shown doing anything other than driving around town aimlessly. It doesn’t look like he has a job or any hobbies to occupy his time. Therefore, without anything to do, he keeps trying to seduce Karen.
Amor y Frijoles is a well made, easy-to-watch Honduran film. It’s got the feel of a great indie film. However, the plot is anything but relaxing, it’s full of the relationship drama you expect to see in Latin American telenovelas.
For more controversial relationships in Central America, check out two films with Gabriel Garcia Bernal:
Or, if you’re after a more romantic love film, check out The Road Home by Zhang Yimou or Sepet, a teen love film set in Malaysia.
If you’re looking for a snapshot of the people’s struggle for Angolan independence, you’ve come to the right place. Sambizanga follows a woman as she tries to track down her husband with her newborn baby. Meanwhile, in the background, the Angolan liberation movement slowly builds momentum. The director, Sarah Maldoror, worked with Gillo Pontecurvo on The Battle of Algiers before directing Sambizanga so it’s no surprise there are plenty of links between the two. If you need another reason to watch, it’s also one of the first feature films directed by a woman of colour.
From: Angola, AfricaContinue reading “Sambizanga – A Woman Struggling Alongside the Fight for Independence”
Watch: YouTube (not good quality but can't find anywhere else)
Next: The Battle of Algiers, Flame, Lucia
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