REVIEWS
Post-film thoughts.
Love is the Monster: Abuela in Action
The tug-of-war between Abuela and her daughter is one of the biggest ways Love is the Monster drives the narrative forward. García and Regidor portray this friction intensely and authentically. Some days, they are civil. Others, they quarrel over how to best take care of the grandchild. The heat to their performance is felt beyond the screen.
Stuffed: Still Life
Melling and Comer prove themselves as all-rounders in both their acting and singing abilities, the film almost entirely a two-person show, while Rhys establishes his filmmaking talent. The journey he takes the viewer on is one of accepting both life and death. Stuffed is about love as preservation. It is looking at preserving not only the body, but the human spirit as well.
Fjord: The Forgiving Cold
The film follows Lisbet and Mihai’s struggle to prove their innocence and maintain their traditional, conservative values when faced with a system that they feel is out to get them. It asks the audience to sympathize with a family we may disagree with, and forces us to confront our own biases and beliefs—but not always in the film’s favour.
Where the River Begins: The Jungle Decides
Juan Andrés Arango’s third feature film captures an incredibly personal and honest story led by amazing non-professional actors, making the raw emotion that much more impressive. Each scene feels naturalistic and quietly beautiful, letting the viewer immerse themselves in the lives of the characters and, as a result, root for Yajaira and María from the get-go.
Coyote vs. Acme: Sisyphus is Happy
It is through this seemingly never-ending legal proceeding that Wile E. Coyote, Kevin, and Paige realize that maybe winning the case, catching the Road Runner, keeping the boulder at the top of the hill, isn't their real goal. Perhaps the goal itself is the chase, the hill, and the journey.
Furious: No Perfect Victims
Furious delivers on the public’s increasing and incredibly valid dislike of cops and federal agents alike. It asks, who does the law, created by a racist patriarchy, actually serve and protect? It demonstrates how someone unprotected can instead serve her own interests, because that’s the only way she will ever find justice.
The Odyssey: A Homeric Reckoning
Where Homer celebrates Odysseus as a hero returned, Nolan admonishes him as a harbinger of death. As heartbreaking as it is harrowing, the writer-director pulls on the thematic foundations of Tenet (2020) and Oppenheimer (2023) and once again asks the audience to reckon with one man’s destruction of the world.
Lucy Lost: The Journey to Belonging
Lucy and Milly care for each other with an affection and understanding of the other’s struggles that can only make you invested in their bond from the very first scene they share.
We Are Aliens: Friendship and the Scars It Leaves
Who hasn’t stared at the ceiling for hours, late at night, replaying an embarrassing memory from middle school over and over again? We Are Aliens (2026) takes this feeling and pushes it to its limit, and, as someone who tends to get stuck in the past, I immediately felt like the film was made for me.
Tana: Music as Heritage
The film allows us to admire the Mongolian landscapes, rendered in all their majestic vastness. The steppes, mountains, and fields surrounding Tana become powerful presences which are more than beautiful backgrounds—places that resonate with the stories of her ancestors.
The Invite: Wilde’s Triumphant Return
Helped along by excellent performances from each of the four actors, the film weaves an elaborate game of push and pull through both poignant moments and hilarious banter that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
The Violinist: On War and The Sound of Music
Marking the first time that a Singaporean production not only won the award but took part in the Festival, The Violinist won the hearts of the Annecy jury through its blending of intense orchestration and a tense love story across the backdrop of the Japanese occupation of Singapore.
Tangles: A Poetic Tale of Hope and Grief
Capturing the heart-wrenching weight of every interaction between Sarah and her mother, the film lets the emotion take over through subtle changes in everyday situations, without forcing it upon its audience.
Iron Boy: A Charming Portrait of Childhood
Every step of the process reflects the director’s loyalty to his hometown. Voice recordings were done with non-professional actors—including Clichy’s son—in a farm in Beauce, location scouting was conducted in the same place, and one of the only songs used in the film was chosen in honor of his sisters. As a result, Iron Boy feels like an immersion into Clichy's childhood, comforting in the nostalgia it brings but also disarming in its complexity.
Minions & Monsters: Keeping Hollywood Alive
Minions & Monsters is not the first to point to Old Hollywood, but it’s particularly resonant as viewers find joy and amusement in the idea of these lovable little creatures so intentionally recreating scenes that are otherwise considered serious moments of cinematic history.
The Bear Season 5: One Last Service
With the whole season (barring the last episode) taking place over the course of one day, the beloved restaurant and its found family of chefs find themselves faced with the worst conditions any operating business can have. The business is running on empty, how much worse can it get for the crew? Season 5 is one last adrenaline-filled ride in the restaurant, wrapping up each character beautifully with wholesome endings.
Supergirl: Seeking Justice
It’s riveting to see Kara on the big screen at full power. Her fight scenes are captivating and full of fun choreography, and Alcock’s perfect blend of rage and despair bubbling under the surface of Kara’s nonchalant exterior completely embodies the iconic hero.
Widow’s Bay: A 5-Star Stay
Brilliantly cast and conceived, Widow’s Bay features an adorably awkward, wholly endearing ensemble. While comedy often functions on the use of stereotypes for quick laughs, Widow’s Bay serves up each small town horror trope with extra sauce.
Leviticus: Desire, Distorted
But the most impressive part of Leviticus is that it doesn’t pretend the shame or fear start and end. There is not a full stop. There is no natural conclusion to hurtle toward. And there is no definitive expiration on the tension queer people feel all their lives.
Is God Is: Sins of the Father
Harris perfectly blends the silly with the sinister, crafting unique and quirky characters that provide moments for off-hand situational comedy but also slowly grow the dark cloud that is their father. By the time his face graces the screen in the final act, his reputation precedes him.