Boyhood – 2014

Richard Linklater is the master of the long game. Whether it is his critically acclaimed ‘Before Trilogy’ or this film he knows that good films take time. Boyhood was filmed over 12 years and follows the growth of a young boy called Mason (Ellar Coltrane). The film doesn’t show anything special, it shows nothing less […]

Youth – 2015

There an old expression, “Age is just a number” and for some that’s true, but for the protagonists in Youth it couldn’t be farther. Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine) and Mick Doyle (Harvey Keitel) are a pair of old friends who both have failed to accept old age gracefully. Both long for their glory days, but […]

Certain Women – 2016

Three vignettes of life in the Midwest, Montana to be more specific. Kelly Reichardt is an indie darling when it comes to female empowerment films and this one is her finest yet. Each segment of this film focuses on a woman in the midst of some crisis. The first focuses on a Laura Wells (Laura […]

A Ghost Story – 2017

David Lowery is an up-and-coming director and if it was in doubt before, this film proves it. The film might seem like a ridiculous concept, a ghost who is literally a sheet, but it never feels absurd and it is a truly heart-warming film about the love shared between a husband and wife, even after […]

Election – 1999

As my love affair with Alexander Payne continues, I have chosen to watch Election. An indictment of high school cliches and of the democratic process, this film pits a socially conscious high school teacher against an overachieving student. The plot mostly revolves around Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) slowly derailing his own life in order to […]

The Descendants – 2011

In my ongoing love affair with Alexander Payne, I have just watched The Descendants. George Clooney gives one of his finest performances as Matt King, a husband and father whose wife is dying. He lends humor to a role that shouldn’t be funny and makes sympathy into something that seems hard to come by. The […]