Category Archives: Movies

Review: Sinkhole

Posted on November 11, 2022 by philipbrasor

Though nominally a disaster movie, Sinkhole fits neatly into a subcategory of Korean films that address the current housing finance crisis. As it stands, young people in Korea are putting off marriage and other life goals because they are getting … Continue reading →

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Review: Don’t Worry Darling

Posted on November 10, 2022 by philipbrasor

If Olivia Wilde’s sophomore effort as a director were better, I might lament the distracting pre-release gossip surrounding the movie’s reported on-set squabbles and romantic intrigues, which mostly dominated its big premiere at Cannes, but as they say there’s no … Continue reading →

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Tokyo International Film Festival 2022

Posted on November 7, 2022 by philipbrasor

Here are the posts I wrote for the TIFF 2022 home page. –Competition Jury Press Conference –A Light Never Goes Out Q&A session –Kaymak Q&A session –The Cord of Life Q&A session –Butterflies Live Only One Day Q&A session –This … Continue reading →

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Review: The Roundup

Posted on November 5, 2022 by philipbrasor

The top-grossing film so far in South Korea this year, Lee Sang-yong’s followup to the 2017 crime thriller The Outlaws does not, as the saying goes, mess with the formula, which in this case focuses on what the producers call … Continue reading →

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Review: Parallel Mothers/The Human Voice

Posted on November 3, 2022 by philipbrasor

Though Pedro Almodovar is rightly lauded for his sense of style and control of visual tone, he doesn’t really get enough credit as a storyteller, probably because many of his films seem to be heavily indebted to older films by … Continue reading →

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Review: Ticket to Paradise

Posted on November 2, 2022 by philipbrasor

There’s a certain species of Hollywood movie that seems designed to please those who work on it more than those who will eventually watch it. I’m not talking about movies where the stars are simply guaranteed huge amounts of money, … Continue reading →

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Review: Recalled

Posted on October 30, 2022 by philipbrasor

An acquaintance who is very much into Korean TV dramas thinks that every single one has to contain either an amnesiac or incest. This twisted mystery sort of has both, but even if you go into it knowing that it’s … Continue reading →

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Review: Songs For Drella

Posted on October 28, 2022 by philipbrasor

The skinny on this concert document is that it was lost shortly after it was recorded and broadcast in 1990 and then found in the director’s attic while Todd Haynes was putting together his Velvet Underground documentary. Lou Reed and … Continue reading →

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Review: The Policeman’s Lineage

Posted on October 27, 2022 by philipbrasor

Ever since Serpico, the idea of a cop betraying colleagues who have broken the law themselves has always been catnip for filmmakers, since the whole premise is fraught with conflicting notions about the meaning of loyalty and integrity. This South … Continue reading →

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Review: Creation Stories

Posted on October 21, 2022 by philipbrasor

I’m too lazy to check, but I’m pretty sure there’s already been at least one documentary made about Creation Records, the incongruously successful indie label that catapulted some of the biggest British acts of the 80s and 90s to world … Continue reading →

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