17 October 2020. With these awfully grey, cold days weighing upon us, and new restrictions due to a spike in Corona cases, I am not in the mood to write…especially about films that are just ok… So forgive the brevity this week. I AM GRETA **1/2 I believe everyone’s heard about Greta Thunberg by now. […]
FILM: NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
9 October 2020. NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS *** If you think these words are about love, you’re sorely mistaken. This film is the short odyssey of a young girl trying to get an abortion. Incisive like an operation, in an ice-cold atmosphere with very little dialogue, the trying story is recounted almost like a documentary. […]
FILM: BILLIE – the tragic life of a jazz legend
FILM: NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS – 9 October 2020 – click here 2 October 2020. BILLIE *** Billie Holiday was a legend in jazz with a unique, plaintive style of singing the blues whose life was both turbulent and tragically short. One could compare her existence to that of the great Edith Piaf of France, […]
FILM: UNDINE – a fine German film
25 September 2020. UNDINE ***1/2 (vo German) It’s excellent that we are finally getting more examples of fine German films in our Suisse Romande theaters, right after the compelling “Schwesterlein” which had two Swiss directors but mainly German actors and settings. This one is a strange and haunting love story by the talented writer/director Christian […]
FILM: THE SECRET GARDEN
18 September 2020. THE SECRET GARDEN ** If you watch this film as an adult you will love or hate it. Love because it will remind you of a wonderful book you read in your childhood. Hate because it is such a departure from that book, which you probably liked a lot, that you somehow […]
FILM: THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD
11 September 2020. THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD ** The classic, semi-autobiographical Charles Dickens’ tale of the hardships, adventures and growth of a young man has been turned here into a series of discombobulated characters that seem to be there to satisfy the director’s sense of egalitarianism. To begin with, the charismatic Dev Patel, […]
FILM – LES PLUS BELLES ANNEES D’UNE VIE – one to cherish
4 September 2020. LES PLUS BELLES ANNEES D’UNE VIE **** (vo French) After last week’s two blockbuster releases full of chaos and viciousness we now have respite in this gentle reverie. But then that’s what director Claude Lelouch is known for – his consistent wonder at things of the heart and his passion for a […]
FILM: UNHINGED – a terribly violent and menacing film
28 August 2020. This week we have two blockbuster releases trying to get the public back to the big screen. The ploy will probably work, to the detriment of audiences. One has a big star, but is an extremely dangerous vehicle for young, influenceable minds – I stress that. The other, though highly hyped, is […]
FILM: THE ROADS NOT TAKEN
14 August 2020. THE ROADS NOT TAKEN **1/2 Sally Potter is quite a director. She started off years ago with short and experimental films but really came into her own in 1992 with the ground-breaking “Orlando”, based on Virginia Woolf’s novel of the same name, about a character who changes sex throughout centuries of history.Potter […]
FILM: Geneva’s offering this week
7 August 2020. Even though there is no exciting new release this week, there is still a lot on offer in the Geneva and surrounding cinemas that are trying to get back on their feet: The one retrospective of classics not to miss is “L’été aux cinémas du Grütli” which started from July 1st and […]
