My Favourite Films of 2022

There are two sections: New in 2022 (new releases, festival films, etc) Older films discovered for the first time Films are listed alphabetically within each section. 1. New in 2022 (new releases, festival films, etc) Aftersun [Charlotte Wells, 2022, UK, US] Incredibly impressive: subtle, atmospheric, immersive. One of the stand-out films of the year. A …

My Favourite Films of 2020

In this strange and frightening year, the importance of art and the sharing of the experience of art has become even more significant. So, although my cinema viewing has plummeted, watching films however I can and meeting people virtually to talk about them, has been both nourishment for the mind and a way of maintaining …

My Favourite Films of 2016

I have a love/hate relationship with top film lists. Of course, their contents are dependent on the films actually seen, contingent on mood and atmosphere when seen, influenced by how others reacted, and much more. Yet, they hold an irresistible fascination, and often provide a useful opportunity to spot films which I need to check out, or …

Girl on Girl: Reel Women, Taking Over The Cambridge Film Scene

This gives an excellent overview of the work done by local co-operative Reel Women. They represent what is so inspirational about a quiet revolution taking place in cinema exhibition: where people passionate about a greater diversity in film are coming together and introducing audiences to a rich and rewarding culture that can be so easily …

Mania Akbari and some special Cambridge screenings

There is a scene in the film ONE.TWO.ONE which is so brilliant in its conception and execution that it takes my breath away. I wish that every film student would carefully examine its construction and try to understand how an apparently simple static camera shot can be so richly textured, so simple yet full of elegance and poetry. Mark Cousins …

Stories, empathy and THE PEARL BUTTON [Patricio Guzman, 2015]

The poetry of Patrico Guzman's latest cinematic essay - THE PEARL BUTTON - reminds me of Grant Gee's superb film PATIENCE (AFTER SEBALD), itself about W.G. Sebald's book THE RINGS OF SATURN. The film retraces a walk through Suffolk taken by the book's author, and mirrors the discursive nature of the narrative in its own approach to the …

A few observations on Ozu’s ‘Late Spring’…

The more I watch the exquisitely crafted, understated, finely balanced films of Yasujiro Ozu, the more enchanted I become. Mark Cousins recently hosted a live messaging session on Twitter as Film 4 screened Ozu's 1949 classic LATE SPRING. I unfortunately missed it, but managed to capture the chain of tweets here. Reading all the comments …

Sleep Furiously and the Cambridge Film Festival…

In my last post I mentioned the fast approaching Cambridge Film Festival, one of the highlights of my year. Among the many reasons I love the festival so much is that it affords the opportunity for discovering some real cinematic gems. I can still vividly remember being mesmerised by Guy Maddin's DRACULA: PAGES FROM A …

Shohei Imamura’s THE INSECT WOMAN

I became interested in Japanese director Shohei Imamura's THE INSECT WOMAN after hearing or reading Mark Cousins talking about it. It is now out on Blu-ray, and is quite extraordinary - provocative, perplexing, and beautiful. Here is Cousins talking about it in Capital Celluloid:- The Insect Woman, by Imamura Shohei, isn't all that well known, …

…some thoughts on Las Acacias…

I saw this film in the cinema at the end of last year; it's now out on DVD. A second viewing has confirmed first impressions: Las Acacias is a perfectly formed, subtle, moving, and heartwarming little gem. Philip French doesn't agree; he flatly dismisses the film in his short Guardian review:- In this widely praised …