• Mor Loushy – Censored Voices (2015)

    2011-2020BBCDocumentaryIsraelMor Loushy

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    The 1967 ‘Six-Day’ war ended with Israel’s decisive victory; conquering Jerusalem, Gaza, Sinai and the West Bank. It is a war portrayed, to this day, as a righteous undertaking – a radiant emblem of Jewish pride. One week after the war, a group of young kibbutzniks, led by renowned author Amos Oz, recorded intimate conversations with soldiers returning from the battlefield. The recording revealed an honest look at the moment Israel turned from David to Goliath. The Israeli army censored the recordings, allowing the kibbutzniks to publish only a fragment of the conversations. ‘Censored Voices’ reveals the original recordings for the first time.Read More »

  • Justin Kurzel – Macbeth (2015)

    2011-2020DramaJustin KurzelUnited KingdomWilliam Shakespeare

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    Quote:
    Macbeth is the story of a fearless warrior and inspiring leader brought low by ambition and desire. A thrilling interpretation of the dramatic realities of the times and a reimagining of what wartime must have been like for one of Shakespeare’s most famous and compelling characters, a story of all-consuming passion and ambition set in war torn 11th Century Scotland.Read More »

  • Jeff Nichols – Take Shelter (2011)

    2011-2020DramaJeff NicholsThrillerUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Plagued by a series of apocalyptic visions, a young husband and father questions whether to shelter his family from a coming storm, or from himself.

    Quote:
    From IMDB:

    I’m going to try to be restrained in my praise of this film, but it’s going to be hard, because I think it’s about as close to perfect film-making as I’ve ever seen. I generally only write reviews for movies I’ve really loved, or really hated, and this movie I really loved.Read More »

  • Fabrice Du Welz – Vinyan (2008) (HD)

    2001-2010DramaFabrice Du WelzFranceHorror

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    PLOT SUMMARY
    Unable to accept the the loss of their son in the 2005 Tsunami, Jeanne and Paul Bellmer have remained in Phuket. Desperately clinging to the fact that his body was never recovered, Jeanne has convinced herself that the boy was kidnapped by traffickers in the chaos that followed the catastrophe… Paul is sceptical, but cannot bring himself to shatter his wife’s last hope. The traumatized couple embark on a quest that will plunge them through paranoia and betrayal, ever deeper into an alien universe, a supernatural realm where the dead are never truly dead, and where nightmares, obsession and horrifying reality converge.Read More »

  • Vittorio De Sica – Il tetto aka The Roof (1956)

    1951-1960DramaItalian Neo-RealismItalyVittorio De Sica

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    THE ROOF, largely considered the last masterpiece of Italian Neorealist cinema, dramatizes a single night in the lives of Luisa (Gabriella Palloti) and Natale (Georgio Listuzzi), a strikingly good-looking but destitute pair of newlyweds. The couple shares a small two-room apartment with several relatives. Following a bitter family dispute, Luisa and Natale pack out of this untenable living situation. Luisa turns to a friend for housing, while Natale finds shelter in a toolshed. Realizing that separation is no solution, the couple struggles to build a small shack for themselves in a race against time by a Roman municipal edict, which declares that if the roof is not completed by dawn, it will be torn down by the police. True to writer Cesare Zavattini and director/producer Vittorio De Sica’s previous works (THE BICYCLE THIEF, UMBERTO D.), what risks being lost isn’t just material property, it is the personal dignity of the couple and by extenuation, the dignity of all of mankind. The acting, writing, and directing throughout THE ROOF is superb, creating an honest and touching story centered upon the mutual love and devotion of the young newlyweds.Read More »

  • Franco Piavoli – Poesie in 8mm AKA Poems in 8mm [+Extras] (1954-1964)

    Documentary1951-19601961-1970Franco PiavoliItalyShort Film

    Description
    Poems in 8mm are the early works of Franco Piavoli, digitally restored. Independent short films, captured with a simple Paillard camera, involving no crew and no production. In this collection, one can find Le Stagioni (The Seasons), precursor to Il Pianeta Azzurro (The Blue Planet), Emigranti (Emigrants), a short on immigration in Milan during the Sixties, Domenica Sera (Sunday Evening), and the experimental Evasi (Convicts). These titles, up to this point unavailable to the public in an edition that respects the original state of the film. This also goes for the Piavoli’s first work, Ambulatorio (Surgery), described by the director as mere playing around with the camera. Without music and words, it is nonetheless revealing of an artistic sensibility that would soon show itself in full splendour.Read More »

  • Jocelyn Saab – Kanya Ya Ma Kan, Beyrouth AKA Once Upon a Time in Beirut (1995)

    Arthouse1991-2000ExperimentalJocelyn SaabLebanon

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    “This reflexive voyage into a celluloid Beirut becomes the key to finding out to which Beirut one is returning, and to point to the new Beirut one wishes for the future.” – Ella Shohat and Robert Stam, Cineaste

    Distraught over Beirut’s destruction, Yasmine and Leila embark on a journey in search of its past. Their possession of two rare, unreleased film reels lands them an encounter with Monsieur Farouk, a reclusive film connoisseur.

    Through the magic of cinema, the three of them go back in time on a mythical and history-laden tour of the city. Here the movie shines with images of Beirut from the large-scale American studio efforts of the 1970’s to the Beirut of the 1960’s as seen through the lenses of Arab filmmakers, to the French-directed films of the 1930s. Once Upon a Time: Beirut offers an enchanting look at one of the Middle East’s most complex and beautiful cities.Read More »

  • Akira Kurosawa – Kakushi-toride no san-akunin AKA The Hidden Fortress (1958)

    1951-1960AdventureAkira KurosawaDramaJapan

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Quote:
    Lured by gold, two greedy peasants escort a man and woman across enemy lines, not realising that their companions are actually a princess and her general.Read More »

  • Steve Oram – Aaaaaaaah! (2015)

    2011-2020ArthouseCultSteve OramUnited Kingdom

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Quote:
    Ever imagined what life would be like if humans were apes in modern life? That is the portrayal in this deeply thought provoking mind boggle.Read More »

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