Category: Reviews: U-W

Filmmaker Astra Taylor reacts to the 2016 election and the debt crisis in Europe by taking us on a cross-continental and 3000-year journey investigating her titular question: What Is Democracy? This film brings in academics as well as ordinary citizens who are at the forefront of activism and social unrest, all weighing in to give… Continue reading Astra Taylor documentary gives picture of what democracy could be

Directed, written and produced by Dyana Winkler and Tina Brown, United Skates is a eye-opening documentary that explores a seemingly cult hobby and its influence both historically and musically. (BV: 4.5/5) Review by Intern Beatrice Viri Opening with factoids about how roller rinks are surprisingly an influential breeding ground for talent, United Skates explores how… Continue reading ‘United Skates’ Shows Historical Influence of a Hobby

In writer Gillian Flynn’s latest film Widows, she tells a story of four widows from very different backgrounds in contemporary Chicago. Widows allows women, and women of ethnic minorities, to take power and control in an almost all male action story. (SYJ: 3/5) Review by FF2 Media Intern Sophia Jin   Based in a modern… Continue reading ‘Widows’ Embrace the Job

In director Abby Epstein’s documentary Weed the People, she brings an already contentious topic to light—should medicinal cannabis be legalized? It’s fascinating how this age-old plant can still create such controversy in the modern day. (SYJ: 4.5/5) Review by FF2 Media Intern Sophia Y. Jin One of the most upsetting images known to man is the… Continue reading ‘Weed the People’ uncovers myths about cannabis

Created by first-time writer and director Elizabeth Chomko, What They Had is a heart-wrenching family drama about the family of a woman with Alzheimer’s. With a raw and emotional storyline portrayed by excellent actors, What they Had is certainly a successful first film for Chomko. (JRL: 4 / 5) ‘What They Had’ is a Masterful Family… Continue reading ‘What They Had’ is a Masterful Family Drama

In Warning Shot, writer Breanne Mattson delivers a script even more poorly done than the shoddy craftsmanship on the production. A plot to steal water rights from a young single mother and her child becomes a hostage situation that devolves into a bizarre series of revelations before an action-packed ending leads to a fake-ironic conclusion.… Continue reading WARNING SHOT (2018): Review by Giorgi Plys-Garzotto

Review of Where Hands Touch by Eliana Levenson While Amma Asante’s desire to tell a story of a group whose struggle is often lost in the atrocities of Nazi Germany isn’t inherently a bad thing, Where Hands Touch delivers an incredibly tone-deaf narrative that fails in almost every way. (EML: 2/5) Review by FF2 Associate… Continue reading In the canon of World War II films, ‘Where Hands Touch’ is one to skip

Directed by Megumi Sasaki, ‘A Whale of a Tale’ follows an American journalist as he explores the traditions and culture of the whaling industry in Taiji, Japan, a town that has become a site for protest and debate due to its whaling,which American activists have deemed inhumane. (JRL: 4/5) ‘A Whale of a Tale’ Explores… Continue reading ‘A Whale of a Tale’ Explores the Controversial Whaling Industry of Taiji, Japan

What Will People Say (written and directed by Iram Haq) beautifully and tragically captures the struggle of a Pakistani family’s attempts to cling to traditional culture while reaching for a better life in Norway. (DLH: 5/5) Review by FF2 Intern Dayna Hagewood What Will People Say begins appropriately tense and fast-paced, as Nisha (Maria Mozhdah) —… Continue reading ‘What Will People Say’ is an excellent depiction of cultural conflict

Writer/director Saila Kariat’s debut feature is a beautifully solemn and informative film about suicide, telling the story of a wealthy Indian American family residing in Silicon Valley as they cope with the loss of their young daughter. (SAT: 5/5)

In this documentary, director Lorna Tucker preserves the integrity of Vivienne Westwood both the person and the brand by telling the story that Westwood herself wants told, keeping the focus on the designer’s artistic and political visions as well as her fierce energy. (RMM: 4.5/5)

Writer Darci Picoult gives us a well plotted but fairly ridiculous film about a financially desperate young woman who cooks up a scheme to keep collecting her dead mother’s pension checks. The ending also fails to deliver a conclusion satisfying enough for the build-up, leaving the viewer wondering why the film is over so abruptly.… Continue reading WHERE IS KYRA? (2017): Review by Giorgi Plys-Garzotto

The debut film from writer and director Ashley McKenzie, Werewolf is the story of “Nessa” (Bhreagh MacNeil) and “Blaise” (Andrew Gillis), who are trying to get through a methadone program and to escape their small town. The film is at many times hard to watch, but its nuanced character development makes it a story worth telling. (AEL: 4.5/5)

Director Jennifer Brea, originally a PhD student at Harvard, becomes the voice of 17 million worldwide silent sufferers in her eye-opening personal documentary about Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, otherwise known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Unrest is a scream for help from those who have been deprived of the much-needed support from doctors and loved ones alike. (KIZJ: 5/5)

In Woodshock, written and directed by Kate and Laura Mulleavy, Theresa deals with the recent death of her ill mother. Her grief has a darker side to it: she helped her mother in suicide using some of the very materials she sells in her day job at a dispensary. Woodshock is a quiet psychological thriller, and it creates more mysteries for us than it resolves. (AEL: 4.5/5)