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BLUE ORCHIDS

Watchable. Secondary to "Shadow World" by the same director, uses footage from that film too. A lying arms dealer and a war veteran tell basically the same: the only reason to stop wars is to stop arms trade. "If politicians don't bend to our will, we destroy them" says the weapons trader. 

2.0

Watchable. A sequel to "Enthiran" which I've never seen but it did not impair my watching since the plot and the referrals are lucid. The superhero flick is based on an idea unlike any science fiction before. The beginning, for nearly an hour is mind-blowing: the mystery, tongue-in-cheek sequences, some scenes bring connotations with Shyamalan and Cronenberg, it doesn't stop to surprise. Once Chitti is activated though, it all goes the usual superhero combat route with plenty of references to "Iron Man", "I, Robot", "Birdman", "Terminator 3", "Transformers", "Ant-Man", "Superman" as well as Garuda - the mythical giant bird shaping form. The music is Western-style by renowned Indian composer A. R. Rahman. While it's good fun with superhero tropes, the movie has some flaws, especially in some scene editing, the main idea based on an implausible concept and, since it's Bollywood, a lack of a hit song. There's an additional scene towards the end of the final credits, after the song.

ROMA

Watchable. Alfonso Cuarón boring as usual and with random references to his earlier "Gravity" which don't add gravitas. When you finally get to the point where the mundane tale, seemingly about daily life in 1970 Mexico, gains deeper sense it's nothing you wouldn't have seen in other films from the recent Oscars shortlist. The main message is that when men play - whether 'love' or 'war' - it's women and children who suffer. They lose means to live, get threatened with violence (the same show the boy puts on to seduce Cleo is one he uses to threaten her later) or simply have their hearts broken. Shot on a 70mm tape like in the old times which doesn't affect its artistic value either way.

SKJELVET (THE QUAKE)

Recommended. It's slow, with atmospheric electronic music and awe-inspiring panoramas of Norwegian fjords and Oslo. Convincing cinematography and CGIs. Very realistic in the plot too: from the initial disregard for danger, through the destruction, dust and an aftershock. A swiftly built story with character background, e.g. the geologist's hand trembled nervously whenever he thought of a quake but stopped shaking when the quake started. And when it started my own palms got sweaty. This quake gave me shivers. The final info of Norway being a region very active seismically magnifies the realism.

AUTSAJDER

Watchable. Meticulously recreated communist Poland: decorations, costumes, hair styling, make-up, music, well researched also in terms of imprisonment at the time. The story's engaging, clear-cut, linear. Just with no depth.

FAHRENHEIT 11/9

Recommended. Hard-hitting, meant to be - a phone call to the police: "We have protesters..." "Do you see any weapons?" "Michael Moore is here." On the one hand a requiem to American democracy, on the other hope in the young, females and people of colour. Trump gropes his own daughter and gives interviews to sexual predators working for TV. Governor of Michigan carries out an ethnic cleansing poisoning drinking water and conducting army manoevres in Flint. Democrats' internal elections are rigged (Bernie Sanders won in all 55 counties) to keep the establishment in power. All these disturbing facts are served with Michael Moore's usual wit. Includes music from "Omen" and Mozart's "Requiem".


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HRANICE PRACE (THE LIMITS OF WORK)

Recommended. Of all the presented low-end jobs I would have considered only a supermarket checkout one. Yet, after the film, I'm aware it's exhausting too. Other jobs involved such putrid smells and revolting pictures as decomposing rats with maggots or decaying meat. Put labour code violations on top. The workers are so knackered and often ill, apart from being scared they'll lose the jobs, they don't protest. Gripping like a thriller. And an eye-opener too.

REASON

Watchable. Too much information creates chaos, it needn't last 4 hours. But with colourful Indian festivities and beautiful songs, on top of an ordinary documentary, it explains all religions create inequalities. Inequality is their sense, they couldn't exist without it. More people were killed by religious fanatics than died in two world wars. Another interesting fact is how the Mumbai terror attack was conducted: terrorists' accomplices watched the action on TV and directed the criminals inside the building. 


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STYX

Recommended. A very emotional tug-of-war between a doctor who wants to save refugees and the people who are supposed to help them and simultaneously between her and the one boy she's rescued. 

DRUGA STRANA SVEGA (THE OTHER SIDE OF EVERYTHING)

Walked out. The documentary is about nothing in particular.


FRAGMENTS OF ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL AT IMAX 3D

Watchable. "Jim" Cameron, as he introduced himself, greeted viewers from the screen apologizing he couldn't be there in person because of his work on "Avatar 2". The trailer and movie excerpts disappointed me with a run-of-the-mill plot. On the other hand, what impressed me the most was the close-up on Alita waking-up: her eye irises exhibited a human range of colours, her lips, skin and hair all had proper texture. Even emotions on her face looked human, consisting of microexpressions. Only the unnaturally big eyes indicated she was an anime character. I also liked acrobatic combat scenes - inspiring for martial arts trainees. The rest doesn't stand out: neither the city nor its surroundings. The 3D is hardly noticeable and for many scenes Imax was just too big. Backgrounds are barely drawn up.

SNEZHNAYA KOROLEVA: ZAZERKALE (THE SNOW QUEEN: MIRRORLANDS)

Watchable. Better than part 3, though a bit of fire and ice still appears. Strong females. Chaos in the plot. Russian inspirations in clothing and characters e.g. a shaman. Trolls look like toys. Truly surround sound with quality sound effects.

BUMBLEBEE

Watchable. Derivative but meant for teenagers who haven't seen it all before. The 80s didn't quite look like in the movie for what I remember but people did watch "Alf" on telly and did do karate. The score is modern, very 21st century at times which clashes with the 80s hits more appropriately selected for the soundtrack. Both are good in their own right but not combined. I enjoyed the communication through song lyrics. The modern approach which pleased me was that the most decisive characters are female. And I don't mean only humans. The best thing about this production though is John Cena as the trigger-happy military snapping out his lines. Shame the film doesn't make much use of the stunning landscapes presented in the beginning. I'm fed up with all the Transformers' fights. 

AQUAMAN AT IMAX 3D

Recommended. A rich plot, marvellous CGIs, locations, costumes, splendid music, especially the electro theme. There's Aquaman of 4 different ages each played spotlessly by different actors. His arch enemy's quite pleasing to the eye. The plot draws on tropes from "Harry Potter", "Avatar", "Star Wars", "Jurassic World" but does so gently, creating a brand new story which refers the viewer to the legend of Atlantis, which is depicted the way ancients described it, and to the environmental disasters of our time. It's touching when it needs to and playful at other times. I laughed out loud at: "So there's a book?! (...) I took it from the movie."The visuals make full use of the water environment presenting Atlantians riding on seahorses, sharks, killer whales and an underwater world inhabited by a variety of creatures. When you think they can't have created another fantastic realm, the action brings you to the next one. There's a mid-credit scene, possibly a trailer of an upcoming picture, but no post-credit. Best admired on the huge Imax screen or in Dolby Atmos for enhanced sound.

WHY ARE WE CREATIVE? THE CENTIPEDE'S DILEMMA 

Watchable. Nobuyoshi Araki and Russ Meyer are driven by sex. The Japanese photographer of erotic pictures does it for an erection, he says he always gets it taking one. Others because they feel an unstoppable desire to create, are afraid to die therefore leave a legacy or simply feel exceptionally gifted. Plenty of opinions are expressed but they bring no conclusion so the film never ends. What's more interesting is how all those dozens of famous people come across in a conversation.

PAJAROS DE VERANO (BIRDS OF PASSAGE)

Watchable. Heavy. Drug business from the point of view of traditional Indian communities in Northern Columbia. The film's full of references to local customs, songs and traditions. It claims to condemn greed, yet what I see in it is the culture of violence. The violence grows  with the number and size of guns. The picture perfectly presents the increase in wealth of the drug dealing clans: from a rented donkey ride to own lorries and planes. On another level it depicts the hardships of living in such a traditional, formal community where all norms must be met. The elaborative, traditional way of telling the story makes it a bit too distant emotionally to the viewer. Just a dry, dispassionate chronicle.

OVERLORD

Watchable. An extremely brutal horror inspired by Nazi experiments on people. Pumps your adrenaline. Zombies aren't my thing but this picture has a plot. Shot on the Hatfield House Estate. Very good music and sound effects.

ZABAWA ZABAWA (PLAYING HARD)

Recommended. Shocking at times, especially the car accident, which is like none before, or the rape, but with dry humour in all police scenes. The main topic is one not tackled elsewhere: alcoholism of women from the higher levels of the society. The plot keeps you in suspense and the characters evoke sympathy, not contempt. Kinga Dębska has created another great.

TODOS LO SABEN (EVERYBODY KNOWS)

Watchable. Asghar Farhadi is getting more and more boring with each movie. This one, additionally, looks like a remake of Russian "Tesnota" ("Closeness"). Here at least the Spanish atmosphere of fun works well for the first part, till the wedding, but the kidnapping only serves revealing a secret and dismantling the family and that part drags and lacks any potential tension. Even the secret is a fake since "todos lo saben" ("everybody knows"). Very realistically made.

SECOND ACT

Watchable. A cheerful comedy drama meant for the lower class to feel better about themselves. With a few hilarious gags like an inept translation into Chinese or doves released in the air for a wow factor which get killed by a truck evoking: "wow!". At the same time gets you thinking how much people can achieve if only given a chance. The drama bits are tear-jerkers but with a happy ending convincing you everyone has got a second act in life. Stylistically it's a typical corporate world.

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: A MONSTER VACATION

Recommended in English/watchable in Polish. Werewolves play fetch with each other, a dragon's numerous heads play ball in water, witches hit on a vampire, an octopus dances the Macarena, in other words: "scary" monsters are on holiday - by Gremlin Air to the Bermuda Triangle. The tale is straightforward but rich in details of the characters, costumes, scenography (if I can say so in relation to animation). It's playful so you can hear a lot of fun music: from classical like Wagner and old school like Wayne Newton, through techno by DJ Tiësto to pop songs by Los del Rio, Enya, Beach Boys etc. In the Polish version 2 songs are in this language which detracts from the pleasure since Polish sounds really bad in music.

SERGIO & SERGUEI

Watchable. Excellent cinematography, including mesmerising views of space but also making use of varying light in all the urban, home and office shots. The story's fictitious, pleasant, ironic but quite ordinary even taken the unusual setting of communication between a radio amateur and an astronaut.

ZERO

Recommended. A true Bollywood blockbuster. I've heard money's no object in Bollywood production and this movie proves it with its splendour, colour, great music, a full-blown scale - shot in Dubai and Orlando among others. Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif act and dance. Salman Khan appears as a dance competition juror, the role he really had on the Dance India Dance show a couple of years ago. A few female stars make cameos too. The movie starts fun, is gripping throughout and the last half an hour just blows you away. Initially it resembles recent French comedies: "Un homme à la hauteur" ("Up for Love") and "Tout le monde debout" ("Rolling to You") since one of the lovebirds is a dwarf with a fortune and the other quadriplegic - the one bound to the wheelchair is an astrophysicist. But with dancing, changes of sets several times in one film, rich costumes and decorations it soon diverts from any Western associations. Later it becomes quite moving. The serious undertones cover: our attitudes to the handicapped, their ideas of themselves, celebrities playing the media to their advantage, using someone for sex, unfaithfulness, education gap and, last but not least, life's changing fortunes and making yourself. But most importantly the twists in the plot are like only Indians do them: genre boundaries are blurred, the plot far-fetched but utterly convincing. Nails you to the seat. With a few catchy songs also over end credits.

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OF FATHERS AND SONS

Watchable. A glimpse inside an al-Nusra Front training camp and jihadists' minds: a 2-year-old without a hijab deserves to be killed, wives should be many to breed new militants, animals are good only for beheading and eating. No background info on the protagonist, his family and locals. You learn that al-Nusra Front militants are trained from childhood and that they're planning a 3rd world war. It's strange to feel relief when you hear at the end that one of the child protagonists was killed. 

In the meeting the director explainted why he included the jihadi children reading stories about aliens in the film - tales of aliens are against Islam.

A MOTHER BRINGS HER SON TO BE SHOT VOD

Watchable. Just for the informative value since I honestly thought the Troubles in Northern Ireland were well over. From the documentary I learnt of the specific system of (in)justice originating from the distrust of the Irish towards the British law enforcement. The system is both honest in the sense it meets people's requirement of justice effected against e.g. drug dealers but corrupt at the same time as it's the IRA mafia executing people and peddling drugs themselves. Still, the film focuses on one family too much and they are working class people so not so interesting. 

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KLATWA OBFITOSCI (THE CURSE OF ABUNDANCE)

Recommended. Admirable determination and courage in protecting the Yasuni's land from oil exploitation.. The world would use up their oil reserves in just a fortnight and the nature, including 10-15% of the world's endemic species, would be lost forever.

EL ANGEL (THE ANGEL)

Recommended. Lorenzo Ferro is a revelation of Argentinian cinema as the angelic, baby-faced blondie with curly hair committing outrageous crimes. Director Luis Ortega has created a legend comparable to "Bonnie and Clyde". Western song "The House of the Rising Sun" in its Hispanic version "La casa del sol naciente" by Argentinian Palito Ortega accompanies a car burning. Dancing plays a role too. And looks marvellous - Lorenzo Ferro is a versatile talent. 


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BOYS WHO LIKE GIRLS

Watchable. Does a good job of proving that education aimed at boys of 13-17 teaching them respect for girls works and of presenting how women's rights organizations address women instead of the men who may rape them. But no breakthrough results or statistics or in-depth conversations on why there are no programs addressing men, even in Europe.

THE TRUTH ABOUT KILLER ROBOTS

Recommended. OMG! They're going to replace us. And I don't mean just work but also lovers which (not who) will be more beautiful and compatible and appreciative than a human can be. Scary.

In the subsequent debate on robots, including driverless cars, I learnt some curious facts from round the world. In Africa the main cause of death are road accidents, not malaria. During 8-hour transatlantic flights human pilots work for only a couple of minutes twice: taking off and landing. MIT has conducted an experiment in which people had to consider several situations and decide who should be killed by a driverless car if it had to choose. 2/3 wanted it to kill the elderly. The Korean border is watched by a camera with a mike and a gun. It distinguishes between North Korean soldiers and fugitives. The latter hear: "we are here to help you". It's allowed to shoot too.

OUR NEW PRESIDENT VOD

Watchable. I made use of the VOD access to a few of the festival films this year. This one is bizarre both in its grotesque form and in the message it conveys: the author claims Russian propaganda was behind Trump's election victory. At least Russians fell for it. Incredible how easily distorted images and absurdly fake news were taken in by the public.


THE FAVOURITE

Recommended. Marvellous. Lavish costumes and interiors (shot at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire), posh accent, music by Henry Purcell, Schumann, Schubert, Bach, Vivaldi etc. and a gripping intrigue at a royal court. Metaphorically, a parable about power.

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ERASE AND FORGET

Watchable. Jim Bo Gritz comes across as a down to earth guy. He's fought in a few wars, killed roughly 400 people but opposes excessive militarisation as well as any violations of personal freedoms and equality. I'm impressed by his personality. Fascinating how his life affected movies and the other way round. It was unsettling to learn the original ending of "Rambo: First Blood", eventually rejected by test audience, was one in which he gets killed - on his own request. In reality many of Bo Gritz's mates committed suicide on return. I only didn't have enough knowledge of wars of the time to fully understand the film.

BEHIND THE CURVE

Recommended. It's funny, especially when an astronaut talks about how he heard of Flat Earthers when he was just back from space: "I can't believe I'm even talking about it." Who are they? People with insufficient knowledge and a penchant for research, who came across the theory out of boredom, who feel outcasts and are happy to be in a club and who believe in lots of conspiration theories. Funny and dangerous they are - they spread fake news which undermine belief in science as such. Their ill-informed decisions affect everyone since they have a right to vote and make all other decisions in public life. Luckily from the documentary it's clear it's Flat Earthers who make money spreading the false theory. And they can't prove their theory themselves nor can they point who's behind the alleged conspiracy.

CESKY ALLAH (CZECH ALLAH)

Walked out. Mostly obscure Czech politicians discussing statutes. Little about Muslims.


CINDERELLA AND THE SECRET PRINCE

Watchable. It's very warm. Delightful animation with picture-perfect colours. Grass blades and water in the river look like real. The mice are drolly, endearing and funny, especially when they are trying to stay quiet around the cat. Brilliant dialogues, e.g. the prince to Cinderella while dancing: "Where do you come from?" "Ah, a wizardess has sent me." or the mice: "So we're expected to help them? I somehow can't see it happen". The only problem is that the altered fairy tale is a bit confusing. Additionally, in Poland the movie's dubbed including the song. 


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THE JUDGE

Recommended. Very comprehensible even for non-Muslims. Sunny Palestine boasts the enlightened and egalitarian Hanafi school of thought which allows women to be judges in Shari'a courts - the courts dealing with family law. The film shows how badly needed women judges are in a country where some men overtly say they're "against full equality of women" and where male judges try to "fix the woman and send her back to her husband". The protagonist starts with one year under a liberal Chief Justice. Then he gets retired in favour of a corrupt one and I felt chills down my spine as she stopped getting cases. Then she impressed me when she started a petition to remove the corrupt Chief Justice and she won. She's very headstrong and law-abiding. I keep my fingers crossed for her to become Chief Justice herself like she wants to "maybe in 10 years". Inspiring.

THE DEAL

Watchable. While I'm impressed with the number of people of good will helping refugees, it's still not clear to me why the EU-Turkey deal is not working or how it could be implemented efficiently. The most unsettling question is: what's happening to the hundreds of millions poured into the crisis? The money never reaches those who need aid. But the film only mentions the money is there somewhere as if to be used.

THE DEMINER

Watchable. A glimpse inside an al-Nusra Front training camp and jihadists' minds: a two-year-old without a hijab deserves to be killed, wives should be many to breed new militants, animals are good only for beheading and eating. No background info.

In the meeting with the director I learnt that the tales of aliens the children read are, in fact, against Islam. I inquired about the organization funding. It turns out locals bankroll them.

NORM OF THE NORTH 2

Watchable. All the animals have teddy bear-like fur and soft looks. The tale is totally suitable for kids, with nothing above their age. It has good lines, e.g. a rich rabbit: "I've paved my terrace with slabs of gold. My bed is so big I haven't seen all of it yet." The plot is clear and goes smoothly from one event to the next. Only the ice and snow could look better.


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WELCOME TO SODOM

Recommended. The guys collecting scrap metal outside Accra not only recycle stuff from Europe but are mind-blowingly talented both technically and musically and are wonderfully muscled. They're Ghanaians. They work incredibly hard for peanuts in an environment whose toxicity they aren't even aware of. Had they been born in Europe they'd be hip-hop artists, dancers or would get education. Still they hope and are kind of happy there. The documentary features the best hip-hop ever.


KEDARNATH

Watchable. One of those Bollywood films where the genre changes within the movie. Starts as a colourful romantic comedy and ends in a large-scale natural disaster. Features stunning views of a pilgrimage trail in a verdant, mountainous area. Abhishek Kapoor stands out as the male lead. The initial part is very Indian, some behaviours weren't comprehensible to me. The catastrophic part astonishes changing the movie atmoshpere. It's dark, chaotic and... cheesy at times. Amit Trivedi's song "Namo Namo Shankara" catches your ear and is best heard at the cinema, doesn't have the same impact on a laptop.


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THE BROKEN COUNTRY

Watchable. At first sight it's a beautiful country with neat edifices, wide avenues showing prosperity, stunning landscapes, verdant backdrops. However it's marred by violence of the ruling right against protesters, heart-breakingly mostly 15-24 year old. The division of the society serves only gaining power for a few, as we hear. Scary how the ruling party supporters go into denial regarding deaths and violence against the opposition members. Unfortunately the film is hardly comprehensible to an outsider with no knowledge of Venezuelan politics.


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A NIGHT AT THE GARDEN

Watchable. On the one hand a picture of blatant ignorance where on the 20th February 1939 a Nazi rally is held in the US while Hitler is building the 6th concentration camp in Germany. On the other I'm happy it was just an incident in the US - the country never ended up like part of Europe.

THE ATOMIC SOLDIERS

Recommended. They were treated as life guinea pigs. Some have lived even if scarred. They could see their bones and veins and the spine of the soldier ahead. Yet the bomb was colourful, they found it stunning and talk about it like of a fireworks display.

SOME JOY IN THIS STRUGGLE

Watchable. Quality singing rewards the boredom of philosophising on voice emission and unemployment. It's French of course.

PERSONAL TRUTH

Watchable. Chaotic and with too much commentary on everything whether it matters or not. At least it shows how easy it is to manipulate people into action based on fake news.

ANUBUMIN

Recommended. Shocking. Pure cruelty. A detention (?!) centre for refugees on Nauru sounds and looks like created by perverted sadists to abuse women sexually and destroy Muslim refugees mentally. Australia's dirty secret finally comes to light.

FUGA (FUGUE)

Watchable. Gosh, does it drag! I expected a thriller with the woman discovering a sinister secret behind her accident and memory loss. Anything but. She just got cold feet and the whole situation had to do with the couple unsure if they are fit to be parents once the baby came to this world. Once you know that, there's no reason to watch this prolonged rubbish with needless nudity, ugly in that. I loved the music anthem though: "Lovers are Strangers" by Michelle Gurevich and some other pop, e.g. by Yazoo

THE POSSESSION OF HANNAH GRACE

Watchable. It's not scary. Starts tacky but shortly turns into an engaging, clear-cut and well-paced horror drama which isn't overloaded in any way. Shay Mitchell is superb as the headstrong morgue worker Megan. The story doesn't get a complete closure but there's no mid- or post-credit so probably no sequel is planned as yet. The possession is explained as a result of depression. Knowing that Catholics believe in possessions happening for real and what priests really do to young women during such rituals, I'm concerned they might start treating depression as a sign of demonic presence.

It feels funny when a staff member dives between seats to clean after a horror.

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AFRIN: ZDRADZIL NAS SWIAT (AFRIN: THE WORLD BETRAYED US)

Watchable. Shows how strong the Kurdish militants are but doesn't explain what is going on in the region.

I learnt more from the makers in the meeting after the screening. Apparently ISIS has 31000 militants in Iraq and Syria, 4000 in Lebanon and 4000 in Afghanistan. They're supported by Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The Free Syrian Army is bankrolled by the US and Western Europe, e.g. Germany. Assad's regime in turn is financed by Iran and Russia. Turkey talks to Iran and Russia in order to control the region. In the depicted events in Afrin people were injured from debris, not shots, chaos ruled, no one knew what was happening.

This film is available free on VOD till the end of 2018.

I loved the Q&A formula at this festival with everyone able to ask questions any time, without waiting for the official presenter to finish theirs. There was a decent gender ratio of presenters and experts too. Actually the presenters were all experts themselves too.


RAMEN TEH (RAMEN SHOP)

Recommended. A beautiful story of reconciliation between nations. Cute lead actor 斎藤工 (Takumi Saito). The food in the film is heavy on meat, fish and seafood and I'm vegetarian but the mawkish tale of the search of one's origins through cuisine appeals to me in spite of that.

SE ROKH (2 FACES)

Watchable. The beginning is overtalked. But later, when countryside superstitions come to fore and you realise that to locals foreskin is more important than a girl's career in terms of ensuring life success, it becomes exotic and intriguing.



W WEGIERSKIM OBIEKTYWIE (IN HUNGARIAN CAMERA LENS)

A SATAN FATTYA (SATAN'S BASTARD)

Watchable. A bit too slow, allowing to drift away at times. Fantastic cinematography paints the film like old photographs: rusty black and white dominates the palette, faces are slightly pink, flowers and apples are dashes of bright red. Music magnifies the artistic impact and the story engages.


MORTAL ENGINES

Watchable. Steampunk treated literally. There's steam and there are punks. Starts with a succinct intro about the ancients who destroyed the world. Then comes action-packed chaos. 1000 years from now - we are "the ancients" - the surface of our planet is broken up in pieces unstable tectonically so people live in mobile cities with the political opposition inhabiting the creviced surface. The downtrodden ones drink mud and eat off the gutter. Slave trade is rife. London is a crowded city on wheels which has retained "ancient" site names hence Tottenham Court Road Station or St. Paul's Energy. It exhibits Minions as "ancient American gods" in the museum. One of protagonists' mother's name's Pandora and Airhaven looks like a floating mountain from "Avatar". The resurrected resembles a terminator and the mobile cities are similar to transformers. A lethal device is called "Cat's Cradle" like Kurt Vonnegut's book satirizing arms race. Shoddy scenography. Everything does look rusty and flimsy though.

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SHADOW WORLD

Recommended. Shattering. Plenty of disturbing facts are presented. Politicians instigate wars and arm those they're fighting. Osama bin Laden's bunker was built by the CIA: "Of course they knew where he was, they built it!" Barrack Obama, Hilary Clinton, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Margaret Thatcher whose son received 12 million pounds, Thabo Mbeki from the ANC, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld all made money war-mongering, waging wars and making deals with weapons manufacturers. Politicians had plans for starting wars in 7 countries over 5 years. Saudis bankroll ISIS. "Business is always about sex and money", like an arms dealer says. Prostitutes are used to extract information.

In the subsequent meeting with Andrew Feinstein, author on books on weapons trade who contributed to the film, another handful of facts were discussed. "Hollywood's depiction of war and arms trade is heroic." In reality after 9/11 out of the 7 countries with planned wars only Iran is left. Andrew Feinstein found an arms dealer on Facebook. He "never has done anything for nothing in his whole life" but after a while started talking to the author. "People speak to you for different reasons at different times." Andrew Feinstein trained as a clinical psychologist and this knowldedge led him to believe several people in this trade were "sociopaths, they believe it's for good." Another motivation is for people within the army. Military people have been in that for several years so they believe in war and armaments, "they think others don't get it". Putin gets a cut of arms deals. Also Tony Blair and Theresa May's husband. "The City of London is the money laundering capital of the world." The team spend months of veryfying every interviewee for the book and for the film to ensure credibility. The Open Society first bankrolled this research, then came royalties from the books, some other philanthropic foundations have funded it too. They also train organizations and journalists how to investigate fraud. British press has no investigative budgets so they do the work for newspapers or alternative media which just publish it. As far as safety is concerned, it's whistleblowers who are at real risk because they are the sources. In the UK two men, one of them a pastor, broke into a BAE factory and damaged equipment. The judge ruled that they had committed a minor crime to prevent a bigger crime. Andrew Feinstein quoted cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead: "History is always changed by thoughtful individuals working together." As the South African noticed, nobody had predicted the revolutionary change in South Africa 5 years before it. What happened was the society became ungovernable in order to bring down the system. 

This film is available free on VOD till the end of 2018.

BOHU ZEL (GOD FORSAKEN)

Watchable. Daily lives of refugees in the Czech Republic. Very nice people but nothing new on the topic. The few protagonists' stories are shown in pieces interchangeably and their names are not signed so it's easy to confuse them. The great music over the end credits turns out to be the Czech anthem.

This film is available free on VOD till the end of 2018.

WHEN LAMBS BECOME LIONS

Watchable. An engaging documentary which, through a story of two cousings: a poacher and a ranger depicts the issue of ivory trade extensively. Still, it doesn't explain why exactly some poachers turn rangers like both men have.

SILAS

Recommended. A ground-breaking documentary revealing the extent of corruption in Liberia, where president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's family both took bribes for letting an international palm company log a primeval forest and embezzled further millions it received to combat the Ebola epidemic. Instead all hospitals and clinics were closed, thousands of people died and the land of the deceased was sold to the palm oil manufacturers. The eponymous activist stopped the company expansion, the president lost power but Silas wasn't elected for the parliament. Hilary Clinton, Barrack Obama, Angela Merkel had praised the corrupt president for allegedly developing her country. An eye-opener. Silas Siakor is going to rerun in Liberian parliamentary elections in 2023. I made a note of it in my calender to check on it.

BLUE HEART

Watchable. 3000 dams are planned to be built in the Balkans which is going to destroy the rivers and surrounding forests to be used as supply roads. That includes the only still-wild river in Europe. Locals protest. The World Bank finally withdrew but the government still looks for financing. The film is too artistic looking, too sentimental instead of politically hard-hitting. The music titles are all connected to river, nature and dams. It was composed specifically for the film.

In the meeting with a Balkan activist I learnt about his ideas: since 32% of energy is lost in transmission, rooftop panels and decentralisation would solve the problem. 10% of roofs with solar panels could eliminated the need to build even 1 dam. The Albanian and Macedonian waters are badly polluted with plastic but that's because villages have no trash containers.

SILACZKI (WOMEN POWER)

Recommended. Damn it, was I ignorant! I took my education for granted. The same with voting rights, walking streets alone and travelling on my own. Or the right to be paid the same as men (women and children used to get 1/2 or even 1/4 of men's pay a century ago).
Niepodlegla (Independent) program and PISF (Polish Film Institute) under new management refused to support the production financially. Probably because women's protests feature heavily in the film. Enactments of demonstrations from more than 100 years ago mix with black marches from 2017 so it's hard to distinguish which is which. The solidarity slogan is used which must be the director's tongue-in-cheek reference to her previous film "Solidarność według kobiet" ("Solidarity according to women"). A curious fact from the documentary is that Polish school textbook stalwart Maria Konopnicka lived with a woman (as partners) for some time.

THE HATE U GIVE


Recommended. It analyzes predjudice at all angles and disassembles the mechanisms behind US black ghetto violence, depicts cultural differences between blacks and whites, clarifies our perceptions of the two races, highlights how blacks find themselves between a rock and a hard place fearing both the police and the local gang. It does an amazing job of explaining the pitfalls of ending up dealing drugs. An extended patchwork family showcases these aspects of black lives. The story's heartfelt so I was crying most of the time.

ETER (ETHER)

Walked out. Not only does it drag, the plot is a figment of someone's sick imagination since the protagonist conducts medical experiments on unwilling patients.


HUMAN DOC FILM FESTIVAL 

ALEPPO'S FALL

Watchable. Overtalked but explains how the lack of the vision of the future brought on the fall of the Free Syrian Army fighting against Assad's regime in Aleppo. Shot by a Syrian living in Norway who returned to find out how the Arab Spring turned into Fall.

THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED

Watchable. I'm in two minds about it. On the one hand, as a non-Muslim I'm happy all Muslim activists in the US are under surveillance. On the other, it looks like dumping public money in something which doesn't reveal any significant crimes. It struck me how well-off and supportive of each other the Bridgewater community is. It's a sprawling middle-class area of neat houses and educated people, women in particular. They have learnt to act likeable so as not to be seen as a terror threat. That includes: never argue with your family in public. The nearby US only panopticon prison appears to work as well. Still, the film on the watched community is just like its maker i.e. nice, without a bite. 

ON HER SHOULDERS

Watchable. Nadia Murad Basee Taha's story is not really told which makes this documentary frustrating to watch. But it shows something else very well: her tears stand in disparity with the hair-styling, fine dining and photo shoots. She spent 2 years campaigning for Yazidi rights and aid for refugees starving in camps. Instead she was made into a celebrity.

JANKA


Recommended. It's easy to understand why it's her who created Polska Akcja Humanitarna (Polish Humanitarian Action). Firstly, in result of polio, she's been severely crippled all her life. She actually grew up in a special school where everyone was like her. She had a hump, a leg paralysis and even spent 8 months under iron lungs. Curiously she was also either psychologically abused or maybe even beaten by nuns. She learnt early on how to cope with adversities in life. Also the sight of handicapped people was her natural environment. The film uses Janina Ochojska's own commentary to archive footage and animation. Makes impression.

WILDLIFE

Recommended. 1960 in a little town in Montana with its old charm of simple life. A 14-year-old is watching his parents grow apart and his 34-year-old mum flirting with a fat man of around 50. It shows all the awkwardness when a parent does that to a child. Truly moving. Well paced. Its beauty lies in its simplicity. Magnificently acted by everyone.

ROBIN HOOD

Watchable. A postmodern take on the famous story. Robin hangs hoods all over the town the way Batman graffitti appears all over Gotham. Women and Arabs are equal partners to white men. The depiction of the Church is so anti-clerical it reminds of recent Polish "Kler" ("Clergy") and Spanish "La mala educación" ("Bad Education") of 2004. "The rich get richer" is quoted in relation to social matters which leads us to believe we're in the Middle Ages all over again. So on the one hand it's fascinating but on the other the fights and the rebellion are over the top so it's just an action flick. If the city doesn't look like Nottingham, you're right. It was shot in Croatia (Dubrovnik) and in France (Paris and the church of Notre Dame du Raincy in Le Raincy near Paris). Taron Egerton is fantastic in the lead role, especially his facial expressions. Great modern music by Joseph Trapanese. Comic book end credits.

OVER THE LIMIT

Recommended. Marta Prus had a hunch. She chose a protagonist 5-6 years ago and her protagonist went on to win the gold medal at the Rio Olympics. There's no blood, sweat and tears in Russian rhytmic gymnastics. There's swearing, sweat and kissing. Nothing implies Rita's a winner. So all the more you're amazed at how much the gymnasts have to endure to succeed. "You're not a human but a sportswoman" and "There's no professional sportsperson who's healthy" - they sustain traumas so often - stay in your mind.

버닝 (BURNING)

Recommended. Keeps you on the edge of the seat for the whole 2.5 hours. What seems in large part a drama about people looking for a sense of life, gradually changes into a thriller. The storyline's quite simple. And you know it's a game, especially with the viewer, since in one of the car following scenes for a while you can see clearly 노래타운 (Song Town) on one of colourful buildings, implying an entertainment district. Yet you never fully find out the truth and can never be certain of how it's going to end. Is his (and yours) interpretaition of events correct? Are some remarks just red herrings?

MINIONS ON THE RUN

Watchable. A short film preceding "The Grinch". A complete story in a short form but unless you are a real fan of the silent form of Minions it's nothing special.

THE GRINCH

Recommended. One character has big, rounded eyes behind glasses, looking just like a Minion so that's probably while the two films are played in combination. The rest, luckily, is totally different. The tale is surprisingly touching, set in picture-perfect Who-ville and featuring a cute, fluffy Grinch who's not malicious but coping with his issues in such a non-standard way like preventing Christmas from happening. In spite of Polish dubbing, songs are in English. The commentary rhymes.

NELLY ET SIMON: MISSION YETI (MISSION KATHMANDU: THE ADVENTURES OF NELLY & SIMON)

Watchable. It's all just mediocre. Both the plot and the graphics are good enough not to walk out but lack zest. There's a mid-credit scene and a post-credit off-screen comment.

THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT

Watchable. It's sick. The movie puts you inside the head of a deranged psychopath. Music varying between Wagner, Bach, but also "Fame" and "Hit the Road, Jack" emphasises the imbalance. A dull commentary guides you through the moments leading up to the murders. The film depicts the mutilated corpses and body parts graphically. The circles of hell ending suggests a deeper thought behind it but my gut feeling tells me the picture was shot purely for the shock factor. Ineptly in that since it drags due to the spoken narrative. But Matt Dillon is superb and it's a rare occasion to kind-of-experience what's it like to be a demented psychopath. The Polish translation is off with weapons vocab and changes Verge into Wer which deprives it of its meaning and connotations.

Update: My knowledgeable friend has seen the movie and noticed that true psychopaths aren't as emotional as Jack is. Nothing makes them nervous. So that's what the director got wrong.

TOUCH ME NOT

Watchable. Drags awfully. Often disturbing. The disabled people were so revolting I nearly walked out. But it shows and discusses various shapes of physicality and sexuality and reveals e.g. that some disabled people don't suffer and enjoy fulfilling sex lives.

THUGS OF HINDOSTAN

Recommended. I've just come back from the cinema and I'm still laughing. I didn't recognize Aamir Khan acted as Firangi till the end credits. He looks totally different and acts better too. He's a kinda Jack Sparrow character (and a sailor as well), even the famous "Pirates of the Caribbean" theme gets a smooth makeover in the first dance scene. "You're either great or a scoundrel." "I'm the greatest scoundrel." - Firangi is such a rascal that "even hell's gates won't open for him". You're going to be deceited and it guarantees plenty of twists of action. Set in 1795 and later it's a period adventure comedy Bollywood style. Amitabh Bachchan as a national hero and Katrina Kaif as a... dancer. I'll be looking forward to a sequel.

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDENWALD 3D

Watchable again. The 3D is so good it's dizzying at times. A number of new fantastic animals. Technically the movie's spotless. But the slow, convoluted story, with lots of sidetracking and no humour is overcomplicated and even more confusing when watched again. Eddie Redmayne is too gauche as Newt Scamander. The wizarding world has found enviable solutions for cleaning though. I could do with some. 

SPUTNIK RUSSIAN FILM FESTIVAL

КРОВЬ (BLOOD)

Recommended. Decent Russian-school cinema. Intimate, with sympathy to the protagonists. Engrossing. Clear-cut structure in spite of going to and fro in time. With good-looking main actors and a good number of twists and turns. It depticts two brothers: one with a goal and one who doesn't know what to do with his life yet both live empty lives. Memorable bits are when one blames his brother for smuggling the stuff he uses himself and when he remarks: "You ended up the way I was supposed to". With a beautiful song along with the end credits. 


PLAIRE, AIMER ET COURIR VITE (SORRY ANGEL)

Recommended. Sexy, not romantic but beautiful in the way the gay story isolates a relationship. It deals with love, disillusionment, hopes and camouflaged fear. The emotions are not quite explicit but after leaving the cinema you suddenly realise how many feelings were concealed inside both men. Magnificently acted, especially by Pierre Deladonchamps  as Jacques. Music is not prominent but matching and the music piece titles reflect the developments in the story. 


NIGHT FILM MARATHON - MINIMARATHON OF FANTASTIC BEASTS

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM 2D

Watchable when seen again. Shot in Liverpool pretending New York. Fights prolonged. A very feminine legilimens. The niffler is both cute and funny. Giggle water advert appears in magical press. Not meant for the big screen - reading the newspaper headlines and ads is often impossible. Best to catch it all on DVD I guess. Great cinematography, full od depth even in 2D.

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDENWALD 2D

Watchable. A set-up for a trilogy. As always the second part is the darkest and the grimmest. Evil comes from Austria this time so, taken the period it's set in and Grindenwald's pure race ideology, he's the magical world equivalent of Hitler. On the bright side the niffler is back, actually more than one. There's a new cute dog-like creature too. 3D-like cinematography. Enchanting music by James Newton Howard.


WARSAW JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL 

THE DRIVER IS RED

Recommended. A thriller-like short animated documentary about capturing Nazi war criminals, especially Adolf Eichmann.

THE ACCOUNTANT OF AUSCHWITZ

Recommended. A gripping future-length documentary about the complexities and obstacles in sentencing Nazi criminals. With the huge prevalence of Nazism in the post-war population, including judges who were ideologically Nazi, justice required a time lapse more than anything else. Different attitudes from both sides are presented. Uncertain outcomes of subsequent cases amount to full tension.

THE ROLLING GROUND

Watchable. A short film where a girl walks a rolling ground listening to a recorded account of how her ancestor survived a few sorts of prison camps during WW2. No conclusion.

BUDAPEST NOIR

Watchable. The Jewish motif is unnecessary here. Otherwise it's a surprisingly good film noir. Not my fave genre per se but this movie is less dark, uses more colour in the visual layer and the story deals with prostitution, politics and a family tragedy. Shocking how men divide women into whores and decent ones and how deadly the consequential predjudice can be. Based on that predjudice their attitudes to crimes against them differ drastically.

KICHKA: LIFE IS A CARTOON

Recommended. Life is unlike movies. Some secrets never come to light. So the Shoah survivor never learnt of his likely family in Israel. During the 3 years he spent with his father in concentration camps he never asked because his dad was so debilitated. But forming a huge family helped him survive the loss of 30 of his so, unlike others - who committed suicides after leaving camps, he filled his loneliness with people and comic cartoons. Later a son of his became a recognized cartoonist himself. While humour replaced the talk of the Holocaust, the son, step by step, discovers what the survivor father wasn't able to say.

DAS LETZTE MAHL (THE LAST SUPPER)

Watchable. Over-talked but valuable since it's the first movie presenting Jews in Germany of the 1930s as German citizens with full rights, not outsiders. From the makers' research such were the sentiments that even some Jews served in Wehrmacht till the end of the war. The film doesn't stretch that far. It's just one day of a fictitious family with episodes based on real life people e.g. the Jewish inventor of TV which the Aryans stole to use for their propaganda. Sentimental music deprives the movie of tension.


ASSASSINATION NATION

Watchable. Funny how a sexist guy of 33 tried to make it feminist. When teenage girls talk about sex all the time, you know it must have been scripted and directed by a man. Girl talk about the size of "his dick in the grey tracksuit" is plain ridiculous. Female teenagers aren't like that. It's how nasty adult guys (Sam Levinson in this case) sexualize them. The rest of the film attempts greatness. American flags and their colours in clothing abound. In the slasher form the picture points the finger of blame at prudish hypocrites demanding of teenagers standards they don't comply with themselves. It shows how kids are surrounded with sex, violence and a total lack of privacy and also how everyone, minor or adult, has got something to hide. Nobody's innocent, some are just less guilty. 

CREED II

Walked out. Protracted cliches like male talk at work and an expectant mother at home. No tension. Silly conversations include her asking if he's defecated before the fight. And, after cancer in part one, in part two the baby may be born deaf - another cheap medical trick in the script.

MILOSC JEST WSZYSTKIM (LOVE IS EVERYTHING)

Watchable. A slow and tear-jerking 'romantic comedy', much in Polish style. I laughed just three times: when the Santa jumped into water to the amazement of the filming crew, when the undertaker burst into tears and at "Jestem Ewa Szajnocha, lat 22, eee... 35." ("I'm Ewa Szajnocha, age 22, argh... 35."). It's a remake of obscure Belgian "Alles is liefde" ("Love is All") from 2007. I haven't seen the original. In the Polish version the love stories are far-fetched and unnatural: either a 40+ woman ditches her 18-year-old lover to return to her aged ex-husband or a quarrelsome, grunting when laughing, shop assistant attracts a celebrity footballer. The hobo hangs a sock to get a present western-style. It's not a Polish tradition. A number of romantic songs in Polish and English.

SOFIA

Recommended. Moving in the beginning, adding suspense shortly and gripping till the very end. And it's... about having a baby and getting married. In Morocco where the situation is a complex case encompassing penal law, business, honour - everything but love.