Author Carmen Paddock

Cinema’s love affairs with seemingly endless, carefree summers is given a rude awakening in Emilie Aussel's short drama. As a bunch of French teenagers gather to celebrate the end of exams and the start of...

There are faint echoes of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic tale The Snow Queen in Natalya Kudryashova’s second feature, but this modern Russian fairytale finds its nature magic up against dreary...

This film was previously reviewed in February 2020 as part of our Berlinale coverage. With today’s headlines, there could be a strong film made from the historical investigation, aided by an American...

By trade, a documentarian deals in records. Aleksandr Rastorguev was no exception. A prolific documentary filmmaker known for works critical of Russia’s political regime and business interests, he was found...

Many people fantasise about living a life more in tune with nature, but imagining what that might look is more difficult. Daniusa and Basia live such an existence in rural Poland. Bucolic (Bukolika) is a...

Riley (Kit Zauhar) struggles as she approaches graduation. A final paper earns a failing grade, landing her in a remedial summer course to get her full diploma. Meanwhile, she goes heart over head in pursuit...

From the Planet of the Humans (Dal pianeta degli umani) defies easy categorisation. It is a dreamlike documentary, fictionalising a border checkpoint at Ventimiglia where migrants often make perilous crossings...

On the surface, Hleb Papous’ film bears many similarities to 2020’s vaunted Les Miserables. The Legionnaire (Il Legionario) is similarly concerned with tensions between immigrant communities and the...

Teenage years are often remembered for their extreme physical, emotional, and societal changes, and cinema has long immortalised these transformations to tell stories of discovery and danger. In Araceli...

Stojan might be stuck in a dead end job as Serbia adjusts to a post-Soviet economy. His daughter might not have the newest, coolest shoes, and the refugee crisis is on everyone’s lips. But he is happy,...

The Magway region of central Myanmar may be home to one of the world’s oldest petroleum industries, but the business’ possibilities do not trickle down to those extracting the lucrative product from the...

This film was previously reviewed in March 2020 as part of our Glasgow Film Festival coverage. Very little happens over the course of Blanco en Blanco (White on White), and yet each series of vignettes...

Fitness influencer Sylwia has it all: the body, the bubbly personality, and over 600,000 social media followers ready for her latest workout class or smoothie recipe. While her followers often assume...

This film was previously reviewed in February 2020 as part of our Berlinale coverage. Some films need no special tricks or thrills to captivate, and Kelly Reichardt’s latest is a near faultless example....

This film was previously reviewed (as My Salinger Year) in February 2020 as part of our Berlinale coverage. Philippe Falardeau’s latest feature is a visual treat. Sara Mishara’s cinematography creates a...