Keep up to date on the latest in Film, TV and Music with reviews from anfa collective
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This Book Is Hell — Katabasis Review
“Kuang tries to lean into the tension of Alice being a woman in an intensely patriarchal, masculine field in the ‘80s, and the varied, complicated responses women can have to that kind of environment… in Katabasis it just doesn’t play. The issue is that the readers have no sympathy for Alice. She chases the most…
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Be My Romcom — People We Meet on Vacation Review
“In the modern film industry that often struggles with lighting and which pursues millennial grey as a colour palette, PWMOV is kaleidoscopic. The movie is alive with colour, every scene popping off the screen. The score is also excellently curated, as it perfectly aligns with the emotional resonance of each scene. Paula Abdul’s ‘Forever Your…
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The Charm of “non-biopic” Biopics and the Consequences of Ruthless Ambition in “Marty Supreme”
“Timothée Chalamet is made for this role… He is in full control of the magnetism he utilises to disarm Marty’s opponents no matter if it’s a potential sponsor or a short-lived fling, but with his body language he occasionally smoothly slips into a “leakage” of despair and anxiety. Enthralling, the audience almost enters a toxic…
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Family as The Muse in Sentimental Value
Amy delves into Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value, exploring themes of family relationships and muses.
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Lighting the Divine – Wake Up Dead Man Review
anfa is back with a piece on Rian Johnson’s “Wake Up Dead Man” which is part of the Knives Out series. Adelaide speaks on lighting as a storytelling tool and Johnson’s karmic narratives.
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In Retrospect: Edinburgh Film Festival
Iveta looks back on the films and Q+A’s that she attended at the 78th Edinburgh International Film Festival.
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The Year with the Peerless Movie: On “Sorry, Baby” and Time
Cassia delves in to the directorial debut of Eva Victor with “Sorry, Baby”.
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“Grief is rotting your teeth”: A Review of The Shrouds (2024)
“Needless to say, this film is an extremely personal work from Cronenberg, but that does not necessarily mean that it’s bereft of the techno-psychological and body-horror elements traditionally associated with his name as he continues his surreal filmic study on humans and their relationship with ever-advancing technologies.” Fionn discusses David Cronenberg’s 2024 film, “The Shrouds”.
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When a Soundtrack Becomes a Crutch- Musical Choices in “The Summer I Turned Pretty”
“One thing that I’ve noticed is that the music often kicks in at the very beginning of a new scene. This means that before characters have had a chance to speak to each other, the audience is primed to experience the desired emotion – before the script has done the work to merit it.” Mary…
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Legacy, Industry, and “28 Years Later” – Danny Boyle at the James Joyce award Q+A
According to a French journalist Danny Boyle himself encountered on a press tour, he is a director who makes the same films over and over again, just looking slightly different – always following a young man (at this point apparently she rolled her eyes) always overcoming impossible obstacles. And Danny Boyle apparently couldn’t agree more,…
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“Weapon of the Weak”, Interview with Cheryl Hess – Galway Film Fleadh
This is a quick look back at the films we got to see at the Galway Film Fleadh this year and an interview with co-director of Marriage Cops, Cheryl Hess.
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I Don’t Want Comedians to Talk to me – Comedy, Storytelling, and Audience Work
“I think seeing… carefully constructed routines… really emphasised for me the things that felt off about the audience-based interactions of other comedians… I find many of them shallow and lacking meaning. They are the type of basic observations and jokes you could make with a group of friends. That’s not to say that they aren’t…
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Fastnet Film Festival – Festival Review
From diverse short films, to celebrity sightings, Amy recounts her weekend spent at Fastnet Film Festival in Schull, county Cork and all the wonderful events they run annually.
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Apathy in Profit – The Eurovision and Neutrality
“In 2022, the EBU set a precedent for repercussion and political standing by indefinitely banning Russia from participating or broadcasting the contest after their invasion of Ukraine… In this simple decision to ban, the EBU opened themselves up to the responsibility of being politically steadfast and answerable (…) they had just willingly consented to partake…
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“Is it the story about the little girl who lived down the lane?”: Looking Back At David Lynch and Mark Frost’s Twin Peaks: The Return (2017)
“While the Twin Peaks saga is shrouded in subjective, vague, and at times even duplicitous or deceptive allegories, one of its more immediate core themes is “the evil that men do”, as Agent Cooper’s colleague Albert puts it when trying to come to terms with the idea of Bob, and The Return doesn’t stray from…
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Memecoins, Shitcoins and Good Old Fashioned Scam Artists
Adam dives into the world of cryptocurrency, how it’s taking place as the new setting for running scams, and it’s place in modern politics.
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Irish Music Groups and Pushing the Language – IMLÉ
“In the current climate of interest in Irish culture and history, Irish language is something we want more of. Now is the time for actual Irish speakers to get their chance at the front and centre so we aren’t left with the bastardized, multi-dialectal carry-on that I learnt in school on the East coast.” Adelaide…
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“Pink Parts” – Interview
Iveta sits down in conversation with Alicky Hess and Tessa Walsh about their play “Pink Parts”, that premiered at SCENE + HEARD festival.