historical

NAPOLEON: A Great Humiliation of a Great Man
NAPOLEON: A Great Humiliation of a Great Man

Napoleon feels a lot like its titular character: loudly ambitious to a fault, and it can’t make up its mind on what to be.

18 1/2: Engaging and Well-Paced Comedic and Suspenseful Historical Fiction
18 1/2: Engaging and Well-Paced Comedic and Suspenseful Historical Fiction

Dan Mirvish explores the mystery of the biggest political scandal in history through 18½, an engaging, quick-paced, and wonderfully comedic thriller.

BEETLE QUEEN CONQUERS TOKYO: Experimental, Strange and Occasionally Stunning
BEETLE QUEEN CONQUERS TOKYO: Experimental, Strange and Occasionally Stunning

Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo is comforting, emotive, overwhelming at times, and always worth the time spent giving it your full attention.

REDS: The Forgotten Anti-Capitalist Epic of the 1980s
REDS: The Forgotten Anti-Capitalist Epic Of The 1980s

Warren Beatty’s Reds may be the final prestige picture that ideologically represents New Hollywood. Read our retrospective review of the 1981 epic.

THE HIGHWAYMEN: Bonnie & Clyde’s Latest Offense

If you look past The Highwaymen’s initial slow burn, you’ll at least find solace in its performances and devestating ending.

FIRE ON THE HILL: Fresh View Of Compton From Horseback

Fire on the Hill is an inspiring journey of building, rebuilding and reinforcing a community for the black community in Compton, away from the notorious factions that gave the city a dark reputation.

OUTLAW KING: Unfocused, Repetitive, But Not Without Ambition
OUTLAW KING: Unfocused, Repetitive, But Not Without Ambition

Outlaw King is ambitious, striving for originality and historical accuracy, but overall fails to bring much to the table in terms of grounding its characters.

Once Upon A Fantasy: Lanthimos & Tarantino's Grand Delusions
NYFF Review: THE FAVOURITE: A Fascinating & Hilarious Character Study

With an infectious sense of humor and some wonderfully dynamic performances, The Favourite is a shining example of a filmmaker at the prime of his art.

GUARDIANS OF THE TOMB: A Masterclass in Cinematic Banality
GUARDIANS OF THE TOMB: A Masterclass In Cinematic Banality

Chinese-Australian co-production Guardians of the Tomb is one of the most cliched, dull and shamelessly corporate creature features you could possibly imagine.

RULES DON’T APPLY: An Uneven Throwback With A Romance That Shines
RULES DON’T APPLY: An Uneven Throwback With A Romance That Shines

Though Rules Don’t Apply is beautifully shot and contains a tender romance, the two stories of the film collide, making it an uneven venture.

The Divine Sacrifice Of Humanity In THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC & THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST
The Divine Sacrifice Of Humanity In THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC & THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST

Religious figures and various saints have been on film since the birth of the medium. It can be tricky for a director to present the story of a venerated character, as they can mean many things to different people. In both Carl Theodor Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc and the Martin Scorsese picture The Last Temptation of Christ, the directors brought their own religious visions to screen, although not without controversy.