NYFF REVIEW: “The Only Thing Spookier Than the Undead is the White Male Gaze” – ‘Zombi Child’ (2019)

“Seeing the girls as larger, abstract ideas instead of as human beings weighs down the overall film.” In 1960s Haiti, a man named Clairvius Narcisse was said to have been poisoned and brought back from the dead as a zombie in order to be put to work as a slave on a plantation by a…

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NYFF REVIEW: “A reason to cry over spilled milk” – First Cow (2019)

“Their world feels real, making room for the friendship to feel real too.” In order to survive in a world ruled by colonialist American dreamer greed, is there any room for genuine kindness and friendship? Is scamming the only way to scrape by if you were not born directly into the top ranks? In 1820s…

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REVIEW: “Confronting the Sins of the Father” – Ad Astra (2019)

“A portrait of what it means to confront your relationship with your parents in order to liberate yourself from the fear of becoming them.” When we first meet astronaut Roy McBride (Brad Pitt), he passes his daily psychological evaluation with flying colors – his heart rate is normal, he is sleeping well, no bad dreams.…

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