Screening Season in Los Angeles - 10 Capsules

by Eurocheese

It’s that time of year! Los Angeles screening season is in full gear, with Oscar hopefuls sending out invites right and left. Here are my comments and rankings (by preference order)on the last batch of 10 films (!) with more to come soon.

One Battle After Another – A+. Paul Thomas Anderson’s brilliance can be hit and miss, but this is among his very best works. DiCaprio capitalizes on the comedic energy he’s brought to Tarantino films, bringing frenetic energy to this sprawling, action-packed epic. Teyana Taylor’s popping introduction, newcomer Chase Infiniti’s grounding steady hand and an insanely madcap villain from Sean Penn are all nomination-worthy, with even the smaller parts for Benicio del Toro and Regina Hall packing a punch. The must-see of the season...

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"The History of Sound" Hits Highs and Lows

by Eurocheese

Josh O'Connor and Paul Mescal in THE HISTORY OF SOUND

Memories, like music, can take on new meaning as we sit with them over time. The History of Sound opens on beautiful, panoramic shots with hints of possibility or even romance as we follow Paul Mescal’s Lionel, a lonely young man from the sticks who is eager to experience life. He heads off to college and meets Josh O’Connor as David, brimming with charm and curiosity, who spends his nights commanding rooms with his enthusiastic piano playing. Soon the love of music between the two (brought together by Lionel singing niche folk songs) spills into a relationship. It’s easy to be drawn in by the appeal of these actors, but something about this unspoken relationship feels a bit too easy. When Lionel heads home and eventually receives an invitation to join David on a trip researching music, it feels like he is walking out of his mundane life and into a dream...

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Golden Lion Winner Reviewed: "Father Mother Sister Brother"

by Elisa Giudici

Tom Wait in Jim Jarmusch's FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER

On the closing night of Venice 82, the Golden Lion went to Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother. The decision immediately set off a storm of controversy. The overwhelming favorite had been Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice of Hind Rajab, Tunisia's Oscar submission, and a film that electrified audiences with its urgency and moral weight. Yet once again, the jury—this year led by Alexander Payne—opted for a different kind of statement: not the raw political immediacy of Gaza, but the quieter, “career-crowning” recognition of a grand elder of cinema.

This dynamic is nothing new on the Lido...

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Venice: "Scarlet" is an ambitious misstep

Elisa Giudici reporting from Venice

With Scarlet, Mamoru Hosoda takes his boldest swing yet, and lands his weakest film. Even compared with his early commercial outings (Digimon, One Piece), this latest work is a misfire: ambitious in scope, but undone by confused storytelling and uneven execution. The premise fuses Shakespeare and isekai. The film opens in 16th-century Denmark, where Scarlet, daughter of a murdered king, vows revenge against her uncle Claudius, who has seized the throne. Before she can act, Claudius poisons her, and the story pivots into the logic of isekai: Scarlet awakens in a strange afterlife populated by dragons and people from different eras, suspended in time. Death here is permanent, raising the stakes but also exposing how little sense the world makes...

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Venice: Luca Guadagnino's discomfiting "After the Hunt"

Elisa Giudici reporting from Venice

Ayo Edebiri makes an accusation in "AFTER THE HUNT"

Luca Guadagnino has never shied away from controversy, and After the Hunt confirms he’s still unafraid to provoke. A story of sexual assault on a university campus becomes the lens through which he examines the messy, ongoing intergenerational debate around #MeToo, forcing audiences to wrestle with discomfort rather than dodge it.

The film begins with Maggie Price (Ayo Edebiri), a wealthy Black queer student, under the mentorship of Alma (Julia Roberts), a philosophy professor fighting for tenure with the support of her husband Frederick (Michael Stuhlbarg). Across campus is Hank (Andrew Garfield), an assistant professor from a modest background, also seeking to cement his place in academia. When Maggie accuses Hank of harassment, the film pivots on questions of belief, loyalty, and moral authority—questions shaped by race, class, gender, and generational expectation...

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