Here are our latest reviews of films for home viewing.
Pre-2024 Film Reviews
Before Spring (1980)
- Excerpt: Just like its characters, “Before Spring” is an ambiguous movie, with the choice of the director not to focus on the background of the newcomer but on the disruption she brings, offering both traits and issues to the narrative. At the same time though, the quality of the cinematography, the acting, and the analysis of the acting and the setting results in a film that is definitely of quality.
Blood of Rebirth (2009)
- Excerpt: “Blood of Rebirth” is not an easy watch, nor does it attempt to be. It is a film driven by instinct, anger and creative freedom, which functions as both a comeback statement and a declaration of a new cinematic style for Toyoda. While the overall approach can be challenging, those willing to engage with its unconventional approach may find a uniquely powerful experience.
The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Nuno Reis @ Antestreia [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Exceptuando a referência a um livro prestes a sair de Harry Potter, é praticamente intemporal. Provou que a sua temática se mantém relevante e que as pessoas gostam de vilões quando são escritos com camadas.
Fresh Kill (1994)
Shelagh Rowan-Legg @ ScreenAnarchy
Godzilla (1998)
Nuno Reis @ Antestreia [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: É o perfeito exemplo de como o cinema independente fantástico se infiltrou nos grandes estúdios para dar histórias competentes que sabem entreter e com orçamento para maravilhar.
House of Cards (1968)
Mister Johnson (1990)
- Excerpt: Mister Johnson is pitched somewhere between a black comedy and a tragedy, with the latter winning out in the end.
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)
Roman Holiday (1953)
Nuno Reis @ Antestreia [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: É uma ideia simples que ainda vende bem. As pessoas querem ver isso e ter um final feliz. Mas além de ter intriga, emoção, romance, acção e até suspense, tem também muitas lições a ensinar.
Secret Flower (1971)
- Excerpt: “Secret Flower” does not exactly breaks the mold of Koji Wakamatsu’s movies of the era, but this is not a negative aspect. The combination of eroticism, exploitation, existential tension and political undertones, all presented both literally and through metaphor results in another film where the lack of funding essentially becomes the root of creativity. And this is actually what the style of Wakamatsu and his crew was all about.
Temple of the Golden Pavilion (1976)
- Excerpt: “Temple of the Golden Pavilion” is not an entirely successful adaptation of Mishima, and it cannot fully convey the novel’s philosophical nature. At times, it narrows the material too much, while the symbolic weight of the Pavilion itself is not always visualized with sufficient force. However, Takabayashi’s version remains fascinating for its tension, eroticism, visual experimentation, and focus on the painful connection between beauty, sexual frustration, and self-destruction.
About the Author
