San Sebastian Film Festival — A–Z of films

At its heart, this Netflix comedy drama hinges on what we put a price on in life.

There is talk of “hungry ghosts” and shadows but little of substance to show as the gambling cliches stack up like bad debts and the plot twists are signposted as brightly as the casinos.

A largely straightforward drama that is a bit too structurally loose for its own good, Argentina’s Oscar nominee is buoyed considerably by Fonzi’s own central performance.

While some directors spend their lives crafting love letters to the worlds they create, Yorgos Lanthimos has developed a fine line in cinematic hate mail to humanity.

Ramsay's style takes no prisoners.

Fiume O Morte! resists a purely historical reading, instead inviting a present-day sociological perspective in which the authoritarian leader becomes one element within the city’s layered history.

Cat’s viewpoint predominates, and Zilbalodis has an acute understanding of how the world looks from its point of view, of what catches its attention and how its body follows instinctively.

Playful biopic that rips up chronology and frequently tears down the fourth wall so that we’re never sure if we’re going to be the ones looking into the fishbowl of his life or the ones being inspected.

The plot may be straightforward but the characters are offbeat.

You’re unlikely to see anything quite like it any time soon.

Cotillard is at her very best as a character we see only from the sidelines – earthy and opinionated in flashes, yet frozen by her art.

This is a tactile retelling, inviting us to imagine the sticky feel of Coca-Cola on hot skin in the sun or the heat of a sheepskin coat and the love that goes with it being passed from mum to daughter ahead of a trip abroad.

The takes are usually long and static, but every cut and move is justified for the purpose of dramaturgy.

It cannot be denied that Jay Kelly is interested in exploring the human condition through the lens of fame and fatherhood, but the romantic, sentimental, and saccharine tones come with a risk.

Amélie doesn’t just narrate but completely dominates this film as a personality.

In line with his economic storytelling, Russell has a gift for conveying little details through subtle performance notes where other filmmakers might telegraph intent.

Arregi and Goenaga are at pains to suggest that no matter what your political or sexual stance, we’re all human underneath.

Fund encourages us to tune in to the energies of the trio, the subtle shifts of mood, shared moments of understanding or joy.

Guillaume Marbeck as Godard is pitch perfect, trademark dark glasses and tobacco smoke his indispensable props with even the voice uncannily resonant of the man himself.

It relies on often clumsy exposition, a common construction of "only if X" with a cut to "X has happened" leaves one asking "why?".

Offers food for thought in the realm of a slightly ungainly and sprawling all-you-can-eat buffet rather than a satisfying sit-down feast.

Nayyef and Qasem are marvellous, completely natural and without a hint of self-consciousness.

The production design of Redoubt is nothing short of a triumph.

Marcelo is at home in the fine tradition of flicks where the fact that they are an agent is mainly a secret to them.

What marks Trier out is his ability to take on intellectual ideas like this but make them play out in ways that don’t feel forced or overly constructed.

The film looks amazing, but it sounds even more incredible.

Haïdara’s ability to switch moods from fun to fear is a key selling point of the film.

The “star player” is the director of photography Rui Poças

Ozon remains faithful to the source and keeps its sense of mystery but has strengthened the female characters

The summer-winter dynamic may lean a tad on the obvious side, but the structure primes us to meditate on the way friendships form during different stages of life, and which lives they’re most likely to change.

There is some very good work here, and all of it tempered where it needs to be, to give due prominence to Hind herself.

Never makes light of Lea’s desires while at the same time showing us in real time how reality competes with imagination, fear with excitement.

When things happen, the director pays close attention to Cyrus’ reaction, with Kerr nailing a range of mixed emotions his character experiences

As a director Adamik is good when it is close up and claustrophobic.

Dano has chosen to use the same flat vocal expression throughout, a technique well suited to satire which might have worked if only the rest of the film had been a bit more lively.