Reviews by Michael Pattison

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Fata Morgana (2013)

  Review preview for Fata Morgana

  This invigorating tone poem is far more difficult to describe than it is to sit through.

  Musings on the meanings of life, death and the world.
• 
  Cargo 200 (2007)

  Review preview for Cargo 200

  Poluyan’s character is one of cinema’s most repulsive creations.

  One fearful night at a remote farmhouse echoes the breakdown of post-Soviet Russia.
• 
  An Anthropological Television Myth (2012)

  Review preview for An Anthropological Television Myth

  Has montage been this aggressive and politicised in recent years? It’s difficult to recall a comparator.

  Collage of fragments culled from an independent Sicilian TV station's output in the mid-90s.
• 
  A Dream's Merchant (2012)

  Review preview for A Dream's Merchant

  Long and demanding, intimate and heartfelt.

  This true-life 'Motorcycle Diary' recounts the epic trek of genial, thirtyish photographer Mihai Barbu as he rumbles to the Mongolian capital Ulan Bator - and back.
• 
  Me Too (2012)

  Review preview for Me Too

  The way in which the film drifts from otherwise throwaway comedy to poignant morality tale by way of one non-sequitur after another is effortless.

  After inadvertently committing an act of violence, a group of friends journeys to a legendary tower in the hope of travelling to a better world.
• 
  Gone Wild (2012)

  Review preview for Gone Wild

  Though his parallels are subtly evoked by a voice-over that is barely a whisper, Curean’s “non-interventionist” approach risks accusations of complicity in the casual animal cruelty he documents.

  In a landscape now largely abandoned by humans, wild horses face gradual extinction.
• 
  Somebody Up There Likes Me (2012)

  Review preview for Somebody Up There Likes Me

  A fast, furious and occasionally hilarious angster comedy.

  Dark comedy tracks happy-go-lucky slacker Max across three decades.
• 
  The Rambler (2013)

  Review preview for The Rambler

  Its intended jokes are mostly unfunny but as it develops, The Rambler contains enough hallucinatory imagery, lifted straight from low-budget sci-fi horror, to boil over with a certain nightmarish feel.

  An ex-con's impulsive cross country journey leads to the unravelling of strange mysteries.
• 
  Resolution (2012)

  Review preview for Resolution

  Resolution is an excellent amalgamation of horror traits that also stands on its own two feet.

  An attempted intervention at the remote woodland home of a troubled addict reveals unexpected dangers.
• 
  Faith, Love And Whiskey (2012)

  Review preview for Faith, Love And Whiskey

  At a lean 75 minutes, the film does well to paint that age-old dilemma between the romances of impulse and the disappointments of real life.

  Young Neli abandons a secure future in with a wealthy, straight-laced fiancé for one last fling with her passionate but boozily self destructive ex-boyfriend.
• 
  East Hastings Pharmacy (2012)

  Review preview for East Hastings Pharmacy

  With its considered compositions and emphasis upon real-life re-enactment, East Hastings Pharmacy has a vague resemblance to Soderbergh’s Bubble.

  An introduction to the various people who visit a methadone clinic over the course of a day.
• 
  The Love Songs Of Tiedan (2012)

  Review preview for The Love Songs Of Tiedan

  An on-paper melodrama imbued with musical energy and comical mischief by an excellent ensemble cast.

  The film recounts a romantic obsession that spans several decades. In a poor Shanxi Province village, six-year old Tiedan falls in love with May, the beautiful neighbor who practices a traditional form of singing, Er-ren-tai, and this love will never die.
• 
  Tokyo Waka (2012)

  Review preview for Tokyo Waka

  Subtly symphonic.

  Documentary about the life and culture of Tokyo.
• 
  La Playa DC (2012)

  Review preview for La Playa DC

  A refreshingly low-key and visually distinct work.

  Tomás is trying to make his way in Bogota. Looking for his young brother Jairo, he sets out on a journey that will test his ability to deal with the fear and wounds of the past.
• 
  Babylon (2012)

  Review preview for Babylon

  As a testimonial on the daily grind and ongoing uncertainty experienced by refugees at a particular historical moment, this epic documentary captures and presents events in a suitably gruelling manner.

  Chronicle of a temporary refugee camp in Tunisia.
• 
  I Have Always Been A Dreamer (2012)

  Review preview for I Have Always Been A Dreamer

  A quietly remarkable film that benefits from well-selected interviews with historians, businesspeople, artists and scholars.

  A documentary travelogue and portrait of two cities in contrasting states: Dubai and Detroit.