Miguel Cima

TRIBECA 2018 REVIEWS: Dominique Rocher’s THE NIGHT EATS THE WORLD discovers a new horror about surviving a zombie apocalypse

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

The Night Eats the World explores a new dimension in one of the most trod-upon genres of the last 20 years, and finds a genuinely new corner to explore. For this super-jaded horror movie fan, it was a welcome and refreshing experience. And the very final frame of the film rounds out the story’s theme in one very potent image of visual information (quietly, of course). It’s recommended not only for ghoul-loving gore-hounds, but for any audience who enjoys a decent bit of introspective drama.

SLAMDANCE 2018 REVIEWS: Pascal Plante’s feature film debut FAKE TATTOOS delivers a real romance between young people – and that might make you uncomfortable

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

The whole time, we want them to be together, we want some miracle to change Theo’s circumstances – hell, we want to know why he’s fricking leaving! But that’s not what the film is about. Rather, it’s about young people having to adapt and deal with entering the adult world, be it due to the advent of an initial important romance, or the passing of some accidental tragedy.

SUNDANCE 2018 REVIEWS: Christian Frei and Maxim Arbugaev’s documentary GENESIS 2.0 feels like a narrative film as two brothers mine mammoth tusks for two starkly different reasons

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

From the stunning vistas of the sloppy, mud-laden tundra of New Siberia Island to the sterile laboratory conditions of a genetic research facility, the filmmakers stage scenes with a production value equal to or better than many Hollywood efforts. Another reason the film feels like a narrative is because there’s no narration, lots of quiet moments, and loads of drama in shots which are blocked so effectively, it’s hard not to imagine a studio’s resources behind them.

SUNDANCE 2018 REVIEWS: Tolga Karaçelik’s BUTTERFLIES is an exceedingly black comedy masterfully disguised as just a kind-of black comedy

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

Anyone looking for a nice, neat, family comedy experience with a few difficulties, a la Ron Howard or perhaps Billy Wilder, need not apply to the ticket booth. Neither is the morose punishment junkie seeking a Tolstoy experience via an Ingmar Bergman lens. What unfolds instead is a high-wire act that maintains all the high stakes of a misstep’s fall yet remains superficially entertaining.

SLAMDANCE 2018 REVIEWS: Christina Kallas's THE RAINBOW EXPERIMENT is an edgy, and dizzying exploration of the aftermath of a tragic high school accident

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

Much of the editing is edgy and dizzying, recalling scenes from other films depicting a plane crash. Which really is the point. The social unraveling which occurs throughout the progression of the story is really a slow-motion calamity which sends each of the characters hurling in different directions, as if none of the passengers on a distressed jet were wearing their seatbelts.

TEN BURNING QUESTIONS: Cullen Hoback’s WHAT LIES UPSTREAM offers a primer on documentary investigation and inspiration for activation for Films Gone Wild

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

Dr. Gupta has a massive transformation over the course of the film, and we watch him wrestle with his ideals while trying to climb the political ladder. I certainly don’t see him as a villain. Rather, Gupta’s evolution into a hamstrung health official is a damning indictment of the entire system.

VOD REVIEWS: Cullen Hoback's WHAT LIES UPSTREAM will make you question every bottle of water you take a drink from. Mmmmm, refreshing!

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

In terms of film style, What Lies Upstream is almost sneaky. Hoback has a knack for ingratiating himself with people and gaining trust. It doesn’t matter that he’s a California liberal. He masterfully parlays his few childhood memories from visiting relatives in West Virginia into full acceptance by the vocally anti-regulation, anti-Obama residents who are struggling to get answers from the water authority, health officials and even Senator Joe Manchin.

THE GUEST COLUMN: Watching Nacho Vigalondo's COLOSSAL (on VOD now) in the #metoo Era

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

Colossal came out in early 2017, when America had elected Russia had installed a male chauvinist pig as president, one who bragged of his sexual predation prowess, but had not yet reckoned with the full impact of the “woke” reaction to come down the pike. The film quickly came and went in the theaters, and even dedicated sci-fi/monster fans let it slip by, unaware of the larger impact the film was to impart.

New York Film Fest 2017 REVIEWS: Barbet Schroeder’s THE VENERABLE W. is a portrait of the racist Buddhist monk instrumental in Myanmar’s ethnic cleansing as well as a reflection of what’s currently in play in the USA

By Miguel Cima 8 years ago

For anyone following the story of what’s happening in Myanmar, The Venerable W. provides insights which don’t make the news. But what’s most frightening of all is how all of this awfulness is reflected in the current age of American politics. Xenophobic pandering to whip up hysteria and outrage are used effectively by Wirathu, and very much echo the playbook of a particular tweeting president you may have heard of.