I went a little crazy with movies in April. You’ll see. Cineplex ran a Stanley Kubrick series, and the TIFF Bell Lightbox – which has now solidified itself as my favorite place to see movies – offered lots of great stuff this month. I’ll leave out the movies I saw at Hot Docs, which started at the end of the month. That will get a post of its own.

Perfect Days

Japan, Germany | 2023 | 124m | Japanese, English

Perfect Days is a deeply masculine movie, and I’m not just saying that because the protagonist is male. This is a movie about an aging public toilet cleaner who lives a quiet, private life. A man of few words, he takes pride in his work and hobbies, even as society and his own sister attempt to dislodge his self-confidence. He knows that others will piss on his efforts – literally – yet he persists. The story sure takes its time to unfold, but the characterization is rich. This is a movie about single men finding dignity and meaning in their life and work, standing firm against the overwhelming temptation – from friends and family alike – to give into hopelessness and ennui. At least, that’s what I got out of it.

3.5/5

A Clockwork Orange

United Kingdom, United States of America | 1971 | 136m | English

A Clockwork Orange is a smart movie, underneath all the unsettling scenes of sexual assault and torture. It held my attention the whole time, as I tried to decode the parallels between real life society and the hysterical realism of the movie. It seems to comment on the naivety of bleeding-heart liberal types, while also painting an extremely cynical picture of the supposed justice and legitimacy of the state. As the story progresses, we see the state as every bit as brutal and violent as the protagonist and his gang of street thugs. This is a bit of an exhausting movie to watch because of how in your face it is, but it’s highly entertaining and thought provoking.

3.5/5

Problemista

United States of America | 2023 | 104m | English, Spanish

Problemista is a comedic drama about a young man named Alejandro, who comes to New York City from El Salvador to pursue his dream of interning at Hasbro. Out of necessity for his visa, he starts working for an eccentric artist played by Tilda Swinton. It’s funny, it’s creative, and it’s a beautiful ode to the present-day American immigrant experience. As an American and an immigrant (although not an American immigrant), I resonated with a lot here, including the depiction of the uncertainty and the hustle necessary to establish oneself in a new country. I loved this movie.

4.5/5

Exhuma

South Korea | 2024 | 134m | Korean, Japanese, English

I always find it interesting when Korean movies go fully anti-Japanese, which this one definitely does. A grave excavation goes awry, unleashing supernatural horrors against our protagonists. There are a number of neat scenes, particularly the shamanic ritual towards the beginning of the film. But to me, Exhuma dragged on, and plot points began to elude me as it continued. I might want to revisit this movie one day.

2.5/5

Full Metal Jacket

United Kingdom, United States of America | 1987 | 116m | English, Vietnamese

Full Metal Jacket is an unflattering and uncomfortable portrayal of America’s role in the Vietnam War. The drill sergeant character, played by R. Lee Ermey (who had been a drill sergeant in real life), is the highlight of the movie. However, he’s out of the picture by the second half of the film, which shifts the focus out of boot camp and into Vietnam proper. I enjoyed the boot camp half more than the Vietnam half, which seems to be the general consensus among most viewers. With great dialogue and cinematography, some of which was innovative for its time, Full Metal Jacket is a memorable and highly quotable movie that’s worth a watch.

3.5/5

Gamma Rays

Canada | 2023 | 101m | French

Gamma Rays is a French-Canadian independent film that follows several teens in Quebec. Unfortunately this movie didn’t leave a strong impression on me at all. As a bunch of loosely related character portraits, the unifying theme or point of the movie wasn’t clear to me. It also didn’t help that some of the main characters were unlikable; I kept waiting for their redemption, but it never came.

1/5

The Left-Hand Side of the Fridge

Canada | 2000 | 90m | French, English

The Left-Hand Side of the Fridge is a fake documentary about an engineering graduate struggling to find work in Quebec, set in the year 2000. There is absolutely zero interesting cinematography to be found and the plot doesn’t fare much better. It was the nostalgic, turn-of-the-millenium setting that drew me in the most.

The impression the movie left on me was more “I remember the anxieties of looking for work” than “Oh my god, we need to dismantle capitalism now,” which is what I think the movie was attempting to go for. (Hint: There’s a reason this is called the “left-hand” side of the fridge rather than the “right-hand” side.) The Left-Hand Side of the Fridge just doesn’t present its arguments in a compelling (or frankly, entertaining) enough way to warrant a recommendation. Michael Moore, this is not. I’ll be honest: I kind of hated this movie.

1.5/5

Hiroshima mon amour

France, Japan | 1959 | 90m | French, Japanese, English

This movie is exquisite. It was really unlike anything I have seen before. Having watched this as a double feature with The Left-Hand Side of the Fridge, the contrast in cinematography, dialogue, acting, soundtrack – everything, really – was night and day. Hiroshima mon amour tells the story of a brief but intense romance between a French actress and a Japanese architect in postwar Japan. They are complex, flawed human beings, their separate traumas both drawing them together and repelling them. The screenplay is phenomenal and every shot is oozing with style. I definitely want to see this again.

4/5

Dawn of the Dead

United States of America, Italy | 1978 | 127m | English, Spanish

Dawn of the Dead recently got a theatrical re-release in 3D. This was my first time seeing this classic, highly influential zombie movie. I don’t think it’s very difficult to discern the anti-consumerist, anti-capitalist themes behind the portrayal of mindless zombies shuffling through an American shopping mall. You can kind of tell that it was shot on a limited budget, too, but the filmmakers used that budget effectively, succeeding in making the situation feel desperate for the main characters. I can imagine that the violence in this movie was, ahem, mind-blowing when it first came out. While I appreciated the practical effects, it’s still a dated film. Even the 3D effects didn’t do much to elevate this movie above being simply okay to me.

2.5/5

Spy x Family Code: White

Japan | 2023 | 110m | Japanese

The first film based on the smash-hit Spy x Family is great for fans of the series, and as long as you generally enjoy anime even when it’s silly and goofy, you’ll probably like this. Code: White even takes some jokes further than I expected; the result is a by-and-large funny, pleasant movie. The problems that I have with it are the same problems that I have with the series, that being that the characters are often one-note and the plot and world building seem content to tread in place despite there being so many interesting directions the author could take it. Anyway, as far as films based on anime series go, this one was fun.

3/5

In Flames

Pakistan, Canada | 2023 | 98m | Urdu

On the surface, In Flames is drama-horror about a mysterious ghost that stalks a young woman in Karachi after the death of her father. The genre conventions serve to make a wider point about women struggling against oppression in Pakistani society, whether that oppression comes from strict religious customs or unyielding patriarchal norms. I found this to be a smart movie whose mysteries kept me engaged until the dramatic end.

I was fortunate to be able to attend a showing of this where the director and cast came on stage and answered questions at the end. The director described it as being shot on a “microbudget,” but they managed that budget well with first-time yet talented actors and skilled cinematography that never keeps the ominous ghostly figures onscreen for too long. I think this movie deserves support and viewership.

3.5/5

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

United Kingdom, United States of America | 1964 | 95m | English, Russian

Dr. Strangelove is a classic Cold War comedy about a farcical yet believable chain of events that ends in worldwide nuclear annihilation. Actor Peter Sellers plays three different roles and commanded 55% percent of the film’s budget. I do agree that this is a hilarious movie, although it shows its age. You’ll need to pay close attention to the dialogue to understand why any of it is funny at first, but as the film progresses the performances become increasingly unhinged and laugh-out-loud funny. Similarly to Full Metal Jacket, director Stanley Kubrick’s cynicism towards the goodwill and basic competency of the U.S. government is portrayed in a convincing, memorable, and entertaining way.

3/5