There’s a quiet magic at work in Sophy Romvari’s feature-length debut. Fresh off an incredible run on the festival circuit, this indie darling has been hailed by many respected critics as the best film of the year. Romvari has made no bones about how personal this film is to her, and I think that brings up a lot of interesting questions about autofiction. Centered around a young girl whose brother is struggling with his mental health, it’s a tender film that is full of beautifully-composed...

When the original Faces of Death (1978) became a ghostly presence haunting local video stores, hidden behind beaded curtains alongside the pornos, humanity had a very different relationship with death and film. Sure, morbid visuals had existed since the Vietnam War was first broadcasted on TV screens in suburban living rooms, but that was wildly different from what we see today. Spend enough time on any social media platform and you’re likely to witness something traumatizing with only a...

One of the most pernicious lies about Palestine’s colonization is that it is an ‘ancient’ conflict. This narrative attempts to obfuscate the (very recent) role played by the British empire, and imperialism at large, in the hopes of creating a kind of fatalism in those naïve enough to take such ridiculous claims at face value. It’s a way of saying ‘they’ve always fought, and there’s nothing we can do about it, so just let the oil and money flow.’ This is why Annemarie Jacir’s new historical...