LOVE LETTERS – ★★★☆

Deaf was a Spanish film I saw the other day about a deaf mother soon to have her first child, and some of the complexities involved. Today was a French film about two lesbians expecting their first child, and some of the complexities involved. It was set in the mid-2010s, shortly after same-sex marriage was legalised in France, and yet there were still legal and other barriers that stopped short of providing the couple the same experience that a hetero marriage would have, particularly in regards to the non-biological mother’s status as parent for their daughter. The casting and acting of the two leads was great. Overall I think it handled the topic well, and hopefully provided some insight to those less aware of the kinds of bias and extra friction that same-sex couples experience.

DREAMS (SEX, LOVE, DREAMS TRILOGY) – ★★★★

The third film in the trilogy of films. I’ve not seen the second of the three, but really enjoyed this one – better than Sex (yeah, I know, ha ha). About a young girl feeling love for her teacher, who writes down her thoughts and the many conversations about it.

SORRY, BABY – ★★★★

American indie film about an academic living her life in the small town where she attended university. It plays out in a few different chapters at different times and centres mainly about her sexual assault. It’s moving, and well told. Her friendships are touching, and while the topic itself is seriously handled, the moments of levity were also nicely balanced. Highly recommended. Something about it reminded me of Indignation from MIFF 2016.

ONE MORE SHOT – ★★★☆

Australian comedy set on New Years Eve, 1999. Using the Groundhog Day time loop trope, this film involves a woman attending a small NYE party. She is trying to win the affection of her backup-plan friend, who’s now found someone else. Every time she needs to reset, she takes a shot of tequila mezcal, and the night begins again. This kind of film has been done many times, but overall I enjoyed this one. It had a couple of kinks in the overall quality and pacing, but was easily enjoyable enough. The characters were a creative collection, I’d like to see them again in another story.

DEAF.- ★★★☆

Enjoyable Spanish film that crosses the intersection of the difficulties faced for any first time parents with the additional aspects faced around someone who is a deaf parent. It was really interesting to see some of the nuances that one mightn’t consider, being able to hear. The sections that presented the experience of the deaf mother from her perspective were really well done from a sound design perspective. The use of that seemed familiar to me, but I’m unsure if I’ve seen it done before or not.

THE LOVE THAT REMAINS – ★★★★

Icelandic film by Hlynur Pálmason, who did Godland at MIFF 2022. There’s something about the Scandinavian aesthetic that does it for me, and this was easily worth the time. I’m yet to figure out the magic of a film that is slowly paced but entertaining, vs one that is slow and painful to sit through. This was the former, covering a slice of time of a family whose parents are separated. It had an interesting mix of fantastical scenes, and I can’t help but feel I probably missed some thematic references. Much like one of the characters, it left me feeling a little bit floating out at sea.

TWINLESS – ★★★☆

American film about two young men who have lost an identical twin, and meet at a support group for those who’ve suffered such a fate. They both have a need, and find them generally met in the other as they build a new friendship. A nice watch, plenty of amusing moments and pretty well done for James Sweeney, who produced, directed, wrote, and acted in it. It felt a tad formulaic at points but not overly so, and I certainly wouldn’t say that every aspect was predictable. Great performances by the leads as well. Given that this is (I believe) only the filmmaker’s second feature film, I’m looking forward to seeing more by them in future.

IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU – ★★★★☆

Wow! What a way to kick off (sorry) MIFF 2025! After last year’s Memoir of a Snail, I felt like we’d reached peak opening night for MIFF, especially given some of the previous picks. It’s wonderful to have another film that blew me away. To some extent, the less you know going into this the better, but I will say that the acting across the board was excellent, the visuals were great, and the ability to create tension was spot on, without overplaying any. The story is about a mother (Rose Byrne) who is trying to hold everything together; managing the repairs to their family’s apartment, taking care of a sick child, and doing her full time work. It’s taking its toll, and she’s beginning to fall apart. I loved the way it portrayed mental health issues. It would pair well with another favourite film of mine in the past few years (ignore the poor ratings): Alison Brie’s Horse Girl.