MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON – ★★★★

Cute combination of stop-motion film over a real world setting about Marcel, a shell, with shoes on. The shell lives in a house that was previously lived in by humans, but is now an Air BNB. One of the visitors starts filming Marcel and his innocent take on the world around him. Many inventive moments of how Marcel manages to take care of himself and his grandma (voiced by Isabella Rossellini) It’s an American film with decent budget and overall was a great feel-good start to the last day of in-person MIFF 2022.

BROKER – ★★★

I was really looking forward to this film by Hirokazu Kore-eda, as I liked Shoplifters and Still Walking at previous MIFFs. Yet again, he is exploring the definition of what makes a family, and showing that it’s not necessarily just who you are blood related to. In this case, a young new mother drops her baby off at a church. The baby ends up in the hands of human traffickers who sell babies to parents that are having a hard time adopting. Overall I didn’t enjoy this one as much – I found some of it confusing, possibly in part to being a little tired, and a little tired of the various collection of people in the cinema who were showing up 15 minutes late, looking at their phones, sniffling and sneezing, or crinkling their potato chip bag to an extraordinary degree. Decided after this to enjoy the rest of the day at home and end my in person MIFF 2022 here.

A LOVE SONG – ★★★★

Fairly relaxed film with beautiful scenery shot in Colorado. A woman later in life is camping in a trailer on a lake, and waiting for the arrival of a friend from high school, who she hadn’t seen from decades. A few quirky scenes, but if you liked Nomadland, you’ll probably get value out of this, even if it mightn’t have been quite as good.

TRIANGLE OF SADNESS – ★★★★

A last minute booking based on positive feedback I’d heard about it. Directed by Ruben Östlund who did Force Majeure at MIFF a few years ago, this is a three part film centred mainly around a young model couple who are living a luxurious lifestyle of the super rich. The first two parts were great, and if the third was as strong, this might have been a favourite of the festival. Unfortunately the third part dragged a little, but nevertheless this satirical take on society and the have’s treatment of the have nots is interesting when the tables are turned.

SWEET AS – ★★★☆

A nice enough Australian drama, probably more targeted at a younger audience. It’s about an aboriginal girl who is placed on a minibus with three other at-risk youths, in part to give them a place to be safe from their environments (and themselves), while participating in photo expeditions. Nicely made and paced. This is what should have been advertised to MIFF audiences repeatedly instead of “6 Festivals”.

THE LONELY SPIRITS VARIETY HOUR – UNRATED

Probably unfair to rate this at all, as I couldn’t watch past the first 15 minutes. I’m not sure who would find it funny, but I was cringing. It’s based on a comedy stage show, so maybe the real thing worked better.

THE INTEGRITY OF JOSEPH CHAMBERS – ★★★★

American film about a man who is struggling a little with a need to be more of a tough guy, and decides to spend a day hunting at a friend’s property nearby, against the advice of his wife and friend. Things take a turn and the film explored how he fights against what he wants to do vs what he should. Well made, recommended.

THE QUIET GIRL – ★★★★☆

Sometimes when you read a book, or play a game, or in this case, see a film, you think when it’s done “Wow. Why can’t I always have this great an experience?”. Likely to be my favourite of the festival this year, this Irish film is a touching and emotional story about a young girl who spends her summer with family relatives. In her own family she is one of many children, times are tight, and parents are struggling to juggle. When she is left with the couple who have no children, she is sorely in need of love and attention. Seeing how their tenderness helps her grow is wonderful, and like The Playground, an incredible perforce by the young actress. A must see.