Headhunters is an edge-of-your-seat Norwegian thriller based on the eponymous novel by best-selling author, Jo Nesbø. With more plot twists and turns than a rattlesnake in heat, this dark Scandinavian gem ignites the screen like the pyromaniacal love child of the The Fugitive and Die Hard, with shades of Hitchcock thrown in for good measure.
A cinematic experience that evokes the spirit of Fellini or Rossellini, with the lush cinematography and social satire that has always been such a grand tradition in Italian cinema. With The Great Beauty, director Paolo Sorrentino pays homage to the hidden beauty of The Eternal City, while at the same time commenting on the moral and ethical decay of a city, a people and probably society in general.
An epic revenge drama based on the true story of Phoolan Devi, the Bandit Queen, this film highlights the dire circumstances of young girls in India, who are forced into, often abusive, arranged marriages with older men. It also touches on the problematic issue of caste, where power is usually in the hands of the upper castes, with little or no recourse to legal protection for the lowest castes.
Turkish director, Ceylan’s almost ethereal meander through the Anatolian steppe draws you into an existential dream world, simultaneously mysterious and ancient. Although beautifully filmed, it is telling that a movie with no special effects, and on the surface a very simple story line, can reverberate with universal themes long after the final credits have rolled across the screen.
