Berlin 2021 Archives - The Playlist

‘Dirty Feathers’ Is A Compassionate & Heartbreaking Look At Homelessness [Berlin Review]

March 10, 2021 1:57 pm

Filmed in glossy black and white, and adopting a non-judgmental vérité approach, director Carlos Alfonso Corral’s debut is a humanizing look at a small section of the homeless population in El Paso, Texas. “Di...

‘Natural Light’ Beautifully Explores How A Man Can Be Corrupted By The Horrors Of War [Berlin Review]

Jack King

March 8, 2021 12:21 pm

News, Reviews

It’s 1943. A particularly cruel winter has swept through the occupied Soviet Union. Its rural territories are an endless landscape of frosty forests, pocked with horse-swallowing sinkholes. Making do amid the ...

‘Stop-Zemlia’ Is A Sympathetic Portrait Of The Tidal Forces Of Teenagehood [Berlin Review]

Kevin Jagernauth

March 5, 2021 11:17 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

One year in the life of a teenager can feel like an eternity. The intensity of the fleeting romances, the wild swings between happiness and despair, the thrilling yet uneasy anticipation of a future that seems...

‘A Cop Movie’: An Incisive & Formally Daring Deep Dive Into Mexico City’s Police Force [Berlin Review]

Carlos Aguilar

March 4, 2021 9:57 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

The first thing to understand about the social dynamics in Mexico around police is that they differ greatly from how the public in the United States relates to law enforcement officers. Stateside, both the...

‘Introduction’: A Smaller, Quieter Addition To Hong Sang-soo’s Already Intimate & Delicate Touch [Berlin Review]

Caitlin Quinlan

March 4, 2021 9:47 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

As industry guests enjoy the Berlinale from home this year, eagle-eyed viewers will take pleasure in spotting a familiar location in the latest film from South Korean auteur and festival-regular Hong Sang-soo....

Despite Clichéd Aesthetics, ‘Tina’ Is An Emotionally Potent Documentary [Berlin Review]

Kambole Campbell

March 3, 2021 2:28 pm

News, Reviews

The latest from T.J.Martin and Daniel Lindsay, directors of “Undefeated” and “LA 92,” “TINA” looks like another documentary that came off of a factory line, complete with the usual panning shots of contact she...

‘Petite Maman’:Céline Sciamma Delivers An Intimate Tale Of Grief And Parenthood [Berlin Review]

Caitlin Quinlan

March 3, 2021 12:25 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

There is an unavoidable distance in life between ourselves and those who came before. Parents, grandparents; no matter how open and honest they are with their children or younger relatives, there is a sense th...

‘Brother’s Keeper’ Is A Damning Study Of The Ruthless Inertia Of Bureaucracy [Berlin Review]

Kevin Jagernauth

March 2, 2021 12:27 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

For the students at a remote boarding school for Kurdish boys, survival is a matter of course, particularly during the frigid depths of winter. The meals are meager, the heating doesn’t work, and even the prin...

‘Next Door’: Daniel Brühl’s Directorial Debut Interrogates His Own Life Doesn’t Dig Deep Enough [Berlin Review]

Caitlin Quinlan

March 2, 2021 10:47 am

News, Reviews

It’s always interesting to see what an actor will deliver as they make the step towards directing, and for "Next Door" director and star Daniel Brühl has not shied away from a premise that closely parallels, y...

‘I’m Your Man’: A Wry, Meticulous Dystopian Romance That Understands Just How Valuable Dan Stevens Is [Berlin Review]

Ella Kemp

March 1, 2021 2:10 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

There’s no doubt about it, it’s all in the eyes: an ice-blue stare, locked on you, promising satisfaction and loyalty without asking for anything in return. That’s what love is, and Dan Stevens is the humanoid...

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