Andy Howell

A Life Illuminated is an incredible film. It takes us to one of the most extreme places on Earth, it reveals previously unseen phenomena, it takes us on the journey of scientific discovery, and it is an inspiration.

Steal This Story, Please! is not just an important film but a great one. It will entertain, inform, and might even change your views about the world and the kind of person you can become.

The strength of Out of Plain Sight is that it dramatically illustrates both the importance and process of science and journalism, at a time when both are under attack.

The Eyes of Ghana leans heavily into the inspirational part of the story, and that’s understandable. Hesse is an inspiring figure, still fighting to preserve his country’s culture, restore film, and teach the younger generation, even in his 90s. But the film goes a little too hard on this point by adding soaring music and minimizing some of the complexity.

What Daniel Roher has done with well-worn forms is to use them as setups, but put them together with a twist in a way that seems fresh and exciting.

Linklater was a visionary experimenter in his youth, but now he’s grown into a true master, one able to buck the orthodoxy, not just for its own sake, but to achieve something transcendent.

The most beautiful thing about EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert is that in connecting us so intimately to the man and showing him in all his complexity, Luhrmann cuts through the baggage we bring and gives us a fresh look at one of the most fascinating and accomplished musicians who has ever lived.

Daniela Forever is interesting and provokes discussion, but it stays just on the dream side of greatness.

Overall, That They May Face the Rising Sun is solid and worth your time. The acting is top-notch, and the story is compelling, but its verisimilitude is truly off the charts. This is the closest you can get to a time machine to take you to a bygone time and place that is little celebrated but worth remembering.

The film is so gloriously absurd that we are mainly driven through the narrative by the continuous reveal of new elements in this bizarre and hilarious universe. Still, when everything does come together at the end, there are some emotional payoffs that sneak up on you like a wandering turkey.