FILMS from AFAR

This ambitious documentary contains important messages and has generated buzz with its exposé of a popular fashion brand, though it doesn't fully reach its own goals. The title says it all: Brandy Hellville & the Cult of Fast Fashion. Indeed, there are two parallel story threads here: the exploitative practices and executive misdeeds at the global chain Brandy Melville, and how the cycle of production and disposal of cheap clothing creates slave-like working conditions and pollutes the planet. The former is disturbing, and the latter is alarming. The documentary's biggest weakness is that these two threads don't fully come together until the final 10 minutes of the film. Similarly, some of the more condemning information about Brandy Melville and owner Stephan Marsan is buried quite deep in the documentary. The same photos of Marsan are shown repeatedly, and the film's title masks its more serious aims. This all gives the sense early on that there might be no "there there," when in fact there is plenty of damning evidence to be found (much of it previously published by Business Insider). The target young-teen audience of Brandy Melville isn't likely to sit through this whole exposé or even necessarily understand all its implications, but slightly older teens and young women—like many of the film's interviewees—certainly will. This film and its multiple messages could have a positive impact. Read the full review at Common Sense Media.

In Pakistani psychological thriller In Flames, women are eternally vigilant for men looking to take advantage of them – physically, emotionally and financially. The film, Pakistani-Canadian director Zarrar Kahn’s feature debut, blends genres and employs supernatural elements to convey the relentless stress of their world. In Flames premiered last year in Cannes Directors’ Fortnight and was Pakistan’s entry to the International Oscar, a bold choice considering the condemning portrayal of inequality and violence against women in Karachi. Read the review at AWFJ.org

Formulaic romcoms depend entirely on the chemistry of their lead actors, and in this case, Lindsey Lohan and Ed Speleers make a sparky couple, and Alexander Vlahos is a pleasantly comedic foil. Lohan deserves better roles than, for example, her other most recent Netflix romcom, Falling for Christmas. Irish Wish allows her to show a bit more range, and she comes across as likable and believable within the limits of the genre. The formula (girl meets Mr. Right while pining for Mr. Wrong, preferably in a picturesque setting) is stretched with a fairy godmother (Dawn Bradfield, playing the impish Saint Brigid) and a pair of very likable and handsome love interests. The Irish setting is exploited for maximum local flavor (everyone in rural Ireland drinks stout at pubs and step dances, right?). In sum, predictable but watchable. Read the full review at CommonSenseMedia Images courtesy of Netflix

Fans of Schitt's Creek's Dan Levy might have hoped for more from his feature directorial debut, but this drama has enough to make its characters, central ideas, and locations a compelling watch. Good Grief aims to craft a heartfelt portrayal of the processes of grief and adulting in your thirties. Its trio of lead characters, best friends with complicated and intertwined love lives, are the kind of flawed but always-there-for-you relationships you might hope to have in your own life. (The lovely and likable Negga and Patel make sure of this.) Likewise, Levy's gorgeously curated settings and wardrobes, beginning with an overly staged opening holiday party scene and traveling from London to a Parisian flat at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, dream up a privileged world that it's hard to blame anyone for wanting to live in. His character does inhabit this world, which could make him less relatable for some viewers (imagine the Schitts having never lost their privilege). Levy's aware of this -- his character is called a "spoiled brat" by his best friend, and the third friend's partying goes from kooky to problematic. But the film isn't fully capable of piercing through its construction of this idealized world to convey the genuine study of love and loss it proposes. It's not until a scene deep into the tale where Levy and a new love interest, played by Arnaud Valois, share secrets over a late-night meal that it dawns on you the film hasn't yet allowed any of its characters this much profundity. The third act aims to remedy this by gently deconstructing what's been set up in the first two acts, just as its core threesome has to crack through the identities they've created to move on with their lives. Read the full review at Common Sense Media Images courtesy of Netflix

The first of two planned entries in a new franchise for Netflix makes for an accomplished visual spectacle, but the characters and scenarios are more predictable than likely intended. Much about Rebel Moon: Part One – A Child of Fire feels pulled directly out of the Star Wars universe. Technical innovations have improved the way new worlds can be brought to life in sci-fi and fantasy forays, and Rebel Moon packs some impressive sequences, costuming, effects, and general visual experiences. The problem comes more from the feeling that for all its technical prowess, the story lacks soul. You've seen it all before. Of course, the reality of franchise-driven Hollywood is that many audiences desire familiarity and predictability. Rather than the more mythical journeys of its obvious inspirations, like the Skywalkers or Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, Rebel Moon pulls its otherworldly characters down to our level and motivates them by basic human interests like childhood traumas, absentee families, and sexual desire. This certainly makes them easy to understand, but it also feels a little humdrum and less epic than the invented worlds and mega-production suggest. There's something very outdated as well in video game-inspired fight scenes and especially the macho posturing of soldiers, including attempted sexual aggressions. Read the full review at Common Sense Media Images courtesy of Netflix

You'll need to come in with some historical context to fully grasp or appreciate the staid, one-on-one interviews of this Spanish documentary. If you do, you'll find plenty of interesting material in Face to Face with ETA: Conversations with a Terrorist. The film has faced backlash in Spain for the whitewashing potential of giving a former ETA leader such a platform. The "terrorist" in question doesn't think of himself as a terrorist; he bristles, for example, at any comparison between ETA and religious-based jihadist movements, and he makes hazy parallels between ETA's victims and the "oppression" and misconduct by Spanish authorities. In fact, talk about the historical "repression and suffering of the Basque people" is an example of one area needing more explanation for international viewers. Other aspects won't go far enough for local viewers. Journalist Evole's questions are probing, and he attempts to point out inconsistencies, but he also lets Urrutikoetxea get away with significant ambiguities and abstractions. You can walk away unclear exactly what role he played in various actions. The film's stance is clear in its opening and closing explanations and its structure, with the main event bookended by interviews with a victim of ETA who finds out, for the first time and on camera, that Urrutikoetxea played a role in the attack on him. End credits conclude that ETA disbanded after nearly 60 years without having obtained a single one of its original goals and a quote suggesting ETA "never should have happened." Face to Face tackles the conflict from an intellectual position, but to get a sense of the gut-wrenching human impact of ETA's years of activity, see the emotionally charged miniseries Patria. Read the full review at Common Sense Media Images courtesy of Netflix

This family-oriented comedy-adventure is best when the humor balances the action, but when it descends into more graphic violence, it loses what makes it original and limits its age appeal. Wahlberg and Monahan make a great couple in The Family Plan, and the schtick of Wahlberg as a "suburban schlub" works. Highlights include scenes like Wahlberg fast-motion changing a diaper, fist-fighting a bad guy with his baby strapped in a front pack, and outrunning a group of motorcyclists while his family sleeps in the car (his wife's noise-blocking headphones blasting that most relaxing of crooners -- Enya). The script also crafts believable backstories for the bored wife, the teen daughter overly influenced by a bad boyfriend, and the teen son with a killer online gaming profile. When Dan throws their smartphones out the window, they're forced to face each other and connect again. Watching this transformation could feel realistic -- and maybe optimistic -- for parents today. But just when you're caught up in these characters' stories, the film changes tone to a darker, more violent actioner where personalities and story take a back seat to gun battles and knife fights. Things come back around at the end, but lightening up the brutality of the third act would have improved this film as a whole. Read the full review at Common Sense Media. Images courtesy of AppleTV+

Society of the Snow, Spain’s entry to the International Feature Film Oscar, landed a Golden Globe nomination for Best Non-English Language Feature. That could forecast a spot on the Oscar shortlist as well, which might come as a surprise. The International Feature category is often dominated by character-driven dramas with clear local flavor. Snow is a decidedly Hollywood-style disaster film backed by Netflix. The two technical-oriented European Film Awards Snow took home – best visual effects and best hair and make-up – might be more expected recognition for this film’s achievements. A production involving a team of 800 professionals and a complicated phased shoot across four countries, Snow boasts an impressive and memorable array of visceral effects and sequences, and this is where the film truly excels – more than in character development. Read the full review at AWFJ.org Images courtesy of Netflix

This documentary offers viewers a poignant glimpse into the refugee experience and, with it, a brief and perhaps too narrow view of a range of global socio-political scenarios. Though director Al-Kateab and the We Dare to Dream team have selected five athletes with compelling stories to follow, you get the sense that all of the members of the Refugee Olympic Team must have similarly harrowing and gripping stories. Look no further than last year's The Swimmers, a biopic about another member of the same team, for proof. Al-Kateab makes sure to introduce her own experience fleeing Aleppo, Syria (the topic of her prior film For Sama), a smart decision that instills trust in her as storyteller and informs some of her later conversations with her subjects. The film competently weaves the stories of the refugees together in phases, from introductions to back stories to performances at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games. Each person's experience surely deserves its own film, and you might be left wanting to know more details of what happened to send them all away from their home countries and into traumatic passages to new homes in refugee camps or Europe. But their stories will stay with you regardless. Read the full review at Common Sense Media. Images courtesy of Peacock.

High School Musical meets Bollywood in this adorably upbeat and slightly surreal Indian take on the Archie Comics. The Archies won't be everyone's cup of chai, with its beautiful cast, corny jokes, and wide-eyed love songs (and definitely don't question its historical accuracy). But if you're willing to suspend notions of reality and go along for the ride, it's an enjoyably eccentric flashback to classical Hollywood teen musicals with the originality of an Indian setting and cast. Bad guy Hiram looks like an East Asian Clark Gable, menacing mustache and all, and the gorgeous cast is dressed to the 1960s nines. Perhaps because of the imagined time and place, they pull off an innocence the High School Musical kids only play at. But its themes of loving your friends, making your community your home, and listening to young people are universal. Read the full review at Common Sense Media. Images courtesy of Netflix.

German director Wim Wenders’ deceptively simple, meditative, Tokyo-set Perfect Days demonstrates a masterful use of what the medium of cinema can offer. By pairing minimalist storytelling with modern settings, ambient sound with a nostalgic soundtrack, and moving images with unobtrusive dialogue and action, Wenders constructs a portrait of one man’s seemingly ordinary life that manages to both scratch away at what it means to be human and ask quintessential questions about what constitutes a life well-lived. Perfect Days is considered a top-runner among this year’s nominees to the International Feature Film Oscar, where it is representing Japan. It competed in Cannes last May and earned star Kôji Yakusho, present in virtually every scene, a deserved Best Actor award. Read the full review at AWFJ.org Image courtesy of Neon

Moroccan filmmaker Asmae El Moudir’s experimental, strange and riveting documentary The Mother of All Lies delves into secrets that her family, and her country, have kept for years. The film won the Best Directing award in Un Certain Regard at Cannes. Now it is Morocco’s nominee for the International Feature Film Oscar. Read the full review at AWFJ.org