The Tamesis
Filled with musical fever dreams, majestic, garish and ambitious, Mona Fastvold brilliantly charts the rise of Shaker founder Ann Lee. Taking us aboard a creaking ship from 18th-century Manchester to the New World, a hallucinatory maelstrom of eerie folk songs and passionate dance as our heroine leads her people toward a more hopeful future. Yes, not all of it works, but so did the director’s last film, fauvismwhich she co-wrote with her partner and the film’s director, Brady Corbet. Ironically, this fictional biopic directed by the great was nominated for 10 Oscars and won three statuettes (Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, and Best Actor for Adrien Brody). As for this story about a real-life woman who achieved extraordinary things, made by a woman? Zilch, of course.
In my book, it deserves to be on the top ten Best Picture shortlist, but there are more glaring omissions: Amanda Seyfried’s performance in the title role, for example, is nothing short of masterful, totally committed, and totally deserving of being on the Best Actress shortlist. Add to that the exquisite costumes, precise production design, and a goosebump-inducing score by Daniel Blumberg, not to mention the magic of Fastvold weaving all of these elements together to create a magnificent period piece on a modest budget. When male directors make such significant transitions, they are praised; when female directors do so, they are often ignored.
How to watch: Purchase on Apple TV, Prime Video or YouTube.
left handed girl
Last year’s Oscar winner for Best Director, AnoraSean Baker co-wrote Zou Shiqing’s intimate family drama, which also marks her directorial debut. (She has been a long-time producer on all of his productions Tangerine and Florida Project arrive red rocketThis is a tender story about three women – a frazzled single mother (played by Cai Jiaer), her rebellious twenty-something daughter (played by Ma Shiyuan), and her cheeky five-year-old sister (played by Ye Nina) – who move from the countryside to bustling Taipei and set up a noodle stall in a crowded night market. Each is tormented by their own inner demons as they struggle to make ends meet. The film was submitted by Taiwan as a contender for the country’s best international film and made the Academy’s shortlist of 15 films in the field, but ultimately failed to receive a nomination. But that’s no reason to get addicted to it—it’s a devastating, heartwarming, moving portrait of female resistance, resilience, and solidarity.
