Reviews

With senior science correspondent Jon Cohen on hand to praise, provoke or even hector, David France’s Thessaloniki opener is an absorbing, thoughtful and challenging film that benefits from unparalleled access to the most prominent figures in the fight for a vaccine - from bench scientists to giant pharmaceutical companies, from government agencies to front-line workers.

Both a gentle portrait of city life as viewed from an upstairs window and a charming study of the relationship between a father and his young and playful daughter, Malintzin 17 is an absorbing gem of a film…short, sweet and given additional poignancy when the provenance of the footage from which it is edited is finally revealed.

Driven by the force of nature that is Natalya Sindeyeva, the charismatic proprietor of Russian TV station Dozhd TV, F@ck This Job offers a fascinating, and highly sobering, insight into the media landscape under Putin, and the challenges of delivering independent and ethical journalism there.

Despite its story being based on a convoluted deception, there is something bizarrely innocent about the true story of Scotland’s ‘teenage’ trickster Brandon Lee. Presented with gentle allure this documentary/animation hybrid strikes just the rights chords as it balances teenage charm with genial irreverence.

Alain Gomis’ documentary on Thelonious Monk, which world-premiered in Berlinale Forum, is like a diamond in the rough, unpolished but of incredible valuable, showing the legendary jazz musician in his truest form. It depicts a man who doesn’t care about presence, fame and glory, interpretations of his music, or others' opinions. He just cares about music.

Seldom is a hybrid documentary as clear-cut as Une fleur à la bouche by French director Éric Baudelaire, world-premiering in Berlin Forum. Preceded by images of the world’s largest flower market, a 1923 play by Pirandello suddenly appears as a reflection on the nature of documentaries. Are they, in essence, escapist distractions? Or rather, reminders of the value of life?

Like so many documentaries made over the past few years, the spectre of Covid hangs over Constantin Wulff’s For the Many: The Vienna Chamber of Labour. But in this instance it actually helps to reinforce the good works and compassionate intent of the Chamber of Labour (AK), as this official legal representative for employees acts as the daily point of contact for people who are fighting for their rights within the workplace.

Filmmakers Amélie van Elmbt and Maya Duverdier offer an intriguing look behind the plaster dust and scaffolding of New York's iconic Chelsea Hotel as they talk with a handful of the remaining residents, all frustrated and often angry about having to live in a building site, but all aware of their part and place in the story of this bohemian institution.

The first thing to note about Everything Will Be OK, world-premiering in Berlinale Competition, is that you will have never seen anything quite like it. And that in itself should be enough to make you want to experience the latest work by Cambodia’s leading arthouse filmmaker, in which animals in the near future have taken over the role of totalitarian tyrants that we, as humans, have so far reserved for ourselves.

Young love has been a mainstay of film and television drama for many years, but rarely, if ever, has it made the transition to documentary. The delicate, challenging and complex emotions that define young love are at the gentle heart of this film from Olivia Rochette and Gerard-Jan Claes, a hybrid film that is honest and subtly moving without ever being exploitative or traumatic.