This Swedish-Egyptian political thriller, directed by Tarik Saleh, delves into how an authoritarian regime stifles artistic freedom and life in Egypt. Eagles of the Republic wraps up a trilogy that addresses state and religious corruption, following The Nile Hilton Incident (2017) and Cairo Conspiracy (2022), both featuring Fares Fares. I haven't watched the first two …
FlixChatter Review: Daughters of the Forest (2026) – An ethereal, mesmerizing sci-fi documentary exploring the bond between humanity and fungi
I've been diving into a bunch of documentaries lately, and they're definitely one of my go-to genres. Daughters of the Forest is a genre-bending film that includes sci-fi elements blended with documentary filmmaking. It’s not a typical film where you just see people being interviewed on camera; instead, director Otilia Portillo Padua crafts a sensory …
FlixChatter Guest Review: BALLISTIC (2026) – Lena Heady is intense as a grieving, vengeful mother
Directed by Chad FaustStarring: Lena Heady, Hamza Haq, Amybeth McNulty, Amanda Brugel, Enrico Colantoni, Jordan Kronis Nance (Headey) is a munitions factory worker in a small Ohio factory town. As a proud working-class mom of military son Jesse (Kronis), things start to unravel when he is killed on a mission abroad by a bullet manufactured …
MSPIFF45 Announced 2026 Award Winners + FlixChatter’s Top 5 Favorites
The 45th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival has officially wrapped up. Perhaps the string of nice weather, with no snow in sight, attracted record-breaking crowds that shattered their previous daily attendance record—twice! I only managed to catch 11 films (two of them online), which is four fewer than I had hoped for. The reason? …
Continue reading MSPIFF45 Announced 2026 Award Winners + FlixChatter’s Top 5 Favorites
MSPIFF 2026 Review: HONEYJOON (2025) – A breezy, delightful mother-daughter comedy about navigating grief, set in the Azores
Film festivals are truly a great place to discover new voices. This is Lilian T. Mehrel’s fantastic debut feature, created when she won the AT&T Tribeca Untold Stories grant. I’ve always been into mother-daughter tales, especially since my late mom was a single parent who loved traveling, but we never got to take a trip …
MSPIFF 2026 Documentary Reviews: ‘The Chaplain & The Doctor’ and ‘The Cycle of Love’
Welcome to another double review edition. This time, I'm showcasing a pair of uplifting documentaries I saw at MSPIFF that exemplify the power of compassion, empathy, and love. I enjoy tales of unexpected friendships that develop in surprising places. Betty Clark, an 80-year-old African American chaplain, and Dr. Jessica Zitter, a white Jewish doctor, work …
MSPIFF 2026 Review: The Christophers (2026) – Ian McKellen + Michaela Cole form an unlikely bond in Soderbergh’s witty dark comedy
Steven Soderbergh is one of the best and most prolific directors of modern cinema, effortlessly transitioning between genres. Presence and Black Bag are two of my favorites from last year, and this versatile filmmaker moves from crafting a family ghost tale and a spy caper to a dark comedy centered on an aging artist. Ian …
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