Tag Archives: romance

Blindspot 2016: Je T’aime, Je T’aime (1968)
A French science fiction slash time travel film with a hint of the New Wave, Alain Resnais’ Je T’aime, Je T’aime (1968) is a mysterious masterclass in beautiful direction and performances. Its synopsis is as follows: Recovering from an attempted suicide, a man is selected to participate in a time travel experiment that has only […]

Lars and the Real Girl (2007): Quick-shot review!
Originally posted on FILM GRIMOIRE:
Starring the beautiful Ryan Gosling, before his famous “hey girl” internet meme, Lars and the Real Girl (2007) is a compelling character drama about the titular Lars – a shy, anti-social, but sweet young man who lives in his brother’s garage. Lars has a fairly insular life and barely interacts…

Boy Meets Girl (2014): Quick-shot review!
A fairly groundbreaking independent drama with a straightforward story yet complex premise, Boy Meets Girl (2014, dir. Eric Schaeffer) is one of very few films with a transgender protagonist who is played by an actual trans woman. The film tells the story of Ricky (Michelle Hendley), a barista-slash-seamstress who operates a popular Youtube channel, with […]

The Spectacular Now (2013): “The best thing about now, is that there’s another one tomorrow.”
A surprisingly poignant and affecting teenage drama, The Spectacular Now (2013 dir. James Ponsoldt) captures the trials and tribulations of two young lovers who are the same age but at completely different stages in their lives. A synopsis: Sutter Keely lives in the now. It’s a good place for him. A high school senior, charming […]

Castaway on the Moon (2009): Quick-shot review!
A quirky Korean drama-comedy-romance hybrid, Castaway on the Moon (2009, dir. Lee Hae-Joon) tells the story of a man stranded on an island within his own city, and a woman who observes his predicament from afar. Kim Seung-geun (Jung Jae-young) is stricken with debt problems that he can’t escape, leading him to attempt suicide by […]

Before Midnight (2013): “This is how people start breaking up.”
The last of director Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy, Before Midnight (2013) catches up with Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy), nine years after their afternoon together in Before Sunset (2004), and eighteen years after their very first meeting in Before Sunrise (1995). Before Midnight is set during one day on the stunningly beautiful Greek Peloponnese […]

Before Sunset (2004): “Memory is a wonderful thing if you don’t have to deal with the past.”
The second film in Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy, Before Sunset (2004) allows us heartsick viewers to catch up with Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) again – nine years after their initial romantic encounter in Before Sunrise (1995). Jesse is now a published author, and has been travelling around Europe on a whirlwind book tour. […]

Before Sunrise (1995): “Isn’t everything we do in life a way to be loved a little more?”
The first of director Richard Linklater’s famed trilogy, Before Sunrise (1995) is a quirky yet bittersweet romantic tale about two young lovers who meet on a train from Budapest to Vienna. After being stuck next to an awkwardly argumentative couple on the train, Céline (Julie Delpy) moves seats and by chance sits near handsome Jesse […]

Lars and the Real Girl (2007): Quick-shot review!
Starring the beautiful Ryan Gosling, before his famous “hey girl” internet meme, Lars and the Real Girl (2007) is a compelling character drama about the titular Lars – a shy, anti-social, but sweet young man who lives in his brother’s garage. Lars has a fairly insular life and barely interacts with his brother and his […]