Reviewed by Adam Donato

Review by Dan Skip Allen

Documentaries are stories about all kinds of subjects told from their perspective. What tends to be fascinating about the genre is how these films deal with all kinds of strange topics and people. The Penny Black might be one of the strangest stories I've watched in all the years I've been watching films.

The main subject of the film is a guy named Will who is the neighbor of a Russian guy named Roman and his wife Luba. Roman gets to know Will and he feels he can trust him, so he decides to give him a bunch of stamps in binders. He says he'll be back in two weeks to get the stamps, but if he doesn't come back to give them to his mother. The thing is Roman doesn't come back and Will has no way of locating his mother. The stamps lead him down a crazy path.

It turns out the stamps are worth around a million dollars and people are interested in them because of their value. This film has a lot of twists and turns that the filmmakers and subjects of it don't see coming. Is Will on the up and up? Is he telling the truth? Is this whole film a waste of time? There are a lot of questions to be asked and answered by the filmmakers. Will's past may come into focus to show what kind of person he is and where his motivations lie.

The mystery in this film is the main focus of it. It's a fascinating story told in a very interesting way given the documentary style. It seems to me this would have been better suited as a narrative film instead of a documentary. Maybe Will could have written a script instead of enlisting documentary filmmakers. This film doesn't have your everyday normal way of telling a story.

The film gets bogged down with interviews with Will. Talking heads can be informative in documentaries, but the conversation just seems a bit repetitive. After everything that happens, this whole film is just a cat-and-mouse game where Will is just trying to track Roman down. If this story has to come to its conclusion, it will determine if this film is a success or not. That's how it all started so it's the obvious conclusion to this strange and interesting story.

This film is an intriguing one. The main subject, Will, is a little shady. I couldn't figure out if he was telling the truth the entire time. This could have all been made up to get the filmmakers to follow him around and go down all these rabbit holes. His backstory may have played into this story in the end. Will started and ended this film on his terms.

The Penny Black hits virtual cinemas on May 21 and VOD on June 1.

Rating: 3/5

Review by Camden Ferrell

​Writer and director Michel Franco’s newest movie, New Order, premiered at the 2020 Venice Film Festival. It’s a movie that was conceived six years ago, but it somehow creates a dystopia that seems eerily relevant to today’s social and political climate. While Franco’s artistry is on full display in this movie, his message seems to get muddled in the chaos and senselessness of his own environment.
 
In Mexico, protests are rampant in the streets, and there is great unrest. Nearby, Marianne and her wealthy family are preparing for their wedding and having a gathering with their other high-class friends. However, the protestors soon come to crash the party and swiftly create chaos and class warfare. This is a really fascinating premise, and it has a lot of potential for action and strong and relevant themes.
 
Right off the bat, the movie is extremely tense from start to finish. Its opening act slowly crescendos until chaos erupts everywhere. In this regard, Franco excels at steadily raising tension until it comes to a head, and it’s one of the most commendable aspects of the film. For better or worse, the movie does not lose any steam at all in its runtime.
 
However, even though it is superficially entertaining, it sometimes lacks the depth that these social issues warrant. It’s so focused on the aesthetic and cinematic qualities of protests and riots without truly examining the conditions that lead to them. It hints at bigger themes that could have elevated the work, but it ultimately favors style over substance.

The movie has so many actors in such a short period of time that it was hard for any of them to stand out. If there was a lead actor, it would be Naian González Norvind who plays Marianne. She does a decent job at portraying the fear that comes with such brutality as shown in the movie. However, the rest of the cast is fairly forgettable.
 
This is a movie that will surely be misinterpreted by some viewers, and it’s partly the fault of Franco’s execution of certain key moments. It can sometimes come off as an indictment of the working class’ disdain for wealthy elites even though it appears Franco is merely telling a cautionary tale of a growing class divide. Either way, the chaos and graphic violence and assault muddle his message and will offput some viewers.
 
At under ninety minutes, the movie never loses momentum, but it ends much too soon. Franco could have easily spent another thirty minutes further developing his themes and characters, and this is why the film can feel somewhat exploitative. Horrific violence without the proper thematic exploration feels somewhat cheap and shallow. The movie is quite entertaining, but it definitely squanders its thematic potential.
 
New Order is a short, tense, and brutal story of class warfare. Its distinct chaotic visual style may not be for everybody, and it may lack the social awareness it warrants, but it’s an entertaining and brutal film.
 
New Order is in theaters May 21.
 
Rating: 3/5

Review by Sean Boelman

During its initial run, Master of None was one of the most acclaimed comedies on streaming, and it has been four years since the last season, in part due to controversies involving its creator and star Aziz Ansari. Even though it is very different from the show fans know, this is still some of the best serialized content out there.

This new season follows fan-favorite character Denise (Lena Waithe) and the relationship she has with her partner (Naomi Ackie). The award-winning episode “Thanksgiving” from the second season was centered around Denise’s story, so it makes sense that when the series was faced with a need to pivot, this was the most natural direction to take it.

At five episodes, this season is much shorter in length than the others, but it still flows quite well. Subtitled Moments in Love, each episode focuses on a portion of this love story. As a whole, it’s nowhere near as funny as the first two seasons, but perhaps even more poignant, exploring identity in a brilliantly intimate way.

The fourth episode is the strongest of the five, having some of the timeliest themes of the series to this date. Ansari and Waithe have explored some interesting topics in previous seasons, but in taking Denise from being a sidekick character to being the main protagonist, Waithe is given the opportunity to shine as a writer.

If the series has one true weakness, it is that the arc is somewhat conventional. The dialogue is consistently strong, making up for the fact that a lot of the beats are familiar. What makes this so resonant is not the story itself, but the authentic way in which it is told by Waithe and Ansari.

Waithe gives a strong performance in these episodes, expanding the fan-favorite character effectively. That said, the real standout this season is new addition Ackie, whose performance is star-making. The moments focusing on that character are among the best in the series thanks to the level of emotion Ackie brings to the character.

The season is also impressive in terms of its execution, albeit not to the extent of the gorgeous second season. All five episodes are shot on film, giving it a particular texture that adds another level of intimacy. And as always, the soundtrack is amazing, with some inspired song choices to set the mood.

This new season of Master of None might have been better off being a standalone series without any connection to the existing characters, but it’s excellent nevertheless. It will be interesting to see if future installments continue this trend of diving deep into the experiences of other supporting characters from the series.

Master of None: Moments in Love streams on Netflix beginning May 23.

​Rating: 4.5/5

Review by Dan Skip Allen

It's always nice to see new stories about or surrounding WWII. When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit is another such story. Foreign films have a way that is different about telling stories and making movies. American audiences are spoiled with the films we get here, but some of the best films are from other countries.

Adapted from a children's book, When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit is about the Kemper family that flees Germany on the brink of Adolf Hitler getting elected as leader of the country. The father, Arthur (Oliver Masucci), is a writer for a Jewish newspaper. He is one of Hitler's outspoken critics. So before their election, the family moves to Switzerland, and eventually to France in search of work. It's not easy finding work for a Jewish writer in Europe.

The family also includes mother Dorothea (Carla Juri). She has a great relationship with her husband and also her two children. Max (Marinus Hohmann) is the older of the siblings and is a good big brother to his little sister who just turned 10 years old, Anna (Riva Krymalowksi), a curious child who always asks questions and draws pictures. She has interesting relationships with people throughout the film, but she is a daddy's girl at heart. Father and daughter spend a lot of time contemplating life and its myriad of different oddities.

The film mainly focuses on young Anna. She is a bit mischievous and is always asking questions of her father, mother, classmates, and teachers alike. Kids are always very curious at this age, but she is more than normal. Using her as the eyes and ears of the film was a good idea by writer Judith Kerr and director Caroline Link. Adapted from the book of the same name, this is a nice way to educate children about these events surrounding the war.

This has a wonder to it through the eyes of this young girl. It has a curiosity we would all have at this age. Link brings us into this historical yet realistic world with a vision of a better world. Even though this family struggles at times they learn from every setback and no they get. All of this helps define them as people who know they deserve better than what they have gotten this far. These are all learning experiences for the children and parents alike.

Set in the shadow of the Swiss Alps and the Eiffel tower, Link vividly brings to life the world these people live in and travel to. The cinematography is first-rate without being too over-the-top. It helps to bring the viewer into the world this story takes place in. A world still beautiful and untouched by the evils that will come in a few short years. The hand of Hitler hasn't ravaged the Jewish people or decimated these beautiful locations just yet.

The film ran an hour and fifty-nine minutes in length. It moved along pretty well but maybe could have been shortened by about fifteen minutes or so. A lot of scenes involving school or travel could have been cut to make for a leaner runtime. This story was very good, but it didn't have a lot of standout moments like other films in this genre have had in the past. Anna's youthful innocence is the thread that keeps this film together.

This film is a beautiful one, to say the least. The foreign aspect made for a nice way to tell the story. The acting is fine by everyone involved, but the young girl is the standout among the cast. Link made a very enjoyable film with a great message of discovery. If it was a little shorter, it may have been a great film. That is a minor tidbit I have a problem with though. I look forward to more films from this director.

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit hits theaters on May 21.

Rating: 3.5/5