Reel and Roll Films

Busan International Film Festival 2025 | Movie Review: “My Father’s Shadow” Seamlessly Blends Personal Memory and Historic Conflict in a Striking Feature Debut — ForReel “The juxtaposition between the personal and the collective in My Father’s Shadow is essential.”

Akinola Davies Jr.’s MY FATHER’S SHADOW has just been submitted as the UK entry for International Film for the upcoming Oscars. My review of this extraordinary film, one of the year’s very best so far.

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What a privilege it was today to attend a masterclass with the brilliant Sakura Ando, moderated by HK actress Chung Suet Ying. She was such a wonderful speaker and lovely presence, and spoke with such earnest depth on a wide variety of topics regarding her career.

Movie Review: "I'm Still Here" Leverages Compelling Performances To Deliver A Powerful and Devastating Political Drama — ForReel “Anchoring it all is the extraordinary tour de force leading turn by Torres, where motherhood in adversity delivered with restraint and quietude that makes it all the more emotionally devastating.”

As I’M STILL HERE continues expanding in cinemas across the world, resharing my review for this exceptional film.

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So many directorial achievements to celebrate for last year, that it was so hard to narrow down to just ten of them for my ballot; but my choice for the win is easily, without question, RaMell Ross’ extraordinary, groundbreaking work in NICKEL BOYS. #reelandrollawards2024

No surprises as to who gets my overall win here, with my favourite performance of the year taking the crown, but as always with Lead Actress: so much incredible work to choose from. #reelandrollawards2024

Glad to finally be able to give a win to one of my favourite actors, George MacKay, for his masterful turns as a gentleman, an incel and futuristic enigma in THE BEAST. Though the brilliance of Colman Domingo and Sebastian Stan’s work aren’t far off. #reelandrollawards2024

Was very tempted to call a tie on this one, as both Joan Chen and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor excel in providing such a powerful abundance of maternal/grandmaternal warmth, comfort but also complexity and heartbreak to their respective films. #reelandrollawards2024

All of my top 4 were under consideration for the win, as they are all fantastic in their own very different, distinct ways. My latest SING SING rewatch made me appreciate Clarence Maclin’s heartfelt, so naturally captivating work all the more. #reelandrollawards2024

For the second year in a row, my win goes to a New York playwright seamlessly making her feature film debut and bringing to life a deeply personal story. #reelandrollawards2024

Bertrand Bonello spinning such a bizarre, fascinating concoction of three timelines in THE BEAST from a Henry James short story takes my top spot here, but lots of fantastic works of adaptation here of different sorts. #reelandrollawards2024

Surprise surprise, another win for NICKEL BOYS for its immaculate editing by Nicholas Monsour (who also edited US and NOPE). #reelandrollawards2024

Without question my favourite ensemble of 2024 (the most egregious SAG snub) was SING SING’s unique collection of professional actors and alumni of the Rehabilitation Through the Arts program. I’d say all the ensembles here deserve more love on the whole. #reelandrollawards2024

Could wax lyrical all day about all these outstanding visual achievements. Ultimately, it’s the masterful, singular first person POV style of Jomo Fray’s cinematography NICKEL BOYS that is my top choice in a tremendous year. #reelandrollawards2024

Unsurprisingly, the spectacle of DUNE: PART TWO reigns supreme in my Visual Effects lineup. #reelandrollawards2024

The immersive soundscapes of everything from body horror to sci-fi, from action to natural disasters, from immersing us in the POV of two young men to the internal life of historical artefacts…so much varied, brilliant sound editing and mixing work. #reelandrollawards2024

No surprise which film takes my overall win, but what a year for makeup and hairstyling effects 2024 was. #reelandrollawards2024

So many stunning, gorgeous sets from last year to choose from; greatly enjoyed making this list, and could make another list of ten other equally deserving production design work. #reelandrollawards2024

Particularly tough for me to pick between the top two; lots of great costume work, period or contemporary, of our world or of another altogether, last year. #reelandrollawards2024

Happy CNY and Year of the Snake, everyone 😉

'Queen of Katwe' Demonstrates the Range of Mira Nair - The Asian Cut The Asian Cut reviews the movie Queen of Katwe, directed by Mira Nair, starring Madina Nalwanga, David Oyelowo, and Lupita Nyong'o.

"Nair knows exactly how to make the worldly struggles of its characters resonate, in turn emphasizing the heart-warming nature of Phiona’s successes," writes @reelandroll.bsky.social #MiraNair

'Universal Language' Is an Unorthodox Concoction of Canadian and Iranian Culture - The Asian Cut The Asian Cut reviews the movie Universal Language, directed by Matthew Rankin.

Finally UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE has come home. Already released in Winnipeg last week, Matthew Rankin's film opens in Montréal, Québec City and Vancouver this Friday!

Check out @reelandroll.bsky.social's review from Cannes 2024:

'No Other Land' Highlights the Bleak Reality of Fighting Against Oppression - The Asian Cut The Asian Cut reviews the documentary No Other Land, directed by Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor.

Nominated for Best Documentary Feature Film at the 2025 Academy Awards, NO OTHER LAND "doesn’t hold back in showing just how bleak and hopeless the resistance against oppression can be," writes @reelandroll.bsky.social #Oscars2025

🕺 💃🏼 🐵 #reelandrollawards2024

Plenty of fantastic action extravaganzas from last year; the brutal train action setpieces of KILL top my personal ranking. #reelandrollawards2024

The ten needle drops that left the biggest impression on me last year, with my win going to the haunting use of Roy Orbison’s ‘Evergreen’ in THE BEAST. #reelandrollawards2024

Next up in our #MiraNair Director Retrospective series is QUEEN OF KATWE: "Nair’s choice to shoot many scenes in Katwe’s local communities adds an extra layer of realism that makes it all even more immersive," writes @reelandroll.bsky.social

Read Calvin's ⭐⭐⭐⭐ review: https://buff.ly/3CqLOfN

Phenomenal year for scores and hated leaving so many great ones out. A particularly close call between my top 4, but a rewatch of CHALLENGERS a few days ago solidified the win of Reznor and Ross’ scintillating score, in what was a banner year for them. #reelandrollawards2024

Kicking off the Reel and Roll Awards with the Original Song category, where my winner was one of the easiest wins I’ve given in awhile. #reelandrollawards2024

Hope you love them both when you get to see them

My ranking of all the 20 acting nominees this year. On the whole I think pretty good, though not all my personal preferences