Kamran's areas of interest include formalism, realism & reality, affect, and notions of the aesthetic. With experiences as a TA, an event panelist, a presenter at conferences from UofT to Harvard, and a writer of a self-authored film blog, Kamran would like to share with others his profound interest in the profilmic in the hopes of inspiring, in them, a similar love for film.
A visual essay by master filmmaker Aleksandr Sokurov, Francofonia fits well within his directorial oeuvre, blending fantasy, fiction, memory, philosophy, and theatrical presence into an exceptionally poetic mode of filmmaking. Unfortunately, with Francofonia, Sokurov’s intellectual sensibilities have perhaps gotten the best of him. Rather than…
Our Little Sister, the latest feature by Hirokazu Koreeda, acclaimed Japanese filmmaker known for warming hearts with touching stories, is a tremendously emotive family drama with amiable, multi-layered characters we truly come to care about. The story follows a family of three sisters, a healthcare provider who acts as the responsible mother…
László Nemes acclaimed feature debut, Son of Saul, marginalizes dense content of concentration camp activities through its distinct but abusive cinematic style. Though immediately calling one’s attention to its unique visual rhetoric, wherein a mobile camera fastened into selective focus follows Saul (Géza Röhrig) move about the camp, the film’s potential to…
Porumboiu’s The Treasure is an effective deadpan comedy with dry, satirical content and a resigned tone despite guffaw-worthy exchanges. It is made almost entirely of medium to long two and three shots, with little cinematic flourishes. But this conventional cinematic rhetoric is not in any way a hindrance to the film’s emotive power; instead, the film’s…
With Cemetery of Splendour, Apichatpong Weerasethakul has perhaps made his most accessible film. Dealing for years with spirits, dreams, and mediums, Weerasethakul’s narrative arcs have often plagued viewers in their search for meaning or personal connection. But with Cemetery of Splendour, though all these features exist, Weerasethakul’s careful direction…
Thematically focused on the notion of dignity, Measure of a Man is a humanist film in the vein of the Dardenne Brothers, which explores through hand camera cinematography the details of a frustrated man’s life. It measure’s man’s livelihood in the current business-economic state of society which places capital and commerciality above human qualities…
The original Portuguese title Que Horas Ela Volta? translates to “What time will she come back?”, words stated twice in The Second Mother, first by Fabinho in regards to his mother’s constant leaving for work, and second by Jessica as she remembers feelings since childhood. Thematically, the film deals with separate classes in Brazil and how families may…
Through its sparse aesthetic design and meditative rhythm, Embrace of the Serpent recalls the austere nature-focused films of Werner Herzog and Apichatpong Weerasethakul, to name a few. Shot in super 35mm black and white and boasting a wonderful mise-en-scene with gorgeous imagery of the Amazon River and Jungle, the film transforms the…
Stronger in theory than in execution, Garrity’s Borealis boasts a dense script and meaningful direction which is somewhat undermined by flawed character motivation, contrived plot developments, and a slogging comedy-crime arc. Perhaps a bit indulgent to start, when the film reaches its cathartic closure, much of this seeming indulgence is forgiven through…
Bunuel meets Hitchcock in this absurd dark comedy thriller full of deadpan humour and Bernard Herman-esque string motifs. In a dystopian world of the future, people are meant to become couples and loners and transformed into animals. At The Hotel, single people from The City are given 45 days to find a partner or risk being turned into an animal. Helping…