Festival Coverage Archives | Deep Focus Review

MSPIFF 2025 – Dispatch 2

Brian Eggert — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 19:19:40 +0000

The films below were screened at the 44th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF44), which runs from April 2-13. Check here for the full lineup and check back for additional dispatches. Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Deep Focus Review’s Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Quisling: The Final Days A timely historical drama that examines the complex, demented psychology of authoritarians, Quisling: The Final Days is a thoughtful Norwegian production about Vidkun Quisling, the Nazi collaborator who ran the puppet government throughout the occupation of Norway during World War II. Director Erik Poppe has explored similar subject matter before in The King’s Choice (2016), about the days surrounding the Nazi invasion of 1940. However, the helmer’s approach here proves far more spiritual and existential, probing the mindset of a man warped by his devotion to an ideology. It’s a rare film that reminds us that, while it’s easy to portray Nazis as evil monsters, beneath each one is a human being, albeit twisted to hateful and destructive ends. Screenwriters Siv Rajendram Eliassen and Anna Bache-Wiig based the material on the diaries of pastor Peder […]

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MSPIFF 2025 – Dispatch 1

Brian Eggert — Fri, 04 Apr 2025 13:20:21 +0000

The films below were screened at the 44th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF44), which runs from April 2-13. Check here for the full lineup and check back for additional dispatches. Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Deep Focus Review’s Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Free Leonard Peltier The opening night film of MSPIFF arrives with inbuilt controversy, but not for the reasons one might think. Directors Jesse Short Bull (Lakota Nation vs. United States, 2022) and David France (Welcome to Chechnya, 2020) provide a documentary account of Indian rights activist Leonard Peltier, who was serving consecutive life sentences for the murder of two FBI agents on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The FBI’s bogus and even fabricated evidence, detailed in the movie, has been contested many times over the years, and a lasting grudge on the Bureau’s part has kept Peltier in prison. Free Leonard Peltier explores the complex historical and sociopolitical conditions that led to the confrontation between the American Indian Movement (AIM) and the American government, from the US’s “belligerent occupation” of Indian lands to the breaking of treaties and […]

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MSPIFF Returns April 2-13

Brian Eggert — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 19:29:12 +0000

The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival returns to the Twin Cities from April 2-13. Organized by the MSP Film Society and hosted at The Main Cinema and other local venues, the MSPIFF will showcase over 200 films from around the world. In addition to the usual panels, parties, and eclectic lineup of features and shorts, filmmaker Ang Lee will be in attendance for a conversation, as well as screenings of his films Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) and Brokeback Mountain (2004). MSPIFF celebrates its 44th year in 2025 as one of the largest and longest-running film festivals in the United States. “We are firm and passionate believers in the power of the arts, and especially of film, to transport us, refresh our perspectives, enrich our understanding and connect,” wrote Susan Smoluchowski, the festival’s Executive Director. “If ever there were a time when we needed a chance to unite through shared interests, curiosities, aspirations and pursuits, this would be it.” Having attended MSPIFF for over 15 years, I always look forward to their lineup. Without fail, I see some of my favorite films of the year at the festival. This year, I will write about a cross-section of international, local, […]

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Twin Cities Film Fest 2024

Brian Eggert — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 20:33:28 +0000

The Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF) celebrates its 15th anniversary in 2024. One of Minnesota’s largest recurring cinema events, TCFF balances local and independent filmmakers with studio releases steeped in awards-season buzz. The festival will showcase 140 movies between October 17 and October 26, screening both in-person and online in a hybrid format. I’ve been attending the TCFF for over a decade, and it’s always been a great place to discover something new, engage with Minnesota’s rich film enthusiast community, and support cinema. Whether you’re keen to catch the season’s awards frontrunners or plan to nurture local creatives making their festival debuts, there’s something for everyone. This year’s opening night film is Focus Features’ widely praised Conclave, starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, Isabella Rossellini, and John Lithgow. The thriller, directed by Edward Berger (2022’s All Quiet on the Western Front), involves the frantic race to select a new pope and expose a conspiracy that could upend the Catholic Church. Already hailed as one of 2024’s best films, Conclave will debut after the festival on October 25. Other major and mini-major studio films include Searchlight Pictures’ Nightbitch, about a beleaguered mother (Amy Adams) who believes she’s turning into a dog at […]

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MSPIFF 2024 – Dispatch 4

Brian Eggert — Thu, 25 Apr 2024 14:11:35 +0000

These films were screened at the 43rd Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF43). Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Deep Focus Review’s Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Wildcat As a poet, novelist, musician, and actor committed to the art of his craft, Ethan Hawke also directs and, given his multihyphenate background, it’s no surprise he often makes films about artists. His directorial debut on Chelsea Walls (2001) found him adapting the play by Nicole Burdette about a group of artists staying in the same hotel. He made the screen version of his novel, The Hottest State (2007), about a young man in love with a singer. In 2015, he released a documentary about pianist Seymour Bernstein. And in 2018, his film Blaze captured the life of Austin musician Blaze Foley. Given his penchant for earthy creatives who struggle to balance life and art, Wildcat, a look at Flannery O’Connor’s life and short stories, feels apt. Sharing screenwriter credit with Shelby Gaines, Hawke makes his most stylistically experimental film, opening with a black-and-white sequence that looks like a mid-century melodrama. It signals the aesthetic playfulness […]

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MSPIFF 2024 – Dispatch 3

Brian Eggert — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 22:04:50 +0000

These films were screened at the 43rd Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF43), which runs from April 11-25. Check here for the full lineup and check back for additional dispatches. Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Deep Focus Review’s Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Shoshana With Israel and Palestine locked in an entrenched conflict, Shoshana, the latest from British director Michael Winterbottom, is bound to evoke strong feelings. Yet, the film lacks any sense of passion despite its potential to prompt debate about a hot-button issue. Winterbottom and co-writers Laurence Coriat and Paul Viragh tackle a heightened chapter of history involving the titular character, the daughter of socialist Zionism co-founder Ber Borochov. Set during the period of British imperialism over what was Mandatory Palestine in the 1930s, the narrative confronts how Zionists in both the Irgun and Lehi paramilitary groups, which eventually merged into one entity, learned a few things from their British oppressors. While the director often features documentary-level attention to history in his films, evidenced here by archival footage from the era, Shoshana presents a tale of star-crossed lovers whose political backdrop […]

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MSPIFF 2024 – Dispatch 2

Brian Eggert — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 19:09:11 +0000

These films were screened at the 43rd Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF43), which runs from April 11-25. Check here for the full lineup and check back for additional dispatches. Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Deep Focus Review’s Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Daughters Daughters, Angela Patton and Natalie Rae’s deeply moving documentary about the “Date with Dad” prison program, explores the vital connection between fathers and their daughters. CEO of the nonprofit Girls for a Change, Patton spearheaded the program, which gives men convicted of a crime a rare opportunity to bond with their daughters. The film informs us that most prisons have stopped allowing “touch visits” for incarcerated persons, preferring instead to monetize visits in a shamefully exploitative practice of charging families for video calls. What Patton’s program does is allow fathers and daughters to meet and reinforce their bonds through touch, a proven component of growth and development for children. The focus of Daughters is four girls among a group of many who feel a spectrum of emotions about their fathers, including separation anxiety, frustration, and a desperate yearning to […]

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MSPIFF 2024 – Dispatch 1

Brian Eggert — Sun, 14 Apr 2024 19:41:47 +0000

These films were screened at the 43rd Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF43), which runs from April 11-25. Check here for the full lineup, and check back for additional dispatches. Select films reviewed below will receive separate full-length writeups, some for their wider release, some exclusive to Patreon. In the meantime, here are some first impressions. Sing Sing The opening night film of any festival can set the tone for the days and weeks to come. For MSPIFF43, Sing Sing draws out feelings of profound empathy where little is usually reserved by society. Greg Kwedar’s new feature showcases the Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) prison program that allows those inside to express themselves creatively and, in doing so, heal. The film was based on an Esquire article titled “The Sing Sing Follies” by John H. Richardson, and it features a group of inmates staging an original play, Breakin’ The Mummy’s Code, written by RTA facilitator Brent Buell into a bizarre blend of time travel, Shakespeare, and various genres in which cowboys, pharaohs, and gladiators share the stage with Hamlet and Freddy Krueger. Kwedar’s film adopts a documentary-style realism to capture the real-life stories of those involved. The aesthetic, shot on […]

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MSPIFF 2024

Brian Eggert — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 16:55:48 +0000

The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) returns, celebrating the 43rd year of one of the country’s longest-running film festivals and certainly the largest in the region. The festival programmers have outdone themselves this year, scheduling over 200 films between April 11-25, 2024. Most features will screen at The Main Cinema, though the Capri Theater in North Minneapolis and the Landmark Center in St. Paul will also feature periodic festival titles. Besides films, the festival will host various get-togethers, panel discussions, and guest appearances, such as legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins and his partner James, who will attend to promote their new photographic book, Byways. Founded in 1962, the MSP Film Society has supported and built a home for international and independent cinema in the Twin Cities. With most of the arthouse theaters in Minnesota shutting their doors during the pandemic, The Main Cinema, operated by the MSP Film Society, remains one of the only theaters in the state to champion such under-the-radar films. Whether it’s the latest from IFC, Janus, or Magnolia; a new indie gem featured at their Cinema Club; or some cultish horror movie playing at their Midnight Madness screenings, the MSP Film Society has enriched the […]

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Twin Cities Film Fest 2023 – Dispatch 2

Brian Eggert — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 05:05:19 +0000

The Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF) runs in a hybrid format from October 19 to October 28. Order tickets or buy a streaming pass on the TCFF website, or check out the in-person screenings at the ShowPlace ICON Theatre at the West End in St. Louis Park, MN. Some of the short reviews below may be expanded into full-length reviews to coincide with the film’s official release. In the meantime, here are my initial impressions. Suitable Flesh Maybe I let my expectations get the best of me with Suitable Flesh. Going in, I knew it was an adaptation of an H.P. Lovecraft story, told in the style of directors Brian De Palma (Carrie, 1976) and especially Stuart Gordon. The latter filmmaker is known for his splattery Lovecraft adaptations, including Re-Animator (1985) and From Beyond (1986), both featuring scream queen Barbara Crampton. Seeing Crampton’s name among the credits for Suitable Flesh piqued my interest, given my affinity for her work in the late, great Gordon’s cult output. The feature even originated with Gordon’s usual screenwriter, Dennis Paoli, a horror scribe and longtime collaborator with genre icons such as Brian Yuzna (Society, 1989). All of this creative talent conspired to fill me […]

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