30th June 2026

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014, dir. Wes Anderson)

To state the obvious: this film is absolutely gorgeous visually. I adore how the sets give the impression of fondant on a cake, it feels fitting for a film about the artificiality of luxury. There's definitely something to be said about how the film's pastel visuals contrast with the growing undercurrent of fascism throughout. The characters were all delightful and I also really loved the "story within a story within a story" framing. It's given me an itch for more films like that.

27th June 2026

Only Yesterday (1991, dir. Iwao Takahata)

Taeko's character is so deeply relatable it almost makes you ache. I've found myself recently caught up in memories of my child self just like she is, so I feel like I couldn't have watched this at a better time. The movie captures how your childhood chases you, how the faces of people you haven't seen since you were small imprint on your mind, perfectly. It really put the "algia" (in the sense of an ache) in "nostalgia".

21st June 2026

I Saw the TV Glow (2024, dir. Jane Schoenbrun)

I couldn't move for the entire duration. It left me with a deep ache in my chest and I wouldn't trade that for anything. Horror surrounding the rejection of queerness, the rejection of transition, as opposed to queerness As the horror/monstrosity is something I can never get enough of and the final few scenes shook me. What a stunning and devastating movie.