Family Romance, LLC (2019) | Directed by Werner Herzog

 4.5/5

Werner Herzog’s Family Romance, LLC is a Herzog film through and through, complete with the auteur’s obsessions about the blurred lines between performance and reality, as well as his penchant for narrative digressions and his delight in the imperfections that arise in the filmmaking process. Made on a tiny budget, the film’s handmade aesthetic and use of non traditional actors (mostly playing themselves and recreating and improvising situations similar to ones they’ve encountered) creates an eerie space where fiction and reality blur, placing us within the uncanny valley – where the approximation of real life is off just enough to keep us off balance and unsettled for the duration of the film. It’s a space where Herzog thrives. And he’s found the perfect collaborators in this film that asks us to question what it means to truly connect with another human being in an age where we’re so disconnected. As postmodern and intellectual as it is, Herzog and his cast never lose sight of the humanity at the center of these questions. It’s an approach that makes the film deeply moving and a work of incredible beauty.

Where to Watch

The Truth (2019) | Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda

 5/5

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s The Truth may be the first of the filmmaker’s works made outside of Japan, but he’s lost none of his unblinking honesty about the nature of family and the deep wounds we inflict upon one another over the years. On the surface, it’s a film that can feel slight and superficial – like any number of dramas centered around family and relationships. But as you keep peeling back the layers and examining what Kore-eda is doing with memory and the pain embedded within family dynamics – not to mention the weighted symbolism of playing Juliette Binoche off of Catherine Deneuve – you begin to see just how rich and complex a story he’s telling here. And unlike the acerbic comedies you’d get from a more European aesthetic, there’s a quiet honesty to Kore-eda’s approach with this story and a generosity that allows each character a moment of grace and their own reasons for action or inaction. This is an absolutely marvelous film.

Where to Watch

Emma. (2020) | Directed by Autumn de Wilde

 4.5/5

In spite of the film’s candy-colored sets and delicate finery, Autumn de Wilde’s adaptation of Emma. is as biting and acerbic a satire on class and privilege as you could want. Anya Taylor-Joy’s performance as the titular character is fantastic, and Emma is allowed to be an unlikeable protagonist whose journey of growth and self-discovery is believable, honest, and ultimately moving. Even the most ridiculous characters are revealed to have hidden depths and reservoirs of pain or heartbreak guiding their actions and behaviors. And de Wilde’s direction is stunning, with each frame richly composed – especially the head-on close-ups of characters which allow us to chart their every fleeting emotional change as it dances across their face. It’s an adaptation that proves Austen’s work is just as timely and relevant now as ever.