religion
In this Tribeca Film Festival Round-up, Stephanie Archer looks at the films she saw that found that dominated their central focus and inspiration in oppression, fear and freedom.
A trio of staggering performances by Hawke, Seyfried, and Cedric the Entertainer, a gripping story that mines our current sociopolitical landscape for philosophical fodder, and typically formidable writing make First Reformed a mandatory watch for everyone.
Oscar Wilde enthusiasts won’t get too much out of Al Pacino’s Salomé films, though Jessica Chastain fans will want to check them out to see her first performance on the big screen.
First Reformed had its U.S. premiere at SXSW, with Paul Schrader and Ethan Hawke in attendance. First Reformed brings Paul Schrader’s career to a full circle, with both strong Bressonian and Taxi Driver influences.
![Were you familiar with Mary Magdalene before you read the script? Garth Davis: Not in a deep, detailed way, but in the movies I have seen before and in the way everyone kind of understands. When I read this it was a completely different version, so that got me curious. I started to investigate it in a deeper way and found it astonishing it has taken us so long to put that story out there in a more popular light. Extraordinary really. It was definitely different than the story I grew up reading in the bible. I remember when the Passion of the Christ came out, an actor got struck by lightening during shooting. Anything like that happen on set for you? Garth Davis: There were a couple of pretty amazing moments. When we were shooting the scene of the exorcism, where the family was exorcising Mary in the Sea of Galilee, just before we were about to walk into the water the wind just completely stopped. Completely still, almost on cue, right? Then suddenly lightening appeared all over the ocean. It was unbelievable! So much so, that when shooting the scene I had to paint it out. It just felt like a trope, you know? People would have thought it was a visual effect. [laughs] Wow!Garth Davis: The other one was during a scene on the beach of Magdala. I did a drawing of the location and I wanted to add some smoke in the background. So we went down to the Recee, and as I was standing there, smoke emerged exactly where I was drawing it (laughs). It was one of those moments where you have to ask if something was guiding us in some way.](https://www.filminquiry.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/MV5BNDc5ODE4OTQxNl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODEzOTcyNDM_V1_SY1000_CR0014991000_AL_.jpg)
Garth Davis proves once again his skills behind the camera can help uplift middlebrow material, but only to a certain extent, Mary Magdalene significantly undercut by the increased familiarity and conventional storytelling.
We delve into the works of Carl Theodor Dreyer, the Danish director that is behind some of the greatest masterpieces in cinema, among them Vampyr, Gertrud and The Passion of Joan of Arc.
Aimed squarely at Christian audiences looking for inspirational family entertainment, Samson is a preachy and plodding drama that’s light on excitement, action or any real sense of spirituality.
Hazem Fahmy examines The Big Sick and its failure to dive into the complexities and challenges of hybrid, first-generation identity Muslim Americans.
Saturday Church is a story of hope and redemption and yet another “need to see” tale, of a group of people deemed “different” by society, that ends up proving how alike we all actually are.
The arresting visuals at their most peculiar would be the biggest reason to recommend Sheikh Jackson, but it’s worth watching as a good coming-of-age story with a nuanced depiction of faith and a strong character arc at the centre.
Diablo Cody’s directorial debut was made back in 2013, yet got buried so deep it’s easy to not know it even existed. After watching Paradise, it became clear why it never got a proper release five years ago.
The Catholic Church and religion in general are often centerpoints for certain films throughout history; Michelle Sabato gives her take on a few of the most impactful in her personal experience.
Thelma is an otherworldly take on the coming-of-age film, telling the story of a girl starting college and discovering herself in the process.
Despite a chilling concept and a serviceable lead performance, The Faith Community still leaves a lot to be desired.
The deliberate pace can test your patience but the depth and ambition of this original debut are enough to make Novitiate worth a watch.