What If Cinema

21/01/2022

Tim Roth reunites with his 'Chronic' writer-director Michel Franco in the austere character study 'Sundown', now playing in select U.S. cities. Nick Kouhi shares his thoughts on their latest project, co-starring Charlotte Gainsbourg and Iazua Larios.

Bleecker Street

'Sundown', the newest film from the controversial Mexican auteur Michel Franco, is now in U.S. theaters. Nick reviews the film, which reunites the director with his 'Chronic' star, Tim Roth, and features Charlotte Gainsbourg and Iazua Larios.

21/01/2022

For the U.S. release of 'Sundown', writer-director Michel Franco ('New Order', 'After Lucia') and actor Iazua Larios sit down with Nick Kouhi to talk about the film, working together for the first time, and some of the surprises they encountered during the project.

Both director and actor sat down to talk with critic Nick Kouhi about the film, their respective approaches to the project, and the common value they found in the element of surprise.

14/01/2022

The recipient of a 14-minute standing ovation at last year's
Festival de Cannes, check out Nick A. Kouhi's review of , the visually rapturous new anime from Studio Chizu now playing in select US theaters.

スタジオ地図 GKIDS

Recipient of a 14-minute standing ovation at last year's Cannes Film Festival, Nick reviews Studio Chizu's 'Belle', the newest film from Academy Award-nominated anime wizard Mamoru Hosoda ('Mirai')

08/12/2021

In conversation with Juliane Lorenz - Head of Fassbinder Foundation

08/12/2021

December 8th at 4pm CET/Berlin time on What If Cinema Twitch, YouTube and Facebook channels/pages.

© Rainer Werner Fassbinder Foundation / Juliane Lorenz

This Wednesday, to kick off our , we're thrilled to be joined by a prominent figure of the German Cinema. Juliane Lorenz is an editor and actress whose close collaboration with Rainer Werner Fassbinder has proven to be the stuff of legend. Her work as editor on Fassbinder's films in the second phase of his career gave shape to some of the most beloved classics in his massive filmography, including "The Marriage of Maria Braun", "In a Year of 13 Moons", and "Veronika Voss". Juliane is the head of the Foundation, whose mission to preserve and restore Fassbinder's numerous theatrical features, television movies and theatrical pieces has introduced his inimitable brand of piercing melodrama to succeeding generations of filmmakers from around the world.

Beginning at 9 AM CST/4 PM CET/3 PM GMT, we will be livestreaming a conversation between Juliane, Nicola Passaroto, and Nick Kouhi on our Twitch, YouTube and Facebook channels. Follow along and submit your own questions to Juliane in real time to hear about her extraordinary career. It's a conversation not to be missed!

22/11/2021

We're delighted to announce a livestream conversation we're hosting today with Emily Wright!

Emily is a film programmer, curator and filmmaker who grew up in Portugal and now lives in London. She is currently completing her MA in Film Curation at the National Film and Television School (NFTS). She is on the selection committee for Porto/Post/Doc: Film & Media Festival, and is the co-founder and curator of Ficción/no/Ficción at the Cinemateca de Bogotá – a showcase exploring new tendencies in nonfiction and ‘hybrid’ cinema. She has worked for various festivals including Open City Documentary Festival, MIDBO and Sheffield Doc/Fest. Alongside her curatorial work, she continues to work as a freelance producer and creative consultant on nonfiction films.

Join us at 7 PM GMT (1PM CST) here to hear Emily talk about her career as well as her newest season, 'The Edge of Belief', screening this December at Close-Up Cinema in London!

21/11/2021

Attention all cinephiles! We're working on a number of exciting events in the months ahead, with special focus on Fassbinder, transnationalism, and Jonas Mekas' centennial. We're looking for people who love film and love writing about film to submit work on the movies they love! While we're primarily seeking out pitches for essays or articles for our website, we are also accepting pitches for video essays which will be featured on our YouTube channel! If you're interested, shoot us an email at [email protected]. We can't wait to hear from you!

19/11/2021

"...I think the job of the filmmaker, from a certain perspective, is not so much to create things than to put into connection things which are not necessarily connected in real life."

Read our exclusive interview with Radu Jude on his new film Bad Luck Banging or Loony P**n.

Magnolia Pictures

Acclaimed filmmaker Radu Jude sits down to talk with us about his outrageous new satire 'Bad Luck Banging or Loony P**n'

19/11/2021

Now playing in select US cities, here's our review of Radu Jude's Golden Bear-winning provocation Bad Luck Banging or Loony P**n.

Magnolia Pictures

Nick reviews 'Bad Luck Banging or Loony P**n', the controversial, Golden Bear-winning film from Romanian New Wave auteur Radu Jude. Now playing in select U.S. theatres.

06/11/2021

Now screening on LE CINEMA CLUB for free, our streaming pick for the week is Joanna Hogg's student film "Caprice".

WomenFilmmakers

Tilda Swinton tumbles through a fashion magazine in Hogg’s mod, ecstatic thesis film.

29/10/2021

More thoughts and more reviews coming out from the Twin Cities Film Fest on the independent documentary and the new sci-fi drama starring Riz Ahmed.

Nick continues his coverage of the Twin Cities Film Festival by writing about the independent documentary "Paradise Strong" and the sci-fi family drama "Encounter", starring Riz Ahmed.

27/10/2021

As the Twin Cities Film Fest gets under way, Nick takes a look at the two gala screenings which opened the festival, including Wes Anderson's highly anticipated The French Dispatch and the Benedict Cumberbatch biopic The Electrical Life of Louis Wain.

For the opening night of the Twin Cities Film Fest, Nick reviews the gala screenings of Wes Anderson's "The French Dispatch" as well as the Benedict Cumberbatch biopic "The Electrical Life of Louis Wain"

22/10/2021

Exclusively on our YouTube Channel! Happening now. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRv_DTjKJOw

A conversation with video essayist and programmer Leigh Singer

18/09/2021

We're honored to be talking with the team behind SANDSTORM, which just had its world premiere at this year's Venice Film Festival. Among our guests will be the film's writer/director Seemab Gul, editor Raluca Victoria Petre and cinematographer Alberto Balazs. We'll be livestreaming our chat right here on our page starting at 4:30 PM GMT. Follow along and submit your questions for this extraordinary team of filmmakers!

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La Biennale di Venezia National Film and Television School

12/09/2021

It was an absolute pleasure hosting Elle on our livestream discussion tonight. We'll be uploading her conversation with Nick onto our YouTube Channel later this week, but in the meantime follow Not Like Us and be sure to grab your tickets for the screenings at the Genesis Cinema at the link below:

https://genesiscinema.co.uk/GenesisCinema.dll/WhatsOn?Film=24101057

National Film and Television School

12/09/2021

We are LIVE in 15 minutes with Elle for our livestream chat about her season Not Like Us! Keep your eyes peeled to this channel for the Q+A and follow along with your own questions!

11/09/2021

We're delighted to be hosting a brilliant new voice in the industry for one of our livestreams!

Elle Haywood will be joining us Sunday night at 9:00 PM, GMT where she'll be in conversation with Nick A. Kouhi about her career as a freelance critic and programmer, including her latest season, . Tune into our Twitch, Twitter, and Facebook channels for the talk and to submit your own questions to Elle!

National Film and Television School

11/09/2021

We're constantly cooking up something new here at What If Cinema. Stay in the loop with our newsletter, which includes exclusive content from our featured guests, highlights from the past week, and more.

10/09/2021

Now expanding throughout several North American cities, here are our thoughts on the seven films included in the Festival de Cannes-debuting COVID anthology film "The Year of the Everlasting Storm", featuring new shorts by Jafar Panahi, Laura Poitras, and Apichatpong Weerasethakul.

NEON

Seven filmmakers from around the world produce films about the COVID-19 Pandemic in "The Year of the Everlasting Storm". Nick shares his thoughts on his favorite shorts featured in this omnibus.

10/09/2021

Paul Schrader's follow-up to his superb First Reformed is another moody study of an isolated man. Check out our thoughts on the politically pointed and emotionally blistering The Card Counter, featuring Oscar Isaac in a carefully calibrated performance. Now playing throughout North American theaters.

Focus Features

Nick takes a look at 'The Card Counter', the highly anticipated new film from Paul Schrader. Does it stack up to his finest works or fall apart like a house of cards?

10/09/2021

Now playing in select theaters, the extraordinary life of climber Marc-André Leclerc is explored in "The Alpinist". Check out our review in the link below.

The life of rock-climber Marc-André Leclerc provides the beating heart of the new documentary 'The Alpinist'. Nick shares his thoughts on this look into a singular talent and his philosophy of adventure.

10/09/2021

For the release of "The Alpinist", filmmakers Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen sat down with us for an interview about the making of this visually stunning and poignant documentary about Marc-Andre Leclerc.

Brette Harrington Red Bull

Filmmakers Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen sit down to talk about the making of their newly-released documentary 'The Alpinist', a compelling and poignant portrait of the life and death of Marc-André Leclerc.

03/09/2021

Released in theaters today in North America, here's our review of the Brazilian cyberpunk-samurai genre hybrid "Yakuza Princess".

Magnet Releasing

Nick Kouhi reviews "Yakuza Princess", a cyberpunk samurai action adventure set in an alternate future Brazil.

20/08/2021

Now playing in limited theatrical release in North America, "Moments Like This Never Lasts" is Cheryl Dunn's documentary on the notorious artist Dash Snow. Check out our review in the link below.

Utopia Movies

The notorious life and career of Dash Snow is explored in Cheryl Dunn's 'Moments Like This Never Last', now streaming and in select theaters. Nick shares his thoughts on this affectionate and gritty documentary.

13/08/2021

"For me, the cinema is not a slice of life, but a piece of cake."

Which masterwork from the Master of Suspense hits the sweet spot for you?

09/08/2021

One of our favorite films to tour the festival circuit in 2020, "Days" is getting a limited theatrical release in North America beginning this Friday from Grasshopper Film. Take a look to read Nick's thoughts on the latest meditative masterwork from Tsai Ming-Liang.

Ahead of its US theatrical release, Nick takes a look at 'Days', the latest meditation on loneliness from the Taiwan New Wave master Tsai Ming-Liang.

07/08/2021

Now playing in US theaters, here is our review of David Lowery's The Green Knight. Click the link below to read Nick's thoughts on this revisionist Arthurian epic from A24.

Nick takes a look at 'The Green Knight', David Lowery's Arthurian epic from A24. Now playing in US theaters.

06/08/2021

Opening today in limited release across North America, Nick takes a look at "Swan Song", the final film in Todd Stephens' Sandusky Trilogy, starring screen icon Udo Kier as you've never seen him before.

Magnolia Pictures

Screen legend Udo Kier plays against type in 'Swan Song', an independent comedy about one hairdresser's homecoming. Nick Kouhi reviews.

30/07/2021

We were heartbroken to hear about the fire at the Cinemateca Brasileira which destroyed countless archival prints, documents and equipment. We at 'What If Cinema' believe, above all, that film culture anywhere and everywhere must be preserved for future generations. When any governmental body enacts policies which make that difficult, if not impossible, it's an affront toward what makes cinema such a richly multivalent tool for global connection. Our thoughts are with the archivists and technicians at the Vila Leopoldina site in the aftermath of what was a wholly preventable tragedy.

Trabalhadores da Cinemateca Brasileira

29/07/2021

"I will have spent my life trying to understand the function of remembering, which is not the opposite of forgetting, but rather its lining. We do not remember. We rewrite memory much as history is rewritten. How can one remember thirst?"

-Chris Marker, born 100 years ago today

Icarus Films Criterion Channel Forum