Alucarda (1977)

October 13, 2020

A young girl arrives at a convent where she and her new best friend awaken an evil presence.

MV5BNzJlYmZhNTMtMWM2Yy00MDZiLWJlOGMtMTRkOTEzYmZlZWQ5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,656,1000_AL_.jpg — Hagazussa (2017)

**Directed by: Lukas Feigelfeld**
**Starring: Aleksandra Cwen, Celina Peter, Claudia Martini, Tanja Petrovsky**
**Rated: NR (Suggest R for Disturbing Violent Content)**
**Running Time: 1 h 42 m**
**TMM Score: 4.5 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Directing, Cinematography, Story, Sound Design**
**WEAKNESSES: Pacing, Small Target Audience**

Hagazussa (2017)

October 5, 2020

A woman living in isolation faces judgement and persecution from a group of nearby villagers, who believe the woman to be a witch.

MV5BYjIxZWRjN2QtMTViZS00ODRlLWJkMmEtZTk0ZjQxN2EyMzM3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5MjA3OA@@._V1_SY1000_SX701_AL_.jpg — The Blood Spattered Bride (1972)

**Directed by: Vincente Aranda**
**Starring: Simon Andreu, Maribel Martin, Alexandra Bastedo**
**Rated: R**
**Running Time: 1 h 22 m**
**TMM Score: 3 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Dream Sequence, Atmosphere, Production Design, Weird Twist**
**WEAKNESSES: Mild Pacing, Thin Story and Characters**

The Blood Spattered Bride (1972)

October 4, 2020

Newlywed Susan is haunted by visions of a centuries-old woman who murdered her husband on her wedding night.

Audition (1999)

October 2, 2020

A widower takes an opportunity to screen girls at an audition arranged for him by a friend to find a new wife, only the girl whom the widower chooses to date is not at all who she seems.

Haxan: Witchcraft Through the Ages (1922)

October 1, 2020

A silent era documentary concerning medieval beliefs about witchcraft.

ar 1.jpg — Andrei Rublev (1966)

**Directed By: Andrei Tarkovsky**
**Starring: Anatoliy Solonitsyn, Ivan Lapikov, Nikolay Grinko**
**Rated: R**
**Run Time: 3h 25m**
**TMM Score: 5 Stars**
**Strengths: Cinematography, Thematic Coherence, Acting**
**Weakness: Length Maybe?**

Andrei Rublev (1966)

April 13, 2020

The life of the great Icon Writer, Andrei Rublev, is the backdrop for this exploration of Russia, its people, history, faith, atrocities, and glory, as only a true seeker of enlightenment can.

s+1.jpg — **The Sacrifice (1986)**

**Directed By: Andrei Tarkovsky**
**Starring: Erland Josephson, Susan Fleetwood, Allan Edwall**
**Rated: PG**
**Run Time: 2h 29m**
**TMM Score: 5 Stars**
**Strengths: Understated Tone, Long Takes, Thematic Integrity, Cinematography**
**Weakness: Maybe Pacing**

The Sacrifice (1986)

March 31, 2020

When WWIII threatens to annihilate his family and who knows how much of the rest of humanity, a retired aesthetics journalist and lecturer contemplates what he may be able to do to avoid cataclysm.

m 1.jpg — The Mirror (1975)

**Directed By: Andrei Tarkovsky**
**Starring: Margarita Terekhova, Filipp Yankovskiy, Ignat Daniltsev**
**Rated: G**
**Run Time: 1h 47m**
**TMM Score: 5 Stars**
**Strengths: Cinematography, High Concept, Lyrical Quality**
**Weakness: Confusing**

The Mirror (1975)

March 19, 2020

An aging poet remembers his life and the events which shaped Russia during it.

Nostalgia (1983)

March 13, 2020

A Russian writer, doing research in Italy, suffers an extreme bout of homesickness for Russia.

71X7eSTLYVL._SL1394_.jpg — Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000)

**Directed by: Bong Joon Ho**
**Starring: Sung-Jae Lee, Doona Bae, Ho-Jung Kim, Hee-Bong Byun**
**Rated: NR (Suggested R)**
**Running Time: 1 h 50 m**
**TMM Score: 3 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Unique Premise, Direction**
**WEAKNESSES: Unlikeable Characters, Pacing**

Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000)

March 6, 2020

A part-time college professor finds himself annoyed by a perpetually yapping dog and decides to take action.

h 1.jpg — Hunger (2008)

**Directed By: Steve McQueen**
**Starring: Stuart Graham, Brian Milligan, Liam McMahon, Michael Fassbender**
**Rated: NR**
**Run Time: 1h 36m**
**TMM Score: 5 Stars**
**Strengths: Acting, Cinematography, Themes**
**Weakness: NA**

Hunger (2008)

March 5, 2020

A group of young Irish freedom fighters/terrorists commit to not washing until their demands for political status are met. After some appeasement, but not all, are made, one man commits to a hunger strike that will most likely cost him his life

MV5BMTQzMTg0NDA1M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODUzMTE0MjE@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,697,1000_AL_.jpg — Mother (2009)

**Directed by: Bong Joon Ho**
**Starring: Hey-Ja Kim, Won Bin, Goo Jin**
**Rated: R for Language, Some Sexual Content, Violence and Drug Use**
**Running Time: 2 h 9 m**
**TMM Score: 5 Stars**
**STRENGTHS: Story, Characters, Twists**
**WEAKNESSES: -**

Mother (2009)

March 5, 2020

A mother desperately searches for a killer so that she can free her mentally-handicapped son, who has been accused of murder.

s 2.jpg — Shame (2011)

**Directed By: Steve McQueen**
**Starring: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale**
**Rated: NC-17**
**Run Time: 1h 41m**
**TMM Score: 4 Stars**
**Strengths: Acting, Cinematography, Brevity**
**Weakness: NA**

Shame (2011)

March 3, 2020

Sex addict and successful New Businessman, Brandon, has his life upended when his sister comes to stay with him and breaks his reserved and solitary lifestyle.

MV5BMTE3N2IwNmMtOGE0Ny00NWFlLTliNmUtNjY3ODExYjgxNmUyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxODk2OTU@._V1_SY1000_SX675_AL_.jpg — The Host (2006)

**Directed by: Bong Joon Ho**
**Starring: Kang-ho Song, Hee-Bong Byun, Hae-il Park**
**Rated: R for Creature Violence and Language**
**Running Time: 2 h**
**TMM Score: 4 Stars**
**STRENGTHS: Characters, Themes, Entertainment**
**WEAKNESSES: Stumbles a Bit Towards the End**

The Host (2006)

March 3, 2020

A monster from the Han River attacks Seoul while a father races to rescue his daughter.

d 1.jpg — Dogtooth (2009)

**Directed By: Yorgos Lanthimos**
**Starring: Christos Stergioglou, Michele Valley, Angeliki Papoulia**
**Rated: NR**
**Run Time: 1h 37m**
**TMM Score: 3 Stars**
**Strengths: Tone, Creativity, Acting**
**Weakness: Slow**

Dogtooth (2009)

February 20, 2020

An insular family’s strange yet serene life is upset as the children come of age and want more than their sheltered existence.

MV5BNzBkNWMxMTItNDhkNy00MDJmLTk3YTEtYTdmY2JmM2U2MTY3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_.jpg — Female Prisoner Scorpion: #701's Grudge Song (1973)

**Directed by: Yasuharu Hasebe**
**Starring: Meiko Kaji, Masakazu Tamura, Yumi Kanei**
**Rated: NR**
**Running Time: 1 h 29 m**
**TMM Score: 3.5 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Fun, Style, Pacing, Meiko Kaji**
**WEAKNESSES: A Bit Superfluous**

Female Prisoner Scorpion: #701's Grudge Song (1973)

February 20, 2020

The final chapter in the Female Prisoner Scorpion series.

918VSOuI0qL._RI_.jpg — Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable (1973)

**Directed by: Shun’ya Ito**
**Starring: Meiko Kaji, Mikio Narita, Reisen Ri, Yayoi Wantanabe**
**Rated: NR (Suggested R for Graphic and Disturbing Violence and Nudity)**
**Running Time: 1 h 27 m**
**TMM Score: 3.5 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Style, Story**
**WEAKNESSES: Not As Much Fun as Previous Entries**

Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable (1973)

February 19, 2020

Matsu the Scorpion is sheltered by a woman whom is being abused, while an old prison mate, the police, and a cop whose arm she hacked off hunt her.

MV5BNDJjOWE3NjAtYjMyYS00NzI3LWI1NzktNjg1YmY5MjI0NjU2L2ltYWdlL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5MjA3OA@@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,711,1000_AL_.jpg — Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972)

**Directed by: Shun’ya Ito**
**Starring: Meiko Kaji, Fumio Wantanabe, Yukie Kagawa, FUdeko Tanaka**
**Rated: NR (Suggested R for Graphic Violence and Nudity)**
**Running Time: 1 h 30 m**
**TMM Score: 4 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Style, Direction, Story, Action, Fun**
**WEAKNESSES: Sleazy/ Exploitative (?)**

Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972)

February 18, 2020

The second entry in the Female Prisoner Scorpion series. After being locked in solitary confinement for a year, Matsu the Scorpion escapes with a van full of prisoners and flees across a surreal landscape.

MV5BMDYxODQ1NzItMDI0Ny00NjFmLWIzNWMtN2U0YjM2ZGRkZDA5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjQ1MjYzOTQ@._V1_.jpg — Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (1972)

**Directed by: Shun’ya Ito**
**Starring: Meiko Kaji, Rie Yokoyama, Yayoi Watanabe, Natsuyagi Isao**
**Rated: NR (Suggested R for Graphic Violence and Nudity)**
**Running Time: 1 h 27 m**
**TMM Score: 4 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Style, Story, Fun, Influence**
**WEAKNESSES: Sleazy/ Exploitative (?)**

Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (1972)

February 17, 2020

After being betrayed by detective she had fallen in love with, a young woman is sent to a prison full of violent prisoners and guards.

MV5BZmMyNzg3MGYtZTllNS00MjVjLWI0NmQtMTZlNzBmZjBjZTZmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjgyNjk3MzE@._V1_.jpg — The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

**Directed by: Jacques Demy**
**Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuovo, Anne Vernon, Marc Michel, Ellen Farner**
**Rated: NR (Suggested PG-13 for Thematic Elements)**
**Running Time: 1 h 31 m**
**TMM Score: 5 stars out of 5**
**STRENGTHS: Catherine Deneuve, Music, Direction, Cinematography, Unconventional Story, Themes**
**WEAKNESSES: -**

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

February 14, 2020

Lovers separated by war face life-altering decisions.

Search the Archives…