Released in 1992, The Lover (L’Amant) by Jean-Jacques Annaud is an adaptation of Marguerite Duras’ semi-autobiographical novel. Set in French-colonial Vietnam in 1929, the film depicts tender yet haunting strains of a suppressed romance between a wealthy Chinese man and a French teenage girl. The film features exquisite frames, rich narration, and emotionally layered performances, […]
Introduction & Development No Hard Feelings is a 2023 American comedy directed by Gene Stupnitsky, whose previous credits include episodes of The Office and Good Boys. Jennifer Lawrence stars as Maddie, joined on screen by Andrew Barth Feldman, Laura Benanti, Natalie Morales, Matthew Broderick, and others. The role signals Lawrences first return to pure comedy
Introduction & Background 365 Days: This Day is a Polish erotic romantic thriller that debuted on Netflix on April 27, 2022. Co-directed by Barbara Białowąs and Tomasz Mandes, the film serves as a follow-up to the divisive 2020 original and picks up where that story left off, tracking Laura and Massimo through their tumultuous blend
Overview & Context Released in 2001, Sex and Lucia (Lucía y el sexo) is a Spanish romantic drama written and directed by Julio Médem. Widely regarded as one of the most sensual and emotionally powerful films of its decade, it intertwines themes of love, loss, fantasy, and narrative complexity. The plot unfolds through overlapping timelines
Overview & Origins Released in 2004 and directed by Mark Waters, Mean Girls is an American teen comedy penned by Tina Fey, who based the screenplay on Rosalind Wiseman’s book Queen Bees and Wannabes. With its signature humor and keen social observations, the film unpacks the messy politics of high school and the sometimes frail
Introduction & Context The Wrath of Becky is a 2023 American action-horror thriller directed by Matt Angel and Suzanne Coote. Written by Angel, the film picks up where the 2020 indie hit Becky left off, delivering a brutal continuation of its teen heroine’s story. Lulu Wilson once again steps into the title role, anchoring the
Background & Source Material The Wife, a 2017 drama from director Björn Runge and screenwriter Jane Anderson, draws on Meg Wolitzers 2003 novel and probes the emotional knots that can bind a couple over decades, even as public acclaim conceals darker truths. At its center is Joan Castleman, a gifted writer whose talent has long
Introduction & Background Oppenheimer , an epic biographical drama that hit theaters in mid-2023, finds Christopher Nolan both the writer and director behind its sweeping narrative. The film follows the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, portrayed by Cillian Murphy, as he heads the Manhattan Project-a classified wartime initiative that ultimately produced the first atomic bombs-and
Overview & Context The Blue Drum, a U.S. horror short released in 2022, marks Angelita Mendoza’s debut as both writer and director, while producer Alicia Herder oversees its production. Running just shy of seventeen minutes, the film first screened October 13, 2022, at the Latino Media Fest-NALIP; three days later it appeared at Screamfest Horror
The Ages of Lulu (Las edades de Lulú), a Spanish erotic drama from 1990, debuted under Bigas Luna’s direction and draws its story from Almudena Grandes’s 1989 novel. With Spain’s post-Franco society shifting quickly, the film pushes into taboo territory, examining sex, freedom, and obsession. Francesca Neri stars as Lulu, joined by Óscar Ladoire, María
