The Fifties: 2024 Edition

by Cláudio Alves 

DUNE: PART TWO is the nomination leader, with eight individual citations.

Some time ago, Nick Davis used to have an annual tradition on his blog, commemorating the landmark of fifty new releases watched with an awards roster of sorts. Going through different Oscar-y categories, it felt like a way to celebrate the year in cinema before all the buzzy releases took over the conversation. As a reader, I loved those lists, using them as recommendations and insight into a fantastic writer's taste. Moreover, between that and Nathaniel's Halfway Mark honors, I grew inspired. Thus, a personal tradition came to be, with me taking tally of my own imaginary ballots around the same period. This year, having reached the goal of fifty 2024 feature releases, I've decided to share my "fifties" with you.

Consider it a love letter to the films I've loved so far in the year. It's also my homage to two writers I've long admired and whose influence over my cinephilia is impossible to quantify…

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TIFF '23: A Dozen of Festival Highlights

by Cláudio Alves

The 48th Toronto International Film Festival ended last Sunday, but this coverage continues. Even so, it's time to bring things to a close, so here's the last batch of reviews, all capsules because we're running out of time. They span five continents and a dozen nationalities, comprising a trip around the world through the vehicle borderless vehicle of cinema. Directorial approaches are as distinct as the cultures depicted, from meta-cinematic musings to modern noir, from magical realism with a spring on its step to the slowest of slow cinema. Still, all the works deserve your attention. They are shining gems that prove how, despite assertions to the contrary, cinema isn't dying. At TIFF, it's alive and thriving…

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