Contributions from Matt Thrift | Little White Lies

Contributor Matt Thrift

Man in hat standing next to woman with curled hair wearing a scarf, in a black and white film noir style image.
Review

Laura (1944)

by Matt Thrift

A new Blu-ray edi­tion pro­vides an oppor­tu­ni­ty to revis­it Otto Preminger’s sly­ly sub­ver­sive noir masterpiece.

5
Anticipation
5
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
Two people in outdoor gear, one in a red jacket and the other in a blue jacket, standing near a textured grey wall.
Review

An Elephant Sitting Still

by Matt Thrift

Hu Bo’s search for hope and human­i­ty in present-day Chi­na is a mon­u­men­tal debut tinged with tragedy.

2
Anticipation
5
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
An elderly woman sitting in a cluttered room, wearing a purple jumper and scarf.
Review

Dead Souls

by Matt Thrift

This eight-hour epic from Chi­nese film­mak­er Wang Bing chron­i­cles one of the worst atroc­i­ties in human history.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
Autumnal forest path, two figures walking on wooden boardwalk surrounded by yellow leaves and sunlit foliage.
Review

The Wild Pear Tree

by Matt Thrift

Turkey’s fore­most drama­tist returns with his most impos­ing and impres­sive film to date.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
A woman in a white bikini standing on the bow of a boat, with turquoise water in the background.
Festivals

The best new films from New Horizons Film Festival 2018

by Matt Thrift

Some of the strongest emerg­ing voic­es in world cin­e­ma took cen­tre stage at the Pol­ish festival’s 18th edition.
A young child sitting alone on a step, dressed in traditional clothing, staring off into the distance.

David Lynch’s ‘Room to Dream’ is an intimate, humanising self-portrait

by Matt Thrift

This won­der­ful new book is the most com­pre­hen­sive overview of the filmmaker’s life and career to date.
A man with dark hair, staring pensively with his hand on his chin.
Interviews

Hal Hartley: ‘I try to juxtapose the male gaze with female independence’

by Matt Thrift

The pro­lif­ic inde­pen­dent film­mak­er reflects on his career ahead of Hen­ry Fool’s 20th anniversary.
A black and white portrait illustration of a person with long, wavy hair, wearing glasses and a striped shirt, with a pensive expression and a hand raised to their chin.
Interviews

Lucrecia Martel: ‘History is more arbitrary than science fiction’

by Matt Thrift

It took the best part of a decade to bring Zama to the big screen. Its writer/​director tells us about her epic journey.
A woman in a polka dot top using a landline telephone.
Review

Unsane

by Matt Thrift

For­mal ambi­tion aside, there’s noth­ing out of the ordi­nary about Steven Soderbergh’s iPhone psychodrama.

4
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Headshot of a man in a suit with serious expression against colourful lights.
Review

Mute

by Matt Thrift

Dun­can Jones’ spir­i­tu­al sequel to Moon is a neon-drenched night­mare – and not in the way any­one intended.

3
Anticipation
1
Enjoyment
1
In Retrospect