Contributions from Saffron Maeve | Little White Lies

Contributor Saffron Maeve

Colourful cartoon characters in dark, fantasy setting with vibrant hues of pink, blue, and yellow.
Review

Wendell & Wild

by Saffron Maeve

Stop motion leg­end Hen­ry Selick teams up with com­e­dy mas­ter­minds Jor­dan Peele and Kee­gan-Michael Key for his much antic­i­pat­ed return to the big screen.

3
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
A group of people, including women and children, standing or seated in a rustic indoor setting. The image has a dark, moody tone with muted colours and lighting.
Festivals

Women Talking – first-look review

by Saffron Maeve

A group of women meet in secret to dis­cuss escap­ing their abu­sive, iso­lat­ed colony in Sarah Pol­ley’s adap­ta­tion of Miri­am Towes’ novel.
Closeup of a person's face covered with medical bandages in a dimly lit setting.
Review

Earwig

by Saffron Maeve

A young girl with ice cubes for teeth comes of age in strange ways in Lucile Hadžihalilović’s dis­turb­ing and ellip­ti­cal latest.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Two older men sitting at a table, one with grey hair and glasses, the other with long hair, speaking to each other.
Review

The Humans

by Saffron Maeve

A whole­some fam­i­ly gath­er­ing becomes a claus­tro­pho­bic cham­ber piece in the hands of first-time direc­tor Stephen Karam.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Two men seated on a sofa, one older man with glasses and one younger man.
Festivals

The Humans – first-look review

by Saffron Maeve

Stephen Karam adapts his own Tony Award-win­ning fam­i­ly dra­ma with the help of an impres­sive ensem­ble cast.
Two people, a man and a woman, standing in front of a blue car at night. The man has grey hair and is wearing a light blue shirt, while the woman has blonde hair and is wearing a beige blouse.
Festivals

The Forgiven – first-look review

by Saffron Maeve

Jes­si­ca Chas­tain and Ralph Fiennes spend a fate­ful week­end in Moroc­co in John Michael McDonagh’s scabrous class satire.
A young person with dark hair being held by the face by an adult hand, wearing a yellow top.
Festivals

Earwig – first-look review

by Saffron Maeve

A mid­dle-aged man tends to a young girl with ice den­tures in Lucile Hadžihalilović’s ellip­ti­cal Eng­lish-lan­guage debut.
Group of people wearing black clothing and sunglasses, with one person wearing a gold-coloured dress, in front of a banner that says "GHOST WORLD".
In Praise Of

In praise of Ghost World’s Bollywood-inspired opening credits

by Saffron Maeve

For a film that active­ly dis­en­gages from pop­u­lar Amer­i­can cul­ture, the Indi­an dance sequence is a per­fect fit.
Aerial view of a coastal city with silhouetted figures on a ledge against a hazy sky.
In Praise Of

Trust No One: The lingering paranoia of The Parallax View

by Saffron Maeve

Alan J Pakula’s pre­scient 1974 polit­i­cal thriller sees War­ren Beat­ty infil­trate a shady organisation.
Two people, a woman and a young child, sitting at a table and eating.

Revisiting The Kid’s pancake scene 100 years on

by Saffron Maeve

Char­lie Chaplin’s debut fea­ture as a direc­tor con­tains a brief moment of lux­u­ry in a film marked by scarcity.
Mechanical insect-like creature with large wings and intricate details, displayed in a darkened room with warm lighting and a wooden roof structure.
In Praise Of

An auteur and his flying machine: Brewster McCloud at 50

by Saffron Maeve

Robert Altman’s long-over­looked satire reflects the director’s frus­tra­tions with the Hol­ly­wood stu­dio system.
Intricate masks, bright red and gold, with fierce expressions.

We need to talk about Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom…

by Saffron Maeve

I loved Steven Spielberg’s film grow­ing up, but its offen­sive Indi­an stereo­types make it hard to watch today.