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The Rest is Silence: This Romanian movie is about the birth of film-making itself, and tells the story of Grig Brezianu, a young silent filmmaker who is eager to shoot the movie of his country’s War of Independence. To do so he needs a backer and he finds one in the eccentric millionaire Leon Negrescu who loves the theatre but is quickly won over to cinema. The escapades of the cast and crew are entertaining, the film both funny and intelligent and the photography captures pre-WWI Europe. It all seemed to be building towards a really interesting conclusion but the last five or ten minutes were a let-down.
All Inclusive: A Mexican family travels to an all-inclusive beach resort and all their issues bubble to the surface. Sometimes it’s neat to see a genre so American set in another culture but while this film is polished and well-acted the content is pretty obvious. A medical test result is mentioned and we know that someone is dying, the weather channel mentions a storm and we know a hurricane is coming. There are surprising moments though, and enough laughs to make it worthwhile.
Tricks: Stefek is an adorable but dirty boy in a crumbling Polish town. His mother rarely makes an appearance but his sister Elka is his hero. From her he has learned that sometimes bargains and sacrifices can trick fortune. This has worked to help a stranger sell apples, but will it help Stefek manipulate the commuter who he is convinced is his absent father? This acknowledgement of the existence of subtle magic in everyday life is charming and the film is subtle and affecting in its portrayal of these siblings.