Lynne Ramsay’s 1999 debut film is arguably one of the masterpieces of 20th-century depictions of childhood poverty.

Eileen G’Sell
Eileen G’Sell is a poet and critic with regular contributions to Hyperallergic, Reverse Shot, The Hopkins Review, and The Riverfront Times, among other publications. In 2019 she was nominated for the Rabkin Prize in arts journalism. She teaches at Washington University in St. Louis. More on her writing can be found here.
As a Mockumentary About Celebrity, Nowhere Inn Just Bores
In this film about stardom, the viewer has nowhere to appreciate and connect with the characters and concepts.
For Udo Kier in Swan Song, Flamboyance Is Its Own Redemption
Todd Stephens’s new film is a celebration of willful, collective flamboyance that flourishes within small cities.
In Who You Think I Am, Juliette Binoche Transcends Mid-Life Crisis Stereotypes
Binoche plays a woman who is ultimately accountable for herself and doesn’t pretend to be any better than she is.
Brilliant? Hatable? Annette Is Both (and Neither)
It remains to be seen whether future critics will see the film as contrarian triumph or empty provocation.
Ema’s Visuals Ignite the Screen, but Its Story Ultimately Flickers Out
Director Pablo Larraín doesn’t trust his own filmographic brilliance, and lets the story take over in the end.
The Willful Jouissance of Hannah Wilke
Wilke’s joyful effusions were a reminder of the limitlessness of the body’s creative potential.
QTPOC Artists Mine the Power of Intimacy
The Self Maintenance Resource Center is a living archive of personal, creative, and intellectual inspiration for artists.
A Coming-of-Age Film That Sidesteps Cliché
Ena Sendijarević’s debut feature, Take Me Somewhere Nice, follows a young Bosnian refugee as she sets off to visit a native country she no longer knows.
The Darker Side of Keith Haring
The exhibition “Keith Haring: Radiant Gambit” presents a more complicated — and certainly more interesting — take on an artist best known for his zippy visuals.
The Art of Looking at, and With, Animals
Gunda and Stray reveal how difficult it is not to romanticize the lives of other animals.
In Sound of Metal, There Are No Small Sufferings
Darius Marder’s Oscar-nominated film is less about the Deaf community than about the process of losing a sense inextricably tied to one’s identity.