Movie reviews of Filipe Freitas

A better script might have helped, but without it, this one shapes up as another manipulative nonsense that rarely dares to be smart. The characters don’t convince and the film ultimately frustrates by not knowing its own limitations. In the face of these predicaments, I’m actually upset about how little the movie even tried to escape inveterate clumsiness. Review

Despite glimpses of a hard-earned affection, Koreeda’s road movie is a soulless exercise that sinks the cast in a dry land of forced, melodramatic resolutions. Review

One can easily connect with the young women’s personal conflicts thanks to the sensitivity of the acting and a concern for realism in the direction. Even pedestrian in places and smeared with a jumble soundtrack, Girl Picture is an observant coming-of-age picture with real substance. Review

Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris is both funny and full-bodied, pleasurable and bouncing. It’s the type of cozy, uplifting film that can easily brighten someone’s day. Review

Anchoring his period drama with a killer cast, Giannoli expresses his desire to mix lyrical and satirical spark, but he draws the film out and comes nowhere near Balzac’s serial novel. A word of praise for Belgian cinematographer Christophe Beaucarne, whose refined taste for visuals is remarkable. Review

While the film's goal is to pay homage to Saint Nectarios, it never goes beyond stilted representation. The narrative plummets with its conventional tone, and then the whole film with its stiff formality. Review

Bringing a fair share of lingering images and scares, the director also makes it too long and stuffy, in a typical case where less would be better. Nonetheless, the acting is pretty decent and the sound design by Chatchai Pongprapaphan plays effectively throughout. Review

Not reaching extraordinary levels but eluding sentimentality thanks to the director's taste for realism and the accuracy of the performers, the film observes clinically and documents appropriately the particularities and difficulties of bipolar patients. Review

Superiority, mercy, compassion, and atonement are dutifully stitched into a diagrammatic patchwork that captures better the gut-ache of a broken 12-year marriage than anything else. A restrained, tepid tone is maintained throughout a drama film that should have added a little extra bite. Review

Colorful but with no major throbs, this uninspired walk in nature seems content with a few vaguely droll sketches that can get excessively wearisome. Review

The performances hit the right notes and both the scenario and the moral dilemma are credible, and yet they lost the battle with 152 minutes of slow pacing and silences that cause a certain boredom. Review

In the absence of a formal audacity, the result, limited yet not unpleasant, comes without surprise: a finger of golf, talented actors and 105 minutes of popcorn movies. Review

This Thor flick is the compendium of all things that should not be done when it comes to superhero movies. And the ludicrous parody keeps rolling at the sound of Guns N’ Roses’ powerful hits. Review

Even generating some character-driven circumstances, Rhino can’t sustain its momentum. Review

The choppy editing denies the film a rhythm, making it a little stiff. Even missing great opportunities and far from mind-bending, this more-lugubrious-than-austere doc is pelted with an eeriness that lingers after the final credits roll. Review

The only reason to see it is Tom Hanks. At first you won’t believe your eyes, seeing him buried under prosthetic facial work. His performance is so appropriate, contrasting with that one of Austin Butler, who never convinces as the title character. Review

It’s eccentric, noisy, provocative, and punchy in the social commentary; the visual aspect is disciplined; the sound processing is disorienting; and the ensemble cast is simply phenomenal (what an off the wall chemistry between Asa Butterfield and Gwendoline Christie). A bit out there, indubitably, but totally worth a watch if you're into gritty cinema. Review

This mindfulness of doomed romance and life disorientation is very real, and the two aspects are intelligently combined. Review

Painful into-the-lens confessions bolster the tone with a desperate, beseeching stare, while Tindersticks’ wistful song, which gave the film its title, cuts to the heart as soon as the final credits roll. It’s one of those cerebral love triangles that does not resolve in any form. Review

Mentioning Hitchcockian voyeurism would be too strained and nothing here is going to knock you off your feet, but the film keeps us entertained and pretty much on the edge of our seats until the end. Review

Shot with a vague poetic sense and employing a sensory staging that draws energy from people and the naturalistic surroundings alike, this film immerses us in an uncanny environment, almost between the real and the surreal. Review

The Black Phone quickly reveals its true face: a clumsy thriller that drags its ambitions far beyond its means, forging ahead with the kind of conviction that will keep horror thriller junkies sitting bolt upright. Are you there? Hello? I’m hanging up now… What a shame! Review

In the end, Yerzhanov, who co-wrote the script in partnership with Roelof Jan Minneboo, manages to make us feel some sympathy for the devil. Review

The directors spin this provocative low-key story with smart observations on obsession and character, finding the appropriate form while distilling nerve, charm, and some eccentricity in the mix. There’s art within a film that also seeks to be a form of stylish art itself. And it succeeds, categorically. Review