Blog — 3 Brothers Film

Imagination and Individuality: Youth in the Films of Studio Ghibli

The films of Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata capture profound truths about youth.

Essays, Yesterday's CinemaAren BergstromJuly 8, 2016Studio Ghibli, Castle in the Sky, Only Yesterday, Grave of the Fireflies, My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited AwayComment

Review: Independence Day: Resurgence (2016)

Undeniably stupid, but still fun and arguably camp.

Review: Three (2016)

A grand exercise in precise chaos.

Reviews, The Current: In Theatres, Aren's ReviewsAren BergstromJune 29, 2016Cheung Siu-fai, Johnnie To, Lam Suet, Lo Hoi-pang, Louis Koo, Three, Wallace Chung, Zhao WeiComment

Review: Free State of Jones (2016)

Interesting from a historical perspective, and McConaughey doesn’t disappoint, but Free State of Jones is a muddled mess of a film.

Reviews, The Current: In Theatres, Aren's ReviewsAren BergstromJune 17, 2016Free State of Jones, Matthew McConaughey, Keri Russell, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mahershala Ali, Gary RossComment

Optimism and Pessimism in Tomorrowland

A blinkered vision of human nature and achievement.

Review: The Nice Guys (2016)

A reminder of what an adult Hollywood comedy can look like.

Reviews, Aren's Reviews, The Current: In TheatresAren BergstromMay 27, 2016Angourie Rice, Anthony Bagarozzi, Keith David, Kim Basinger, Margaret Qualley, Matt Bomer, Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling, Shane Black, The Nice GuysComment

Table Talk: The Jungle Book (2016)

Anton and Aren discuss the film's animation, themes, and conflicting natures.

RoundtablesAren BergstromMay 13, 2016Ben Kingsley, Bill Murray, Christopher Walken, Disney, Giancarlo Esposito, Idris Elba, Jon Favreau, Justin Marks, Lupita Nyong'o, Neel Sethi, Rudyard Kipling, Scarlett Johansson, The Jungle BookComment

HotDocs2016: Random Acts of Legacy and No Cultural Value

Worthwhile acts of preservation.

Reviews, The Festival CircuitAnton BergstromMay 7, 2016Ali Kazimi, Chinese-American, documentary, home movies, Hot Docs, Hot Docs 2016, Manitoba, Mike Maryniuk, No Cultural Value, painting, preservation, Random Acts of Legacy, sculptureComment

Defend What You Like (or Why I Don't Believe In Guilty Pleasures)

The term “guilty pleasure” is antithetical to film criticism and a healthy film culture.

Essays, Jump Cuts: Random EssaysAren BergstromMay 6, 2016Road House, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Michael BayComment

Review: The Newton Boys (1998)

A lacklustre heist picture.

Review: Green Room (2015)

The year’s best thriller and ecstasy for anyone with a penchant for bloody cinema.

Reviews, The Current: In Theatres, Aren's ReviewsAren BergstromApril 29, 2016Green Room, Jeremy Saulnier, Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat, Joe Cole, Callum Turner, Patrick Stewart, Macon BlairComment

Hot Docs 2016: The Successor

The Successor is a beautiful film with thematic meat on its bones.

Aren's Reviews, Reviews, The Festival CircuitAren BergstromApril 22, 2016The Successor, Hot Docs, Hot Docs 2016, Mattia EpifaniComment

Hot Docs 2016: Future Baby

Future Baby will teach you a thing-or-two about IVF while watching it, but you’ll end up wishing it dug further into the complicated details involved in its subject matter.

Aren's Reviews, Reviews, The Festival CircuitAren BergstromApril 22, 2016Future Baby, Hot Docs 2016, Maria ArlamovskyComment

Review: Everybody Wants Some!! (2016)

As loose and genial as great films get.

Review: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

An ambitious film that lives in the big, mythic moments.

Review: Miles Ahead (2015)

Miles Ahead is not as essential as Bill Pohlad’s Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy from last year, but it’s a fair order better and more entertaining than the usual portrait of a brilliant and troubled musician.

Reviews, The Current: In Theatres, Aren's ReviewsAren BergstromApril 1, 2016Miles Ahead, Don CheadleComment

Review: Like Someone in Love (2012)

Like Certified Copy, Like Someone in Love shows that Kiarostami’s cinematic powers are not limited to one language or culture.

Reviews, Flash Back, Aren's ReviewsAren BergstromApril 1, 2016Rin Takanashi, Tadashi Okuno, Ryô Kase, Abbas Kiarostami, Like Someone in LoveComment

Risen as Jesus Movie and Biblical Epic

Is this just another "faith-based" film?

Monks, Strippers, and Monkey Spirits: Depictions of Buddhism on Film

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Running on Karma, and The 36th Chamber of Shaolin explore essential Buddhist concepts.

Essays, Jump Cuts: Random EssaysAren BergstromMarch 25, 2016Spring Summer Fall Winter and Spring, The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, Running on Karma, Groundhog Day, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past LivesComment

The Radical Piety of The Message

Moustapha Akkad’s historical epic about the life of the Prophet Mohammad is a radical and reverent act of filmmaking.

Essays, Yesterday's CinemaAren BergstromMarch 25, 2016The Message, Islam, religious film, Moustapha Akkad Comment