SXSW 2021 - celebsbar.com

Though adult animation has made huge progress in earning critical and commercial acclaim in the West the past couple of decades, it is still mostly associated with comedies like “South Park” and “Rick and Morty.” Rest assured, you won’t mistake “The Spine of Night” for a comedy. READ MORE: ‘The Spine Of Night’ Is Blood-Soaked Animated Eye Candy [SXSW Review] Instead, this hand-rotoscoped animated, high-fantasy film mostly resembles the hyper-violent animated films of Ralph Bakshi from the late ’70s and early ’80s; films with elaborate worlds, kingdoms in peril, ancient evils awakening, and heroes ready to stand up for what’s right in epic, bloody battles.

Ralph Bakshi Philip Gelatt Morgan Galen SXSW Film Festival SXSW 2021

‘Inbetween Girl’: A Liberated, Clever Coming-of-Age Story [SXSW Review]

In an SXSW littered with feature directorial debuts, the runway for new voices to emerge has never been wider. While the opportunity has been there, however, the results have been mixed, at best.

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‘Women Is Losers’ Is Lissette Feliciano’s Uneven But Assertive Feature Debut [SXSW Review]

The rub in evaluating a film about sexism, abortion, poverty, or any serious personal (yet universal) subject is that a verdict of “poor” or “cheesy” runs the risk of carrying a barbed attack at those who find value in said film. It’s a factor in reviewing rape-revenge films such as “Promising Young Woman,” where a male-written review calling such a story “sick” raises hackles in sexual assault survivors who find catharsis in that (fictional) extra-judicial retribution.

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‘The Hunt for Planet B’ Profiles The People Behind the Webb Telescope [SXSW Review]

Distilling down the complex logistics of designing and building a multi-billion dollar satellite into an informative and entertaining film, Nathaniel Kahn’s “The Hunt for Planet B” is a entertaining and insightful look at the creation of the James Webb Space Telescope, set to launch later this year, and the scientists and engineers who contributed to it.

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‘Islands’: Is A Modest Life-Affirming Character Study [SXSW Review]

A Fillipino-Canadian family prays at an array of ruby red candles. The son in this frame is Joshua (Rogelio Balagtas).

Martin Edralin SXSW Film Festival SXSW 2021

‘The Spine Of Night’ Is Blood-Soaked Animated Eye Candy [SXSW Review]

The simplest description of “The Spine of Night” is “a 1980s heavy metal album cover come to graphic life.” Barbarian shamans, petty despots, noble knight sages, craven knaves, megalomaniacal necromancers, blood, guts, and a parade of naked flesh are all given a spark of spontaneity by hand-rotoscoped animation to emphasize jaw-dropping over the top violence instead of blunting it.

Philip Gelatt SXSW Film Festival SXSW 2021

‘Here Before’: Andrea Riseborough Stars In An Eerily Effective Dramatic Thriller About The Ways Grief Warp Reality [SXSW Review]

It’s already becoming a bit of cliché to say that a film (or book, or show, or album) is Actually About Grief and Trauma, and I’d imagine this will only get worse in the months and even years to come. But Stacey Gregg’s dramatic thriller “Here Before,” which is about a woman who comes to believe that the new neighbors’ daughter is the reincarnation of her own lost young one, is actually about grief and trauma, and handles those topics with delicacy and grace.

Andrea Riseborough Stacey Gregg SXSW Film Festival SXSW 2021

‘Introducing, Selma Blair’ Is A Sweet, Funny Doc About The Star’s Battle With MS [SXSW Review]

Selma Blair is funny, but not in a daffy way, like her memorable turns in “Legally Blonde” or “Cruel Intentions” might have you expect. Stripped of a script or the lurid lens of a fashion shoot, she’s funny in a way that’s dark, dry, and dangerous.

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‘Ludi’: A Modest, But Powerful Critique Of The American Dream [SXSW Review]

For the Haitian-American, West Palm Beach native, Edson Jean, “Ludi” is a personal story. Set in Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood, the compact drama concerns a Haitian immigrant nurse, Ludi (Shein Mompremier), tirelessly working to supply her daughter’s American dream.

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‘Demi Lovato: Dancing With The Devil’ Disappointingly Recrafts The Singer’s Image [SXSW Review]

Back in 2018, former Disney star, now-chart-topping artist, Demi Lovato, produced a documentary about her “Tell Me You Love Me” world tour. The footage from the abandoned film projects a woman who is an emblem to substance abuse survivors and an advocate for mental health awareness.

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‘Disintegration Loops’ Exclusive Trailer: William Basinski’s Iconic Album Takes The Spotlight In This SXSW Doc

If you’re a fan of ambient music, you’re probably already aware of William Basinski’s iconic album, “The Disintegration Loops,” and its historical significance. However, if you have yet to experience the music and its tragic context, perhaps the upcoming documentary, “Disintegration Loops,” will help shed some light on how one man was able to tap into the cultural zeitgeist during a tragic time in US history and release one of the most acclaimed albums of the past two decades.

William Basinski USA SXSW 2021

‘Swan Song’ Exclusive Clip: Udo Kier Is A Retired Hairdresser In Todd Stephen’s Upcoming SXSW Film

When you think of small-town Ohio hairdressers, you may not immediately imagine Udo Kier. However, in the upcoming SXSW film, “Swan Song,” Kier flexes his hairdressing muscles, and as seen in an exclusive clip from the feature, you’re not the only one that doesn’t immediately think of the actor as a professional stylist.

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‘Demi Lovato: Dancing With The Devil’ Trailer: Fame, Fortune & Overdoses Are Detailed In This SXSW Doc

There have been plenty of stories about rock stars and pop stars that flirt with death due to dangerous behaviors. But when you think of those stories, a lot of them are about guitarists that do a lot of heroin and barely make it out alive (if they don’t actually die as a result).

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‘The Spine Of Night’ Directors On The Seven Year Journey To Make Their Rotoscoped Animated Film [SXSW Interview]

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