April 2023 Film Watches

 

A still from David Chung’s Royal Warriors (1986).

April was a month featuring a few terrible remakes and wonderful, original feature-length and short films (som making it on my review/essay to write list). Most were streamed on Prime, Criterion Channel, Hulu, and Tubi (highly recommend even if the commercials can be a minor hindrance). Three feature films were seen in theaters and seven shorts were included in this year’s amazing Lunafest Film Festival program. 


1.) “The Housemaid” (2010) Im Sang-soo #^ 3/10

2.) “A Thousand and One” (2023) A. V. Rockwell #*+ 9/10 

3.) “Royal Warriors” (1986) David Chung #^ 7.5/10

4.) “Magnificent Warriors” (1987) David Chung #^ 8.5/10 

5.) “Miss India America” (2015) Ravi Kapoor #^ 2.5/10

6.) “Persuasion” (2007) Adrian Shergold # 7.5/10

7.) “Univitellin” (2016) Terence Nance #^ 10/10

8.) “How Would You Feel?” (2010) Terence Nance #^ 8/10

9.) “Swimming In Your Skin Again” (2015) Terence Nance #^ 8/10

10.) “The Mighty Quinn” Carl Schenkel (1986) # 6/10

11.) “Only You” (2015) Hao Zhang #^ 7.5/10

12.) “Reclaim Your Water” (2022) Faith Briggs #* 9/10 

13.) “Pete” (2023) Bret Parker #* 10/10 

14.) “Syed’s Xmas Eve Family Game Night” (2021) Fawzia Mirza *^ 9/10 

15.) “Miss Chelove: From Java to the Streets of D.C.” (2022) Sara Gama #*

16.) “This Is Beth” (2022) Jen Randall #* 6.5/10 

17.) “More Than I Want to Remember” (2022) Amy Bench #* 6.5/10

18.) “Swimming Through” (2022) Samantha Sanders #* 7/10 

19.) “Love And…” (2005) Zhang Lu #^ 6/10 

20.) “Hawa” (2022) Maïmouna Doucouré #*+ 10/10

21.) “April and the Extraordinary World” (2015) Christian Desmares and Franck Ekinci # 7/10

22.) “House of Hummingbird” (2020) Bora Kim #*^ 9.5/10

23.) “All About You” (2001) Christine Swanson #*+ 9/10

24.) “Clock” Alexis Jacknow (2023) #* 4/10

25.) “All About Us” (2005) Christine Swanson #*+ 6/10

26.) “ear for eye” (2022) debbie tucker-green #*+ 8/10

27.) “The Bone Collector” (1999) Phillip Noyce # 3/10

28.) “Girlfriends” (1978) Claudia Weill #* 9.5/10

29.) “Sunday Dinner” (2023) Monique Needham #*+ 7/10 

30.) “Polite Society” (2023) Nida Manzoor #*^ 10/10

31.) “Posies” (2021) R. H. Stavis and Katherine Fisher #* 6/10

32.) “Life of Pi” (2005) Ang Lee #^ 6/10

33.) “Dune” (1984) David Lynch # 4/10


# first time watch

*woman filmmaker

*+Black woman filmmaker

*^ nonwhite woman filmmaker

^nonwhite filmmaker

Other notes: 32 first time watches, 20 films directed/written by nonwhite filmmakers, and 18 films made by women.