A Private War (2018), director: Matthew Heineman, screenwriters: Arash Amel and Marie Brenner Reviewed by Jackie Bergson Bridging the period from when war correspondent, Marie Colvin, reported from within Sri Lanka in 2001 until the moment when she was killed in 2012, A Private War begins and ends with real footage from the place where […]
Detroit (2017), director, Kathryn Bigelow and screenwriter, Mark Boal Reviewed by Jackie Bergson. The first female to win an Oscar for best director with The Hurt Locker (2010), Kathryn Bigelow, has made a powerful mark on the moviemaking map. Tense, heroic tones underpinned that six-Oscar-winning thriller about American IED (improvised explosive device) detection crews working […]
Hiroshima (2005), produced and directed by Paul Wilmhurst Reviewed by Jackie Bergson. Premiered on British terrestrial television earlier this year, Hiroshima recounts and illuminates one of the most horrific war atrocities of the twentieth century. Beloved actor, the late John Hurt narrates in passionate detail; his rich, authoritative tones conveying absolute depth of commitment to […]
I Am Not Your Negro (2016), Director: Raoul Peck Reviewed by Jackie Bergson Documentary director, Raoul Peck, strikes a supremely eloquent political and cultural chord with I Am Not Your Negro. Based upon James Baldwin’s book, Remember This House, this award-winning film is deeply enriching. Featuring extracts from the author’s interviews, oratories and lectures, his […]
Midnight Traveller (2020) – Director: Hassan Fazili, Editor: Emelie Mahdahvian Reviewed by Jackie Bergson Increasingly soaring refugee numbers within recent years elicited a tranche of thematic documentaries by filmmakers moved to reveal some of the stories behind them. Midnight Traveller (2020) is a particularly personal, involved account which documents its filmmakers’ need to flee from […]
Gaza (2019), directors: Garry Keane and Andrew McConnell Reviewed by Jackie Bergson The 25km by 7km Gaza ‘strip’ represents one of the worst conflicted places on earth. It is globally renowned for its political and religious unrest and its consequent, war-torn existence. In our own lifetimes, news broadcasts have informed us about its 1967 occupation […]
The Big Meeting (2019), director: Daniel Draper, editor: Christie Allanson Reviewed by Jackie Bergson The Big Meeting is a documentary by film company, Shut Out The Light, which follows from the success of its Nature Of The Beast (2017) about now former Labour MP, Dennis Skinner. Its latest feature-length chronicle of the 134th Durham Miners’ […]
Sorry We Missed You (2019), Ken Loach (director) and Paul Laverty (screenwriter) Reviewed by Jackie Bergson Possibly excepting The Angels’ Share, Ken Loach’s audiences have come to expect earthy, human storylines that end unhappily. Sorry We Missed You proves to be no exception, although signs of potential optimism within this latest feature film appeared to […]
XY Chelsea, 2019, director: Tim Travers Hawkins Reviewed by Jackie Bergson Political and social relevance resounds sensitively and intensely within this documentary about whistle-blower, Chelsea Manning. XY Chelsea mainly arcs across the time between her release from prison in January 2017 and May 2019, when she was re-imprisoned for refusing to testify before the United […]
The Public (2019), writer and director: Emilio Estevez Reviewed by Jackie Bergson With an endearing central performance by Emilio Estevez, who also wrote and directed this independent drama film and with a Hollywood cast including Alec Baldwin, Jena Malone, Taylor Schilling, Jeffrey Wright and Christian Slater, The Public is bound to reach a broad audience […]