MIFF 2019 - Day 13

Okko's Inn

A sweet little film about Okko, a girl whose parents die in a car accident and goes to live with her grandmother at a hot springs inn. There she meets some ghosts, a demon, and takes on the role of Junior Innkeeper. It's like a lower key version of Spirited Away. Sweet and fun.

The Swallows of Kabul

Beautifully animated, and depicting the horror of life under the Taliban, I really wanted to like this more. But the whole thing is either under motivated, or driven by artificial drama. It just irritated me how things happened, or how people behaved in dangerous situations you'd think they'd be more careful in. I dunno. It's not bad, but I didn't go along with its contrivances.

Dark Place

Anothology films are always a mixed bag. This one has one genuinely fun splatter comedy short, but the rest are fairly average.

Something Else

Hank is having a bad time. His girlfriend of 10 years has just gone, and a strange monster comes and terrorises him at night. And nobody believes him. This is a ripper monster movie that looks at relationships, grief, and the uncanny. It's also got the best wide-screen cinematography and mise en scene I've seen for the whole festival. These guys are in love with monster movies and movie making. I loved it.