On today’s episode, Alex recommends the Cillian Murphy Irish drama Small Things Like These, directed by Tim Mielants. Based on the novella by Claire Keegan, the film addresses a dark chapter of Irish history from a side angle: the story of a man who realizes he can no longer be silently complicit in the abuse of unwed mothers by the Catholic Church.  Want to discover and watch more under-the-radar films with my expert guidance and a community of movie lovers? Join the waitlist for Reel...

On the occasion of the release of Steve McQueen's Blitz, we're bringing back our 2020 episode on his five BBC films about the Windrush Generation, Small Axe. With Blitz, McQueen returns to telling stories of Black British history. This episode was originally published on December 30, 2020. We discuss each film (or episode?) of McQueen's series and how they work together to form a cohesive whole. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla Smith, Associate...

**To join the waitlist for Reel Ruminators: A Movie-of-the-Month Discussion Club, visit http://seventh-row.com/reelruminators ** Legendary theatre director Marianne Elliott (Angels in America at the National Theatre, gender-swapped Company, War Horse) joins Alex on the podcast to discuss her feature film debut, The Salt Path. The film is based on the best-selling memoir about a working-class British couple who lose their home and embark on a long hike along the coast to heal themselves. It...

On today’s episode, Alex recommends alternative programming to the newly released Oscar-tipped Conclave, with another film about a new pope: Nanni Moretti’s 2011 film We Have a Pope. It’s fun and funny, a backstage movie that's still aware of the audience, and full of rich characters with actual motivations. Seeing Conclave made me wish I had been rewatching this instead.  For my thoughts on Conclave, check out my TIFF 2024 episode on the film. Want to discover and watch more...

Toronto-based film critic Angelo Muredda joins Alex Heeney to discuss Brady Corbet's The Brutalist, a four-hour fictional biopic about a brutalist architect and Holocaust survivor adjusting to life in post-war America. The film is Directorial Choices: The Movie. It won the Best Director Prize at the Venice Film Festival, but we had a lot of issues with the direction and the film. Despite its shortcomings, it offers a lot of fodder for discussion. The episode is spoiler-free. For detailed...

**Are you interested in discovering extraordinary under-the-radar movies and discussing them with a community of film lovers?** **Sign up for the Reel Ruminators (Free Trial), by visiting https://email.seventh-row.com/trial. The discussion will happen on October 13 at 12 p.m. EST. ** Toronto-based film critic Angelo Muredda joins Alex Heeney to discuss one of the biggest directorial swings at TIFF: Joshua Oppenheimer's The End. Starring Tilda Swinton, George MacKay, and Michael Shannon, the...

**To sign up for the Reel Ruminators (Free Trial), visit https://email.seventh-row.com/trial.** In this episode, Alex Heeney discusses the new independent British film The Old Man and the Land, which was just released in the U.K. The film is told almost entirely as a series of voicemails from a farmer's two adult children (played by Rory Kinnear and Emily Beecham).  On screen, we only ever see the farmer (their father) tending to the land, doing his chores and daily activities. We never see...

**To sign up for the Reel Ruminators (Free Trial), visit https://email.seventh-row.com/trial.** In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex is joined by Toronto-based film critic Angelo Muredda to discuss one of our most anticipated titles of the festival: Luca Guadagnino's Queer.  The film adapts the Williams S. Burroughs novel of the same name. Daniel Craig stars as William Lee, Burroughs' alter-ego, a lonely man in post-war Mexico City, desperately chasing after younger men. When he...

In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex discusses two films starring Ralph Fiennes: Uberto Pasolini's The Return and Edward Berger's Conclave. In them, Fiennes respectively plays Odysseus at the end of his journey and a cardinal in charge of the process for selecting a new pope. The episode is spoiler-free. About the TIFF 2024 season: In the TIFF 2024 season, Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney will discuss some of the best under-the-radar gems at the 2024 Toronto International Film...

In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex discusses three films about bicultural daughters and their absent fathers. Fittingly, the films are about identity, the role of the father-daughter relationship, and what it may mean for both father and daughter for that relationship to be severed.  To discuss the films' differing cultural contexts, I quote from interviews with the filmmakers, who share many similar insights despite their disparate backgrounds. All three films are world...

In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex discusses two new films from masters of British social realism: Andrea Arnold's Bird and Mike Leigh's Hard Truths. Bird had its world premiere at Cannes in May; Hard Truths had its world premiere at TIFF. Alex finds similarities in subject matter and storytelling approach between the films, including the very strong performances from some Seventh Row favourites, and discusses what each of them is individually doing that's worth noting.  Alex...

In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex discusses three films from around the world that take place within the world of sports but aren't really about sports.  Alex finds common ground in how the films are shot and tell stories, often through gestures and blocking rather than dialogue. These films are: Leonardo van Dijl’s Julie Keeps Quiet – Belgium/Sweden (sales title) Frida Kempff's The Swedish Torpedo - World Premiere - Sweden (sales title) Hiroshi Okuyama’s My Sunshine - Japan...

In this episode of the TIFF 2024 season, Alex discusses the four Palestinian films at this year's festival. These films are: No Other Land (Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor) - Norway/Palestine To a Land Unknown (Mehdi Fleifel) - Germany, France, United Kingdom, Greece, Netherlands, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia Happy Holidays (Scandar Copti) - Germany, France, Italy, Palestine, Qatar From Ground Zero (22 directors), France, Jordan, Palestine, Qatar About the TIFF...

The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) kicks off on Thursday, September 5, and Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney will cover it with a series of podcast episodes. In this episode, Alex introduces the podcast season and explains why this season is for you and whether or not you're attending TIFF this year. I'll explain what to expect from this podcast season and why TIFF and our coverage are relevant to you if you're interested in exploring world cinema.  About the TIFF 2024 season: ...

Announcement: I'm covering TIFF, the Toronto International Film Festival! Sign up to receive my five essential tips for the film adventurer seeking a fantastic festival experience, whether at TIFF (or any other festival) at email.seventh-row.com/tiff24. --- Alex Heeney interviews writer-director (and Seventh Row fan!) India Donaldson about her debut feature, Good One. Inspired by Seventh Row favourites Kelly Reichardt and Joanna Hogg (we wrote the books on both of them!), Donaldson's film...

Toronto film critic Nathalie Atkinson joins Alex Heeney to discuss their latest obsession -- Amazon Prime's swashbuckling fantasy series, My Lady Jane -- and why we can't stop thinking about it. From husbands that are sometimes horses, to intimacy coordination by Ita O'Brien (Normal People), to an incredible cast (Edward Bluemel!), the show is a whole lot of fun with impressive craft behind it. The limited series reimagines the story of Lady Jane Grey, the Tudor Queen who, at age 16, was...

Announcement: Our new membership, Reel Ruminators: A Movie-of-the-Month Discussion Club is now open for new members in August! Doors close on August 9 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Once doors close, we won't be opening them again until October. Find out more and reserve your spot by clicking here. --- Alex Heeney interviews South African director and co-writer Oliver Schmitz about the 4K restoration of his landmark 1988 film, Mapantsula. Mapantsula was the first movie about the realities of apartheid...

I've just launched a Reel Ruminators: A Movie-of-the-Month discussion Club, a new membership for movie lovers to watch amazing movies and meet other film lovers to discuss them. In this trailer, I will tell you more about Reel Ruminators and help you figure out whether it's a good fit for you. Doors are currently open to join, and doors close Thursday, July 4 at 11:59 p.m. EST for July’s Reel Ruminators. Click here to find out more and join Reel Ruminators

Announcement: Our new membership, Reel Ruminators: A Movie-of-the-Month Discussion Club is now open for new members in July! Doors close on July 4 at 11:59 p.m. Find out more and reserve your spot by clicking here. ---- Alex Heeney interviews legendary Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland about her Venice Jury Prize-Winning film, Green Border. Holland discusses why she wanted to make the film, how it's in conversation with her other work, and why she chose to shoot it in black and white. ...

Alex Heeney interviews co-directors Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan whose new film Ghostlight was a hit at Sundance. Ghostlight is the story of middle-aged construction worker Dan (Ian Keiser) who discovers that theatre and Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet are excellent outlets for working through his complicated feelings of grief, guilt, and anger. >> Subscribe to our FREE newsletter for updates on the best new under-the-radar films and streaming theatre productions Follow...

In this episode, we discuss Luca Guadagnino’s new film Challengers (2024), which stars Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Seventh Row favourite Josh O’Connor as competitive tennis players and romantic rivals.  Film critic and Katherine Hepburn obsessive Andrew Kendall joins host Alex Heeney for the episode. We are both Josh O’Connor super-fans and liked the film. But we had a lot of issues with it. We discuss why we can’t stop thinking about it and where it disappoints.  Get your copy of Alex’s book...

Director Uberto Pasolini and James Norton discuss avoiding sentimentality and collaborating on their film Nowhere Special (2020).  Seventh Row Host Alex Heeney interviews them and offers her take on why this heartwarming and heartbreaking tearjerker is worth your time. James Norton plays John, a 35-year-old window cleaner and single dad who is dying of an unspecified disease. To prepare for the future, he searches for adoptive parents to care for his three-year-old son Michael after he...

Emerald Fennell's new film, Saltburn, comes out today, so we're re-releasing our 2021 episode about two very different depictions of rape culture from 2020: Fennell's revenge thriller Promising Young Woman and Kitty Green's The Assistant, a portrait of a young woman working in a misogynistic office environment. This is a landmark episode of the podcast, which kickstarted a series of episodes on rape culture on film. This episode features Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney, Executive Editor Orla...

In the fifth and final episode of our Creative Nonfiction Film podcast season, Alex Heeney talks to Penny Lane about her experimentations with documentary form in Confessions of a Good Samaritan. The film is a trip inside Penny’s brain as she goes through the stressful process of anonymously donating her kidney and investigates why kidney donations are necessary. Lane weaves almost all of the techniques from her previous films (and a few more!) into Confessions of a Good Samaritan, offering a...