Hirono is back from prison, ready for another portion of backstabbing and Yakuza politicking.

Kinji Fukasaku picks up right where he left up for his grimy look at the post-war Yakuza world. I'm glad I read up the plot for the first film before watching this, as it continues on with the big cast of characters allying and scheming. I felt it was easier to follow than the first one, but in the end the constant carousel of temporary truces…

I have little problem with the technical quality of the film, it looks fine and Sandra Hüller is acting on a high level. It is the concept of the film that made this a drag.

It details a few chapters in the life of Charlotte, a skilled teacher and as far as I can tell a decent mother, that has a bit of a flaw: A series of ill-advised adventures with her patients. In three parts the film examines how…

An Eastern European 3+ hour film featuring people around a dinner table discussing morality and religion. I would love to have been in the room when the idea was first pitched.

There is something strange about this film. The complete lack of action is a feature, yet I could not stop watching. I lost the thread of the conversation a few times, but kept getting sucked back in. Everything is filmed in long, static shots (the director making sure the…