Irish Film Institute -REVIEW ROUNDUP: GAZA, HOLIDAY AND NOTORIOUS

REVIEW ROUNDUP: GAZA, HOLIDAY AND NOTORIOUS

New releases at the Irish Film Institute on Friday August 9th are Irish documentary Gaza, provocative drama Holiday and Hitchcock classic Notorious.

Read on for a selection of reviews or pop in to make up your own mind!

GAZA
“Beautifully filmed, shot through with quiet anger.”
4/5 – Irish Independent

“Garry Keane and Andrew McConnell’s beautifully shot documentary is careful and clear with the details.”
4/5 – Irish Times

“A sombre, angry film about a people under political siege.”
4/5 – Guardian

“This carefully-made film delicately avoids direct confrontation with political elements while still making clear their culpability for the devastation it surveys.”
Screen International

“Gaza is compelling because we hear of life there in the people’s own words, we can judge the tone of the revelations and observations, look at the weary expressions. Some seems fatalistically resigned, others are resilient, hopeful somehow. More than a few are determined not to let the Israeli-imposed economic embargo grind them into the dust.”
5/5 – RTÉ

HOLIDAY
“[A] thrilling, provocative tale of coercion, performative femininity and sunshine”
4/5 – Irish Times

“[Eklöf] has the provocateur’s gift for images that needle, nettle and stick, well before their message locks firmly into place.”
Variety

“”Holiday” refuses to cast judgment on its protagonist with its stark cinematography and long takes, letting lead Victoria Carmen Sonne’s subtle performance shine in this crime drama about imbalances of power.”
LA Times

“Holiday makes the worlds of Michael Haneke look cuddly and inviting, the work of Ulrich Seidl seem positively jolly.”
5/5 – Observer

“Holiday is a fearless work, anchored by Sonne’s bold, subtle performance, which keeps her motivation unclear until a burst of developments at the startling conclusion.”
IndieWire

 NOTORIOUS

“Production and directorial skill of Alfred Hitchcock combine with a suspenseful story and excellent performances to make Notorious force entertainment.”
Variety

“The virtuoso sequences — the long kiss, the crane shot into the door key — are justly famous, yet the film’s real brilliance is in its subtle and detailed portrayal of infinitely perverse relationships.”
Chicago Reader

“It’s the accuracy, efficiency and control of Hitchcock’s direction that most impress. They enable him to dovetail the film’s thriller format and romantic story to dizzying, expressive and unique effect.”
5/5 – Time Out

“Notorious has fascinating echoes of other Hitchcock movies such as Rebecca and Psycho. A must-see or must-see-again.”
5/5 – Guardian

“Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious is the most elegant expression of the master’s visual style, just as Vertigo is the fullest expression of his obsessions.”
4/4 – Roger Ebert

IFI CINEMAS TODAY


The IFI is supported
by The Arts Council

Arts Council of Ireland