This review of the film was originally posted on the HuffPost, in May of 2017 as the film was opening in the US. I felt this film is more poignant than ever, as Assange is finally released and returns to his home country.
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'Anna's War' photo courtesy of the filmmaker
With 'Anna's War' Aleksei Fedorchenko Takes the Audience to the Frontlines
Just what is it like to survive as a little girl in a big World War?
That is the basic, deep and haunting question that Russian filmmaker Aleksei Fedorchenko asks in his latest 'Anna's War'. I've been a big fan of the director's work since his 2011 oeuvre 'Silent Souls' because somehow, in a very grand cinematic way Fedorchenko manages to portray the most intimate of emotions, the basic core fears and passions we all carry inside.
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Image courtesy of Magnolia Pictures
Phenomenal Man: Samuel L. Jackson Channels James Baldwin in ‘I Am Not Your Negro’
In I Am Not Your Negro, Raoul Peck manages to weave archival photos, video and even the odd space footage into a beautifully watchable, mesmerizing, can’t-tear-your-eyes-away-from-the-screen masterpiece of understanding, drawn out straight from Baldwin’s writing. Samuel L. Jackson narrates by reading from the 30 pages of notes for Remember This House, a book Baldwin never completed where he wanted to tell the story of his three murdered friends — MLK, Malcolm X and Evers. At times I had to remind myself that it wasn’t Baldwin talking me through his fascinating life, but Jackson instead. If ever someone channeled the spirit, courage and great humanity of the author, it’s the beloved Hollywood actor.
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