South of Hope Street

I grade message movies by their message and how they deliver it. Some message movies are huge blockbusters - like Don't Look Up. Other message movies are just really good message movies - like. Leave the World Behind (both are Netflix movies) which is a really good realistic end of America as we know it kind of movie. As far as message movies go, this one I'm reviewing is good. It isn't a blockbuster. It isn't a really good one. It's good. It is a message, meant to feel Detached From Reality, it is presented as if detached from the audience, and we remain detached from the movie and from the story. It isn't about the story. It isn't about A Movie. It is about the message,m and they don't waste time - nearly everything in every scene is a message. Look, listen, watch. It's not meant to be an exciting story. THAT Is how they got some of the bigger names on the project. It's about the MESSAGE. Stop ignoring everything and stop thnking it's only worth paying attention to if it wins awards.

Jane Spencer has done the near-impossible - created a brilliant, dystopian film that is incredibly original yet shows its influences on Godard, Kubrick, Bergman and Tarkovsky.

Lead actor, Tanna Frederick (Denise), is all tics, insanity and a contradictory combo of morose and giddy, but she's the perfect guide throughout the film. And it's great fun to see how she uses the underappreciated Judd Nelson, who is unrecognizable from his Brat Pack days, William Baldwin, who shines as he did in "The Usual Suspects," and Spencer regular, Michael Madsen who shows part of his actual, real-life persona of poet, combined with his cinema persona of madman.

Ms. Spencer gets a real budget, spent wisely on interesting special effects and a fantastic soundtrack which includes Donovan, Yello, Bob Dylan and Thunderclap Newman. They show up in unexpected but perfectly synced places and help the narrative flow.

"South of Hope Street" will no doubt delight European audiences who are much, more patient and attuned to films that are challenging and don't hit you over the head with their moral message or lack of one. It has all the earmarks, of what could be the next, big midnight fare, reaching an appreciative American audience as a potential, cult favorite. It should put her on the shortlist of Indie Film Darling Most Likely to Break Out to a much wider audience.

A must seen for filmlovers. It's been a while that I haven't seen such a profound and deep movie with an european arthouse-touch which was the perfect way to present the different messages in an abstract way with using appropriate metaphors. I felt like back in time and enjoyed to see how the ensemble - in a playful Felliniesk style - carried me through this journey. Beside the solid performances of the veterans some new interesting and charismatic faces where refreshing. Great visuals and a good sounddesign make the movie accessible also for an audience which just want to be entertained. All in all a very good movie with a brise of dark humor and cool music like Thunderclab's Newman "something in the air" or Donovan's evergreen. I strongly recommend to watch this unique masterpiece.

I just had the chance to watch South of Hope Street, and wow - what an experience. A friend who caught the UK premiere in London last month told me it was unmissable, and they weren't wrong. This film is a trippy, thought-provoking allegory that feels like a snapshot of our fractured world, wrapped in stunning visuals and powered by incredible performances. It's not just a movie; it's a wake-up call, a piece of alternative art that challenges the way we see the times we're living in.

The lead plays a strangeoid writer, laying low and avoiding a draft into an Orwellian war between the West and Asia. The storyline is both surreal and disturbingly grounded, delivering a sci-fi narrative with such a raw, realistic edge that it feels like it could happen tomorrow... or maybe it already is. It's rare to find a film that blends such a futuristic premise with such an authentic, human feel. Highly recommend this one if you're into bold, unapologetic storytelling that leaves you thinking long after the credits roll.

This film is about much more than your usual sci fi film, it's a symbolic piece about the world and our existence in it, basically: the mystery of our existence. Which, as represented by this film, the mystery of existence is so confounding, that many will go to great lengths to keep people from thinking about it, or to use the denial aspects of this as a way to control the populace. A fascinating premise and one must accept that it is a sympbolic, though interesting with interesting characters, piece of filmmaking -- which also has some dark, absurdist comedy. A very interesting film and worth watching.