<h1>Darrel Manson</h1>

Darrel Manson

Posts by Darrel Manson:

@Sundance: Knocking

@Sundance: Knocking

What if you know something bad is happening, but no one will believe you? Perhaps they think you?re crazy. Perhaps you even begin to think you?re crazy. The Swedish film Knocking is part of the Midnight section of the Sundance Film Festival (happening virtually this...

True Mothers – Conflicting Claims

True Mothers – Conflicting Claims

What does it mean to be a mother?  Japan?s submission for Best International Feature Film, True Mothers, creates a very human picture of motherhood, but it also is multifaceted. It is the story of two mothers of a child. They have two very different stories, but...

The Reunited States: Bridging the Divide

The Reunited States: Bridging the Divide

A few weeks ago, a lawless mob stormed the United States Capitol in anger over the Presidential election. Two weeks later a newly inaugurated President Biden said, ?This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the path forward. And we must...

You Will Die at Twenty: How to Live

You Will Die at Twenty: How to Live

You Will Die at Twenty is Sudan?s first ever submission for Best International Film Oscar consideration, and only the eighth fiction feature film made in the country. It offers us a chance to consider the ways fear of death may strip us of the joys of life. When...

No Man’s Land: Welcome

No Man’s Land: Welcome

?Sometimes you need to close your eyes and start over to see clearly.? No Man?s Land, from director Conor Allyn, is at one level a story about borders, but at a deeper level it is about the importance of welcoming the stranger in our midst. Jake Allyn as ?Jackson...

1982 – Love and War

1982 – Love and War

Oualid Mouaness?s 1982 is a story about fear and courage, love and war, innocence and maturity. The film is Lebanon?s official submission for Best International Film consideration. For fifth grade student Wissam (Mohamad Dalli) the end of year exams aren?t a problem;...

Darrel’s Dozen (or so) 2020

What a strange year for films. Most of the blockbuster films planned for the summer and awards season are hiding out from COVID-19. Maybe they?ll find their ways to open theaters sometime this year. Many films wound up going straight to streaming services. In some...

My Little Sister – Bonded for Life

My Little Sister – Bonded for Life

Switzerland?s entry for Best International Feature, My Little Sister (Schweterlein), from directors St?phanie Chuat and V?ronica Reymond, is the story of a bond between siblings. It also asks the existential question of what is life if we cannot live it out? Lisa...