Jasmim Talks Cinema

On Expectations  The first time I started questioning my sexuality was when I was 13. I remember that my best friend had found a porn channel in the TV box set of his grandfather. I remember the rush of adrenaline rushing through my bloodstream for doing something as transgressive and exciting. But I remember that watching those naked women flaunting their bodies wasn't as exciting as I thought it would and should have been. Yes, they were naked - but what about it? Yes, their breasts were exposed for us - but what about them? I also remember looking at my friends and seeing a different excitement on them. I think this is the first moment that I can pinpoint in my timeline where I started questioning my sexuality.  Then I think about moments before that one and I try to pinpoint when did I "become gay". I remember when I was about 6 years old, playing with a Harry Potter figure and an Action Man figure and making them kiss each other. I also remember the picture of...

We need to talk about internalized hatred "I am tired of feeling disgusted with myself." - from The Miseducation of Cameron Post    This is going to be a very different article. This is because I am not going to talk about any film in specific. I have something important to say that needs to be said, because I feel that, if I don’t say it, I’m going to implode. I have a confession to make - I suffer from a terrible condition, a condition that we all suffer from. That condition is called internalized homophobia. I am a homophobe. And we are all homophobes. What I want to talk about here is about my experience. I want to talk about the internal fight that I have been fighting for as long as I understood my sexual orientation. And I want people to understand what I and many other queer people go through every day in this society that we live in. I started writing in here because I felt the need to express my thoughts through what I think about films. Now I decided to writ...

The Favourite - The Distorted Reality of Power "Sometimes a Lady likes to have some fun."   The Period Drama is a very traditional and dignified genre. It's a genre that usually portrays the lives of monarchs and aristocrats, normally with a certain dignity and romanticization. The word "aristocrat" comes from the Greek word "ἄριστος" (aristos), which means "excellent". But were aristocrats really that excellent, as the name implies? Were they better than the rest of us commoners? In a corrosive satire, Yorgos Lanthimos bluntly shows us the true nature of these so-called "excellent people". Using the dignified characteristics of the Period Drama against it, Lanthimos shows us the rot hidden behind the glossy exterior of those who possess power and those who seek it, showing us the ugly truth of power. The Favourite  is a film about powerful people and is against them by showing us their strange, distorted reality - a reality ...

Jasmim's Choice 2018: This year, there's also the JTC Follower's Choice Awards, which were voted by my followers on Instagram. I'll present here the three nominees that got the most votes. Best Film: Winner: Roma At Eternity’s Gate   BlacKkKlansman Blindspotting Burning Capernaum                                                    Cold War Eighth Grade First Man First Reformed Happy as Lazzaro If Beale Street Could Talk Shoplifters Sorry to Bother You The Favourite The Guilty The Heiresses The Rider We the Animals Wildlife  JTC Follower's Choice: 1st - The Favourite                                 ...

If Beale Street Could Talk - Love as Resistance Against Hatred "I hope that nobody has ever had to look at anybody they love through glass."  In a world that is so violent against us, what is there to keep us whole? In a world that is so deeply and systematically set against you, how do you save yourself from being taken down by it? Is it possible? Is there any hope? Through a beautifully poetic love story adapted from a novel from one of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century - James Baldwin - Barry Jenkins explores and shows us the African-American experience of our society. He shows us through one of the most gorgeously shot films of our time the reality of black people in America with such sensitivity and powerful visuals, being arguably the best film about this issue that came out this year and one of the best of all time (probably only behind his previous achievement,  Moonlight ). He asks us these questions, showing us everything that is at stake in order...

The Academy Awards - Ranking of Best Picture Nominees This year was the first year I managed to watch all the Best Picture nominees before the ceremony, and so, I decided to rank them and writing a little something about each of them. I'll rank them from the one I least liked to the one I most liked.  8 - Bohemian Rhapsody - directed by Bryan Singer Bohemian Rhapsody is one of the most underwhelming films I have seen this year. There is almost no cinematic value in this film, with sloppy editing, terrible directing and horrible writing. This is a film clearly just made to pander to Queen fans, with no depth given to it. It's a complete disservice to the legacy and life of Freddie Mercury and it reaches a point where it's almost offensive in its lack of depth. It's a perfect example of how Hollywood mishandles LGBTQ stories for their own profit. It's certainly appalling how it's nominated for Best Picture. The only reason it's nominated is probab...

Sex Education - A Modern Take on Sex  Netflix's original series never disappoints. In a time when there seems to be so much awkwardness surrounding the theme of sexual education, Laurie Nunn comes around with a refreshing new look at this sensitive subject that is human sexuality. In an incredibly well-written comedy series that has a very John Hughes feel to it, making it strangely anachronistic yet modern, we are invited to reflect on various issues ranging from abortion to homophobia in an exceptionally mature way, with such compassion for the various characters that make up this quirky story. I usually write about films, but TV series are no less deserving of being written about, especially one as intelligently crafted as Sex Education . This is not only a series about sex. It's a very necessary and modern take on sex of all ages and orientations. It's talking about sex the way it should be talked about.  We are introduced to this series by the most proper way to...