The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival that takes place each year in New York City. The festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff to spur economic and cultural revitalization in Manhattan. This festival premieres new films of all different genres, usually centered around indie-focused films and films seeking distribution. This year, I was fortunate enough to be accredited to cover the 23rd annual Tribeca Festival virtually and saw six different films, which I will be reviewing here! I hope you check out all these films when they release in the future!
WORLD PREMIERES:
Film #1: Beacon
"Beacon" is a weak thriller film that has a very intriguing premise but lacks a sense of direction and has difficulty juggling two different elements of the overall story. The film starts out strong, but as it progresses, the story becomes convoluted and loses direction. The performance from Julia Goldani Telles really didn’t work for me, while Demián Bichir is decent as a mysterious and lonely lighthouse keeper. None of the technical elements really stood out besides the score, which creates the eerie tone the film tries to capture in a very intriguing way. Unfortunately, the first half of the film is slightly better than the second half of the film and is disappointing given the mysterious aspects of the film. While "Beacon" may have an interesting concept, the execution is subpar, leading to a very disappointing film overall, in my opinion.
Review: 1.5/5 Stars
Film #2: The Dog Thief (El ladrón de perros)
"The Dog Thief" is a quiet but moving film by Vinko Tomičić Salinas in his first solo directorial feature. The film has shades of Italian neorealism as it follows a young orphan shoeshine boy looking for a father figure in the city of La Paz, Bolivia. The performances by Alfredo Castro and Franklin Aro are quite good, though none of them were really standout-worthy in my opinion. The film is also beautifully shot, capturing the city in such a captivating way. The film also feels like a slow burn at times, and the overall story beats are too familiar for my liking. It is also sometimes very difficult to get invested in Martín (Franklin Aro) as the leading protagonist of the film. That being said, a very solid international film, and I’m interested to see more films in the future from Chilean director Vinko Tomičić Salinas.
Review: 3/5 Stars
Film #3: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer
"The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer" will most likely be the best film title of the year and is certainly the best title of the 2024 Tribeca Festival! The film is a dark comedy following a writer who is in the middle of a divorce and his work investigating the life of a serial killer. The film is far funnier than I initially expected and features many comedic twists and turns throughout. The performances by the three leads, Steve Buscemi, John Magaro, and Britt Lower, are really good and hold the film together. Unfortunately, for me personally, the film begins to lose strength the further we go into the story, and I was not a huge fan of the ending either. The film also struggles to balance different tones (comedy and thriller) throughout. "The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer" is a decent film, with good performances, that doesn’t stick the landing completely, in my opinion.
Review: 3/5 Stars
Film #4: Don't You Let Me Go- Won the Nora Ephron Award
"Don’t You Let Me Go" is a meditative and deeply moving film exploring friendship, love, and grief. The film follows Adela, who lost her best friend Elena and has the opportunity, thanks to a magic bus, to visit her one last time. The directors Ana Karina Guevara and Leticia Jorge create a small film that feels relatable and explores themes about the loss of a loved one. There are moments of surrealism that I wish the film dove a little deeper into, but the film overall is truly a beautiful, cathartic look at grief. Much of the film's emotional moments are found in the smallest of things, and the directors portray grief and friendship in such an authentic way. This is now the second film this year that tackles grief in a genuine and moving way. Both "When the Light Breaks", which premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival, and this film, "Don’t You Let Me Go", are quite good films about the exploration of grief, and I would recommend checking them both out when you get the chance!
Review: 3.5/5 Stars (My Favorite Film of the Six Films)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE:
Film #5: Firebrand
"Firebrand" is a bland period drama following Katherine Parr, the sixth wife of King Henry VIII. Karim Aïnouz clearly crafts a film that looks gorgeous from a technical level. The costumes and sets are absolutely exquisite. However, besides the production value, the story is not interesting enough, and while some moments are better than others, the film is pretty dull overall. The performance from Alicia Vikander is good, but it is Jude Law who shines in his role as King Henry VIII and absolutely disappears into the role. There is a lot of promise in the film, such as the production value and the direction of the film, but it never delivers a great nor even good film, in my opinion. Besides the performances and production value of the film, there is not much that I found to be very interesting and was quite bored throughout.
Review: 2/5 Stars
The Film is now playing in U.S. Theaters via Roadside Attractions
NEW YORK PREMIERE:
Film #6: Kill
"Kill", directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, is a very good and brutal Indian action film. The film starts out on the slower side, but once the title card hits, it is an all-out vicious, bloody war against the bandits. Really good fight choreography and stunts, similar to a John Wick film, but on a train. The film probably could have been shorter and a little less over the top at times. Not many of the performances really stand out either, besides Lakshya Lalwani, who plays a fierce army commando. If you are looking for a solid action film with bloody and gruesome violence, this film will be right up your alley. However, the film absolutely delivers some of the best kills I’ve seen in a bit and elevates standards for Indian action films to come!
Review: 3.5/5 Stars
The Film will release in U.S. theaters on July 4th, 2024 via Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions
Want more Film Festival Coverage? Check out my 2024 Cannes Film Festival & 2024 Philadelphia Film Society SpringFest Recaps Here:
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