What if you could come back from the future to fix something from the past in the present ? Curious idea , eh ? Director Greg Björkman and James Bachelor ’ s co-written harmonious yet compelling screenplay is premised on that precise concept . Laura ( Clara Rugaard ) and Harrison ( Lewis Pullman ) meet , thanks to his stepsister , Chloe ( Lyrica Okano ), Laura ’ s best galpal . He loves to surf , she loves to paint , yet what they most have in common is music , so putting together a mixtape of songs with a special meaning for them is natural . As natural as hanging out with Chloe and Jason ( Kekoa Kekumano ), who they prefer to Brett ( Luke Lenza ).
Life is good until the accident ; Laura deviates from what she cares about most , so it is a fluke that Cooper ( Danny Glover ) still has their mixtape .
The cast is engaging , with Rugaard and Pullman ’ s charac-
© Splendid Film GmbH ters likable , and their portrayals convincing as they slip between alternate timelines . Glover ’ s character adds dimension to the storyline , particularly since he “ gets it ” from the get-go . Press Play is about expectations and control and how hard it is to let go of them ,” Björkman is quoted as saying in his director ’ s statement . Luca Del Puppo ’ s cinematography , Patrick J . Don Vito ’ s
Press Play and Love Again ( Press Play ) *** South Korea / USA 2022 Opened June 16 , 2022
Directed by : Greg Björkman Writing credits : James Bachelor , Greg Björkman Principal actors : Clara Rugaard , Lewis Pullman , Danny Glover , Matt Walsh , Christina Chang
editing , and Eldad Guetta ’ s music are commendable . Being shot in Honolulu , Hawaii , guarantees some spectacular settings . In his musically based romantic directorial debut , Björkman probes into acceptance , grief , and choices . “ It never seems you have enough time with the one you love .” Even with this similarity , for everyone it is different . 85 minutes . ( Marinell Haegelin )
France de Meurs ( Léa Seydoux ) faces a major upset in her life when she accidently drives into a young deliveryman ; trying to correct the mistake unravels her own life at the seams . At first glimpse , we see a glamorous young woman taking on the most difficult subject matter and conquering it all . France as a talk show host / journalist is willing to take measured risks that later reveal the fraudulent choices she has made for her desire to be in the spotlight . The more we see her , the less we like her , and the more absurd the film becomes .
Director Bruno Dumont clearly wants to critique the French mass media by focusing on this
France ** 1 / 2 France / Germany / Italy / Belgium 2021 Opened June 9 , 2022
Directed by : Bruno Dumont Writing credits : Bruno Dumont Principal actors : Léa Seydoux , Blanche Gardin , Benjamin Biolay , Emanuele Arioli , Juliane Köhler
character . But somehow he seems to focus on the aesthetics and the cinematography too much , so the film gives us a feeling of swimming in pea soup . This drama / black comedy had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and was among the films picked for Filmfest Hamburg in 2021 . 134 minutes . ( Shelly Schoeneshoefer )