ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

Female Film Critics 24/375

SXSW 2026

Festivals Reviews 

BEYOND THE DUPLEX PLANET (SXSW 2026) – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

Valerie Kalfrin , , , , ,

No one can prepare for the questions artist David Greenberger asks. The documentary Beyond the Duplex Planet, about a decades-long project that’s spun off into books, film, performance, and music, is as much a spotlight on him as it is a salute to the ineffable source of artistic inspiration. Since 1979, when he got hired at a Massachusetts men’s nursing home, Greenberger has chatted up nursing home residents, recording their stories, musings, and more. His questions come out of left field, such as, “Do you prefer coffee or meat?” (“You can go far with coffee,” someone replied.)

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Festivals Reviews 

BLACK ZOMBIE (SXSW 2026) – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

Valerie Kalfrin , , , , , , , , , , ,

Black Zombie doesn’t delve into the whole history of vodou over its one hour and 30 minutes, but what it does show through the dancing, music, and ritual artwork in long takes and medium and wide shots conveys respect, warmth, and joy. In one scene, a vodou priest in white navigates a spiral at the ruins of a sugarcane mill barefoot, slowly dancing and singing in Creole, as if commemorating those lost and celebrating liberation. Vodou helped unite African slaves and trigger the Haitian Revolution, which ended in 1804. Demonizing it is by design, one historian says, playing into White fears of Black power and payback.

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Festivals Reviews 

DEAD DEER HIGH (SXSW 2026) – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

Valerie Kalfrin , , , , , , ,

The power of poetry—to excavate the hurts we hide, the joy we can’t express—finds voice in Dead Deer High, a thoughtful and intense yet tender drama about friends dealing with an all-too-common tragedy. No one knows how to navigate the aftermath of a tragic killing of a high school poet. And while the filmmakers give poetry space and time to breathe in medium-wide shots and long takes, they also nurture their characters and the audience. A school choir provides a melodic motif about time, but as quick cuts of the campus and a quiet moment in the forest show, sometimes there are no words.

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Festivals Reviews 

EDIE ARNOLD IS A LOSER (SXSW 2026) – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

Valerie Kalfrin , , , , , ,

Playing percussion at Our Lady of Undying Sadness means a tap of the cymbals here, a twinkling of chimes there. But what Edie Arnold really wants—between mooning over the handsome altar boy—is to rock out to punk loud and proud. Edie Arnold Is a Loser is a winningly quirky irreverent coming-of-age story. Premiering at the 2026 SXSW film festival, it covers some familiar ground as far as Catholic schoolgirl rebellion but punctuates it with snappy comedic timing, lively writing, and enjoyably endearing characters.

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Festivals Reviews 

I GOT BOMBED AT HARVEY’S (SXSW 2026) – Review by Leslie Combemale

Leslie Combemale , , , ,

In August of 1980, a dramatic extortion scheme took place that has since been lost to history, but for one man, it was dark part of his life story. When Jim Birges, along with his brother John Jr, saw that a bomb had been planted at Harvey’s Hotel Casino in Lake Tahoe, they knew their father was responsible. They knew because Jim and John had helped their abusive dad build the bomb. It is Jim’s perspective, largely, that is the basis for documentarians Bryan and Amy Bandolier Storkel’s I Got Bombed at Harvey’s, the stranger-than-fiction story about one man’s plan to squeeze a cool three million from casino owner Harvey Gross.

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Festivals Reviews 

MAM (SXSW 2026) – Review by Leslie Combemale

Leslie Combemale , , , ,

Director/co-screenwriter Nan Feix’s story about a self-taught chef from Texas with big dreams about opening a Vietnamese restaurant in NYC unfolds almost like a documentary, leveraging a cinema verité vibe as it follows Jerald on his quest, watching himworking hard as a janitor also doing odd jobs while perfecting his recipes in secret. When he meets the no-nonsense Nhung, who also knows her way around a Vietnamese kitchen, they start working together to build capital and make culinary waves however they can. That includes finding opportunities to sell catered lunches on the sly, and having one-night-only, unlicensed food popups.

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Festivals Reviews 

MARGO’S GOT MONEY TROUBLES (SXSW 2026) – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

Valerie Kalfrin , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

After immersing in intrigue with Nine Perfect Strangers and courtroom mystery with Presumed Innocent and The Lincoln Lawyer, prolific showrunner David E. Kelley dives into dramedy with Margo’s Got Money Troubles. Yet despite its all-star cast, this Apple TV series about a pregnant college dropout who turns to OnlyFans skates along the surface, with broad strokes instead of satisfying character development. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Rufi Thorpe, Margo’s Got Money Troubles might follow the tone of its source material, but the end result feels like an online profile, revealing only so much instead of proving more introspective.

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Festivals Reviews 

MY NDA (SXSW 2026) – Review by Leslie Combemale

Leslie Combemale , , , , , , , , , ,

A fascinating and disturbing documentary has released at SXSW called My NDA. To be honest, my interest was piqued seeing it was co-directed by one of my favorite character actors, Miriam Shor, whom you might know from Younger and Pluribus. Having covered women in the film and tv industry for years, I’ve been aware of the destructive nature of NDAs and their disproportionate impact on women, so I figured her own experience inspired her desire to talk about the issue. She had my attention. Gratefully, My NDA, which is co-directed by Juliane Dressner not only kept my attention, it did so with emotion and authenticity, while making clear how NDAs can affect anyone and everyone in all corners of society.

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Festivals Reviews 

PERFECT (SXSW 2026) – Review by Leslie Combemale

Leslie Combemale , , , , , , ,

Co-screenwriter/director Millicent Hailes presents a mismatched sapphic affair between privileged, pregnant white 30-something Mallory and young adult wandering woman-of-color Kai with Perfect, which premiered at SXSW 2026. Kai, who is adrift as she navigates a world where most water is contaminated and at a premium, making it nearly unattainable by someone without means, lands in a small town without enough to pay for the water she needs to survive. Mallory swans in, baby bump on glorious display, and pays for it at the local general store. From there, they connect and collide in an emotional and passionate romance.

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Festivals Reviews 

SEAHORSE (SXSW 2026) – Review by Leslie Combemale

Leslie Combemale , , ,

At SXSW 2026, Toronto-based writer/director/performer Aisha Evelyna released character study and social drama Seahorse. about Toronto sous chef Nola, who is keeping her life together despite being overtaxed, underpaid, and exploited by a privileged white restauranteur. One night after work, she crashes her bike and wakes up to find her unhoused and estranged father above her. What follows is an attempt to mend their relationship and help her father find a softer landing, despite past hurts that make a future hard to imagine. Seahorse has a heart, and has a unique story to tell about people who fall between the cracks.

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