Unspoken Cinema

 "Boredom is, of course, an inability to pass the time, a cruel sense of stagnation, the minute hand chipping away each hour so slowly. Days, like so many of Tsai other films, is about the ebb and flow of time, consciousness, about two people whose lives briefly converge like separate rivulets meeting at the river, before parting ways again. Tsai luxuriates in minutiae, in stasis, exhuming meaning from the mundane, the still, quiet moments in the chaos of modern life. The one constant source of movement in his films is time, which ambles on, unconcerned, undeterred." Greg Swik; Time Slays Clocks: Tsai Ming Liang's "Days" (Kinoscope; 13 Aug 2021)

Babette Mangolte on HOTEL MONTEREY preceded by LA CHAMBRE | TIFF 2019 (YouTube) 58' (TIFF) 11 nov 2019 "Cinematographer Babette Mangolte, a longtime friend and collaborator of Chantal Akerman’s, joins us to present two of their earliest films together, consider the influence of the New York structural-film movement on Akerman’s work, and reflect on the filmmaker’s legacy Guest: Babette Mangolte Babette Mangolte is an experimental filmmaker and photographer based in New York. Her most recent solo shows include I = Eye at Kunsthalle Wien and Spaces to SEE at Rochechouart Musée d'Art Contemporain. She is currently completing a feature film and her next project is a book about photography. La Chambre (Chantal Akerman) BELGIUM, USA | 1972 | Silent 11 minutes A horizontal pendant to Hôtel Monterey's stacked verticality, La Chambre describes a continuous, 360-degree pan around Akerman's Spring Street apartment, depicting the filmmaker reclining on a bed like an odalisqu...

SPÉCULATIONS : DRY LEAF (Alexandre Koberidze) (YouTube) 53'12" (SPÉCULATIONS) 23 juillet 2026 "A l'occasion de la sortie en salles le 8 juillet de Dry Leaf, dernière réalisation du géorgien Alexandre Koberidze (que l'on avait pu découvrir avec Sous le ciel de Koutaïssi en 2021), Matthias, Théodora, Charles et Aubry reviennent sur cette sortie pas comme les autres. Filmé à l'aide d'un Sony Ericsson W595, le film impose l'étrangeté de son image pixelisée basse-définition autant que sa ritournelle contemplative sur plus de trois heures durant, suivant la recherche décousue d'un père. Intriguant, déroutant, ce dispositif singulier aux antipodes des courses à la technologie menées par Hollywood ne serait-il pas pour nous un moyen de déconstruire notre regard, de réinterroger et peut-être de retrouver, qui sait, un autre rapport au monde. Intervenant.es : Matthias Chouquer Théodora Olivi Charles Mérienne Aubry Piffault" * * * Et aussi un article ch...

Latest addition to the Library page at Unspoken Cinema: "If we need to ascribe it a meaning, it might just be the following. It’s a story I heard Tarr tell in 2011, in Wrocław. I’ve quoted it before, but if you can’t repeat yourself when talking about Tarr, the great master of essence through attrition, then maybe we didn’t absorb anything from him: “A man wakes up at 4:00 AM, dresses, goes out into the darkness to the location of shooting at 6:00 AM. It’s dark, fucking cold, the wind is blowing. It’s raining, and an actor appears, with a hangover too, and with one thousand problems. An actress comes. Her baby was crying all night. A production manager appears. And says what was said at the meteorological institute, the weather forecast. And a man is standing there waiting for the light to go slightly up so one button can be pressed so the scene can be recorded. And if I did not believe you were all going to see it then for what fucking reason would I be doing all this? I am not ...

Latest addition to the Library page at Unspoken Cinema: "Society typically dictates the duration and manner in which we attend to objects, people, or events. In other words, the length and type of our attention are regulated by unwritten rules of behavior, forming a part of the social order. When someone focuses on something longer than usual, particularly something socially or aesthetically marginalized, it can challenge established social orders. When attention is prolonged beyond customary social norms, the usual controls over how we observe and perceive can be temporarily suspended, disrupting habitual modes of perception. Slow cinema filmmakers slow down the rhythm of the film and extend shots to encourage this sustained attention. Through slowness, they not only slow the narrative but also challenge social norms and how we typically engage with what we see." Amiri, Sepideh;  Marvā Nabīlī’s The Sealed Soil as Slow Cinema . In Cinema Iranica . Encyclopaedia Iranica Foun...

  The Role of Water in Tsai Ming-liang's "The Hole" (1998) (YouTube) 5' (CinemaBlog) 30 Jan 2021  "Here, I take a deep dive into the role played by the motif of water in Tsai-Ming-liang's "The Hole" (1998)."

  139. HKIFF50: Interview with Tsai Ming-liang (Deep Cut) 27'38" ENGLISH 5 july 2026 "The seventh and final director interview Wilson conducted at this year’s Hong Kong International Film Festival is with the legendary Taiwanese filmmaker Tsai Ming-liang. Wilson asks one of his cinematic heroes about the state of filmmaking today, his methods for working with actors, and his decades-long collaboration with Lee Kang-sheng."

  Les hautes solitudes (Philippe Garrel) | Film complet | ARTE Cinema (YouTube) 1h19'37" (ARTE Cinema) 1st July 2026 "Un film disponible jusqu'au 30/09/2026 "L'idée, c'était de faire des chutes d'un film qui n'existerait pas avec une star, Jean Seberg. Alors, j'ai conçu Les Hautes Solitudes comme quelque chose de très brut sur son visage" (Phillipe Garrel) Un visage hébété de femme, entre veille et sommeil (celui de la chanteuse Nico, alors compagne de Philippe Garrel) se laisse contempler quelques minutes, puis disparaît. Dans la pénombre d'un appartement, Laurent Terzieff, cheveux en bataille, accueille et étreint une jeune femme (Tina Aumont), comme lui d'une beauté et d'une jeunesse saisissantes. Dans une chambre (du même appartement, d'un autre ?), en plein jour, Jean Seberg, vêtue d'une sage chemise de nuit, semble lutter contre les vestiges d'un rêve angoissant. En contraste étrange avec l'intimité très ...

In a region where cinema is measured in song sequences, choreographed fight scenes, and the explosive first-weekend box office of a Rajinikanth release, Abdul Rahman makes films in which very little happens, and that very little is everything. A filmmaker, writer, and cultural organiser based in Tamil Nadu, Rahman occupies a position that is as rare as it is precarious: that of a contemplative filmmaker working entirely outside the logic — commercial, narrative, sensory (also known as “masala cinema”)  — of Kollywood, the Chennai industry that dominates not only Tamil cinema but the cultural imagination of over 80 million people. Where Kollywood offers spectacle, Rahman offers stillness. Where it provides resolution, he leaves space. Where it speaks loudly and continuously, he chooses, with conviction, to fall silent. A decade ago he founded Missed Movies, a project of what Tamil audiences have been systematically denied, or have systematically looked away from. More recently, alo...

The old man (Venkatesan) 8th Street (2026/Abdul RAHMAN/India) 1h Film review by Benoit Rouilly for Unspoken Cinema (containing spoilers voluntarily). A clean, well directed piece by Abdul Rahman, who in just one contemplative hour and three cryptic chapters, evokes the devious outlines of five mysterious stories within four opaque characters… Some stories will remain unresolved as others stand open-ended. Everything takes place, practically in real time around 2am, in a single night-bar, named “8th Street”. A lovely place, with marble pedestal tables, wooden chairs and comfy booths. There are rounded corners to the door-frames like on a boat. Coffee bean wooden patterns form a see through ceiling. And a neo-classical sepia painting on the back wall, representing customers at coffee tables, completes the atmosphere. The protagonist enters the bar last, a clean, well lighted place, and penetrates by the front door this “huis-clos” (=a single action takes place in a single space behind c...

From the director’s statement on his website : “This project challenges traditional documentary storytelling. I aimed to create an immersive, meditative experience that invites patience and openness from viewers. With its mostly silent narrative, the film emphasises the unspoken — highlighting the power of stillness and the sounds of silence. It invites viewers to interpret and create their own stories for each character, filling in the quiet moments, and embracing the ambiguity. Its length and rhythm requires a conscious commitment, but I believe this approach offers a meaningful journey — one that suspends the noise of modern life and offers a space for empathy and reflection. Ultimately, THE VALLEY is a contemplative journey — a chance for viewers to slow down, breathe, listen and observe. It celebrates the power of solitude and the importance of community. In these challenging times, it offers a quiet affirmation of inner peace, resilience, and the profound beauty of stillness.” ...

“Valley Time” is a peculiar pace of life. Such life is nonchalant, carefree, and at times delightfully indifferent. Adopted by the residents of the village of Kangaroo Valley (shy of 900 souls) strung along the meandering Kangaroo river, nestled amongst rocky sandstone cliffs. This secluded settlement sits a mere two-hour drive south of Sydney, in Australia. Throughout this silent landscape, distances stretch vast until the next neighbour. Community is bound not by proximity, but by a shared introspective state of mind. Such space is unique to the mountainous and isolated terrains. Such pace is unique to the insulated people living far apart yearning for each other.  The documentary The Valley (2026) crafts a multifaceted, deeply evocative portrait of this remote enclave over the course of 3 hours. It shifts from one dairy farmer/painter to a gardener cultivating vegetables to a baker kneading dough to lonesome locals running errands… and so on, and so forth. A seamless human tape...

  8th Street Film | Abdul Rahman | Missed Movies (YouTube) 1h00'29" (Missed Movies New Wave) 12 Apr 2026 Tamil, English subtitles. "Late at night, a stranger, an old man, and a waiter cross paths. Through quiet moments and subtle exchanges, their encounter reveals loneliness, memory, and a quiet search for meaning." Written, Directed & Edited by Abdul Rahman Loosely based on the short story by E. Hemingway : " A Clean, Well Lighted Place " (1933) [ PDF ] Read also at Unspoken Cinema: Interview with Abdul Rahman (8th Street) My review of Abdul Rahman's 8th Street I Reject The Invitation From God (Abdul Rahman) Film review All About Contemplation Cinema (Missed Movies New Wave) TAMIL

"Au cinéma, on ne se découvre pas. On sort pour se cacher, pour se blottir, pour s’enfoncer." * * * "C'est facile, d'écosser les petits pois. Une pression du pouce sur la fente de la gousse et elle s'ouvre, docile, offerte. Quelques-unes, moins mûres, sont plus réticentes - une incision de l'ongle de l'index permet alors de déchirer le vert, et de sentir la mouillure et la chair dense, juste sous la peau faussement parcheminée. Après, on fait glisser les boules d'un seul doigt. La dernière est si minuscule. Parfois, on a envie de la croquer. Ce n'est pas bon, un peu amer, mais frais comme la cuisine de onze heures, cuisine de l'eau froide, des légumes épluchés - tous près, contre l'évier, quelques carottes nues brillent sur un torchon, finissent de sécher." Philippe Delerm, in " La première gorgée de bière et autres plaisirs minuscules " Lire aussi : “Philippe Delerm et le minimalisme positif” (Bertrand Rémi, 200...

  JEANNE DIELMAN (1975): A Hiper-realidade do Cotidiano (YouTube) 34'46" (Arthur Tuoto) 13 Feb 2026 "Jeanne Dielman acompanha três dias da rotina rigorosa de uma viúva em Bruxelas, cuja vida é sustentada por um duplo trabalho doméstico e sexual. Aos poucos, pequenas falhas nesse cotidiano começam a corroer essa ordem e revelam como o tempo, o espaço e os objetos passam a agir contra ela. A aula destaca como Chantal Akerman transforma tarefas banais em matéria dramática, hipervisibiliza o trabalho invisível das mulheres e subverte o naturalismo clássico ao dilatar planos e construir uma “hiper-realidade” formal."

Laïla Pakalnina – Entretien #1 – Cadrer le mouvement de la vie - Les entretiens Balises (YouTube) 13'04" (Bibliothèque Publique d'Information) 16 février 2026 "Dans un entretien filmé accordé à Balises, Laïla Pakalnina (Lettonie/Latvia) explique que, selon elle, les plans fixes sont animés par des mouvements propres à la composition dans le cadre, au rythme donné par le montage et à la vie elle-même, captée par la caméra.   Ses choix esthétiques répondent ainsi à une nécessité d’être à l’écoute et à l'affût de ce qui advient dans un environnement donné, près d’une cascade ( Chute d’eau , 2016), sous un pont ( Le Premier pont , 2020), dans une usine de fabrication de cuillères en plastique ( La Cuillère , 2019) ou à un arrêt de bus ( Terminus , 2024)."  Cet entretien a été enregistré au Centre Pompidou le 10 janvier 2026, en partenariat avec l'université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.