This is the feature directorial debut of Paola Cortellesi, who first debuted as a singer at 13 and later became an actress and screenwriter, before taking on directing at the age of 50. The film’s protagonist, Delia—played by the director herself—is a middle-aged mother suffering from domestic violence at the hands of her ex-military husband. Delia endures her war-like daily life in silence, caring for her two young sons, a daughter who is about to get engaged, and a cantankerous father-in-law who is bedridden. However, after receiving a letter, she decides to change her life. Set in 1946, the year when women’s suffrage was first implemented in Italy, this black-and-white comedy-drama in the neorealism style tackles the issues of patriarchy and domestic violence with a lighthearted touch. It became the highest-grossing Italian film of 2023, breaking all records at the Italian box office, ranking in the top 10 of all-time Italian box office hits, and becoming the most successful film directed by an Italian female director. (JO Ji-hoon)

The Angel (2018) director Luis Ortega returns with another weirdly funny, cool, and sexy thriller where we follow a star jockey, his girlfriend and partner in crime, and a mobster on his tail. Remo’s talents cannot save him from his self-destructive behaviors, and after an unfortunate accident on the most important race of his career, he will walk out of his life to become free. Like a wild horse fleeing from a predator, the unique and surreal tale of Dolores (née Remo) the fugitive is deliciously weaved in a non-judgmental and unapologetic manner. With perfectly timed tongue-in-cheek humor, dreamlike mating dance sequences, and a grand finale where everything comes to full circle, Kill the Jockey declares that Luis Ortega is one of the most intriguing auteurs of contemporary Argentinean cinema. (Karen PARK)

Lao San is about a boy named Erguang in a rural village, whose father is absent and mother plans to go to the city for work. He has to move to his aunt’s home while he is only obsessed with finding his friend. (PARK Sungho)

In a mysterious and surreal interzone somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg, the lives of multiple characters interweave with each other in surprising and mysterious ways. Grade schoolers Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to claim it. Meanwhile, Massoud leads a group of increasingly-befuddled tourists through the monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his meaningless job in a Québecois government office and sets out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother. Space, time and personal identities crossfade, interweave and echo into a surreal comedy of misdirection. Universal Language is a 2024 Canadian absurdist comedy-drama film, co-written and directed by Matthew Rankin. The film had its world premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight section at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival and became one of the most talked about films in Cannes.

Director Kang Mija, who gained attention with Let the Blue River Run (2008), has released her second feature film after several years. Based on the eponymous short story from Kwon Yeo-seon’s collection Good-bye, Drunkard, the film tells a tragic and pure love story between Yeong-gyeong, a severe alcoholic, and Su-hwan, who suffers from severe rheumatism. While the film is adapted from the short story, it has been crafted as a poetic work. Narrative context and explanations are largely excluded, and instead, the film features raw, powerful, and even surreal shots that repeat in a rhythmic, poetic manner. The emphasis on scenes of excessive drinking, indifference, and endless waiting evokes a profound sense of pain. Spring Night is a film that evokes intense agony, leaving viewers with a lingering sense of suffering. After watching, we, too, might feel as though poetry wells up inside us, or perhaps we, too, find ourselves crying beneath the blooming magnolia tree. (JUNG Hanseok)

Can a person be born anew? Kaneko’s Commissary is a work that examines what it means to be human from various aspects and strives to find hope for people. Kaneko, imprisoned for violence, was a man who would get angry even at his wife if she came to visit. It was the power of family - his wife, child, and uncle - that led this good-for-nothing to start a new life. Kaneko now runs a commissary that provides items to people imprisoned like he once was and visits them on behalf of their families. However, the peace is shattered when a young girl, his son’s friend, is found dead. Although the murderer is arrested, Kaneko, who had granted a favor to the murderer’s mother, is cornered and becomes enraged while trying to protect his son. The specter of his past, when he succumbed to violence, captures him again. While depicting a man’s struggle for salvation, it’s a work that stands out for its meticulous story that makes good and evil look at each other like mirrors, and features solid performances by the cast. (NAM Dong-chul)

The third feature film by Ishibashi Yuho, who won the Japan Cuts award at the Osaka Asian Film Festival with When Morning Comes, I Feel Empty (2022). The film delicately conveys the memory of first love and the sense of loss, moving back and forth between past and present. Misaki, who has worked in Tokyo for ten years, spends quality time with her family and friends again in her hometown. At an event where classmates gather, she learns that the boy she liked in middle school has died. Unable to forget the memory of their first conversation in the library on a typhoon day, Misaki visits the library again on another typhoon day. Traveling Alone is a film that shows another way to fill the emptiness in one’s heart. While the music they listened to together on an MD player shows the emotional fullness of that time and place, the film only depicts the situation without directly playing the music. There is beauty that can be imagined because it’s empty, and there is love that is poignant because it wasn’t fulfilled. (NAM Dong-chul)

In the early 20th century, Karoline, desperate to make ends meet while working at a textile factory that produces military supplies, suddenly finds herself out on the streets. Pregnant with an illegitimate child, she wanders through the alleys of Copenhagen, until Dagmar, offering a glimmer of hope, extends a helping hand. With the prospect of placing the child for adoption with a wealthy family, the two grow closer. However, the reality Karoline faces is far more wretched, and the truth about Dagmar is nothing short of horrifying. The Girl with the Needle feels like a strange and brutal fairy tale. In the woods, when a girl is lost and falls under the spell of a witch, what choice does she really have? Can it even be called a ‘choice?’ Throughout the consistently grim, monochromatic atmosphere, Karoline, with her weary expression, is not a girl dreaming of transforming a frog into a prince with a kiss. The girl with the needle clings to life, refusing to let go of her attachment to it, in a desolate attempt to escape the cruel wheel of misfortune. (Karen PARK)

Director Ryu Hyung-seok, who served as a conscripted firefighter during his mandatory military service, made a documentary about firefighters. Responding to calls from those on the edge of life and death, these modern-day heroes at the Yangsan Firestation and Ulsan Fire Headquarters are the focus of The First Responders. Without voiceover narration or interview shots, the film captures not only the team’s work and daily lives, but also their inner darkness, desires, and the difficult fate inherent in their profession. Here, the camera is not simply a tool for recording but is one of them, acting as their eyes. “Just strip away all emotion and focus on what you need to do,” one firefighter says, and the documentary mirrors this approach, moving steadily forward without being swept up by emotional waves. Yet the film inevitably reaches heart-warming moments. This documentary offers an exceptionally humanistic insight into the profession. (KANG Sowon)

High school fencer Zijie is shocked to learn that his older brother, Zihan, is being released early from prison. Zijie’s mother, who is about to marry a kind, wealthy man named Zhuang, wants to erase or downplay Zihan’s existence. But Zijie remembers his older brother as the one who saved him from drowning and the winner of three national fencing championships. Was Zihan really a psychopath who deliberately killed his opponent, as their mother claims, or was it an accident? If fencing is ‘chess with swords,’ requiring strategic anticipation of the opponent’s moves, the characters in Pierce are players, each moving their own pieces on the board of truth. In her directorial debut, former fencer Nelicia Low captures the dangerous yet beautiful art of fencing in a tale of brotherhood, earning her the Best Director Award at the 2024 Karlovy Vary Film Festival. (CHOI Eun)

DIRTY MONEY follows the rampage of two detectives who mistakenly cross a criminal organization. Myeong-deuk (Jung Woo) and Dong-hyeok (Kim Dae-myung) are capable cops who survive through petty corruption. They take bribes after investigations yet still have the ability to solve cases. When they accidentally obtain information about the criminal organization’s black money, they plan to meticulously steal it. However, their perfect plan crumbles due to an unexpected variable: the accidental death of an undercover detective. Myeong-deuk and Dong-hyeok take on the investigation themselves to cover up the incident, but unraveling the tangled situation proves challenging. This directorial debut by Kim Minsu, who wrote the screenplay for The Merciless (2017), successfully captures both curiosity and excitement through a series of interlinked situations. It’s notable how the film enhances overall immersion by appropriately utilizing character interactions and relationships, similar to The Merciless. (SONG Kyung-won)

Guillaume Brac, whose career started with stories of the previous generation, now seeks change and balance. While his youth-centered drama All Hands on Deck (2020) and documentary Treasure Island (2018) form a pair, the women-centered July Tales (2017) and So Long are their antithesis. Yet unlike his previous films, which evoke summer and freedom, this documentary has the scent of autumn despite its summer setting, as it focuses on the time of students just before graduation. The teacher’s line that opens the film—“Express yourselves freely”—also reflects the film’s tone. With an affectionate gaze, the camera stays close and calmly observes the students at a pivotal moment. The present of these students, in their world of classes, outdoor activities, and boarding rooms, forms the axis between their past and future. Will the friends who are sad to part be able to meet again? That is a question for the future. Now is time to say goodbye. (LEE Yong Cheol)