First, talking movies hello and welcome to austin, in texas, in our special South By Southwest Film Festival edition of talking movies, im tom brook. In todays programme, the festivals Opening Night film from a Visionary American director. Did it live up to expectations . Most films out there have the same formula. And Terence Malik has a different formula. The action oriented Big Budget Films also came to town. Hopefully the movie just takes someone on a ride. It is designed to be seen large and loud. The South By Southwest film have a special resonance in these politically charged times. It a film that totally normalises the image of the average american muslim and also the average american mexican immigrant. This is about religious freedom. And oscar winer melissa leo playing an Activist Atheist once dubbed the most hated woman in america. I think the question of religious freedom has come up again in our world. Plus an experimental film that uses the rat as the storytelling device.
covered putin and watched it. i was struck by the idea when putin takes power, there is some hope maybe he ll be a reformed man and break with the kgb. then maybe it won t be so bad. and he wants us to have jobs and he s bringing in western economic things and maybe it will be okay. and you write this. many people i interviewed said the poisoning of mr. navalny in 2020 and the jailing of him in early 2021, after years of freedom, marked the end of the social contract. in the beginning of mr. putin s war. like al qaeda s killing of ahmed shah massoud. he had to clear the field of opponents. there was this evolution. you think there was a defining point of putin being more authoritarian to almost more totalitarian. i think what happened was there was a social contract for two decades under putin, right? you guys stay away from big politics. don t challenge my power. but you will have a nice life.