Rafaela Sales Ross

Mimi Leder’s 1998 apocalypse action thriller Deep Impact, understands and encapsulates a collective human fear regarding the end of the world. Its effect, however, can be complex beyond just signalling oblivion: Rafaela Sales Ross looks back at how the film helped her confront superstitions and find comfort in the end of the world.

2020 has been a year to forget for many reasons. But today we’re here to focus on the positives. Even with only three months of cinema-going under our belts, the amount of incredible movie moments is as high as ever.
We assembled 10 of our writers to choose their favourite moments and write about them below, with spoilers all the way through.
Emma – Nosebleed Proposal – Tori Brazier
Autumn de Wilde’s pastel whirlwind adaptation of Emma has verve and cheekiness, but nowhere does it have more f...

“On June 19th, 2014, Ryan Candice walked into a hospital to seek help for his severe anxiety and suicidal thoughts. He was denied admittance, and took his life shortly thereafter.”
From the first moments of Wake Up: Stories From the Frontlines of Suicide Prevention, the message is very clear: there is a serious issue with the way suicide is treated in the United States. Ryan’s death inspired his dear friend, director Nate Townsend, to investigate the factors that have led to the rising number...

Getting to the end of Dreamland is much like waking up from a poorly slept night: hazy, disappointing, and pierced with a hint of confusion. The film, a hyperbolic pulpy noir, is crafted with a very specific audience in mind – those who granted Canadian director Bruce McDonald’s 2008 Pontypool an irrevocable cult status. For all the others who do not fall under the niched umbrella, it is a flawed attempt at a genre movie.
In a misty, European criminal haven, a mysterious hitman, a drug-fuelle...

“We believe it is important to build the community (…) because it reunites people; because that teaches us to love us; because that teaches us to respect each other; because that teaches us to be”, says Rafael, widely known as Tio Lape, an old musician, and woodworker.
Tio Lape and his mentee, Joel, live in a small Mexican town heavily affected by the war on drugs and use their love of Son Jarocho, a regional type of folk music, to not only preserve their culture but to give their constantly ...

Towards the end of Lenny Abrahamson’s Frank (2014), Jon (Domhnall Gleeson) glances at Frank Sidebottom’s band one last time before turning his back for good. They represented his feverish dream of belonging to something extraordinary, but the truth, which had been constantly knocking on his shoulder, could no longer be ignored: he has never – and will never – fit into this beautiful group of misfits. The unpronounceable The Soronprfbs will continue their quest without dwelling on the loss of ...

Scavenging through the arid grounds of the Brazilian North-eastern sertão, Iremar (Juliano Cazarré) collects pieces of broken mannequins. It is the end of yet another rodeo and the worker is quick to change his focus from his job to his passion. Whenever the man is not pulling bulls by their tails or washing dirt-covered stables, he dreams of one day leaving it all behind to work in the fashion industry, a dream so starkly opposite to his reality it seems almost feverish.

A literal sh*t show
Restraint is often required not to turn any analysis of Butt Boy into a pun fest. The film’s effort in not taking itself too seriously directly impacts any lengthier, deeper exploration of its concept, one quite simple in theory yet surprisingly layered in practice. After a routine rectal exam, Chip (Tyler Cornack) develops an unhealthy obsession with stuffing things – living or not – into his… well, butt. When a scarred detective crosses his path, the pressure upends his ...

“Honestly, who spends that much time looking for a missing hooker?,” says one of the detectives involved in the investigation of the disappearance of Shannan Gilbert, a 23-year old woman who went missing after arranging a meeting through Craigslist. The case is the inspiration for Netflix’s Lost Girls, which follows the gruelling battle between Shannan’s mother, Mari (Amy Ryan), and a deeply biased system that continuously refuses to pay her daughter the attention – and respect – she deserves.

In this new series of articles, our writers are watching classic films for the first time. Here, Rafaela catches up on the 1989 Oscar-nominated Steel Magnolias.
‘That’s how it should be, life goes on’ says M’Lynn (Sally Fields) while lovingly playing with her grandson soon after undergoing a life-altering trauma. If there is a piece of dialogue that can most accurately encapsulate Steel Magnolias, this is undoubtedly it. Herbert Ross’ 80’s classic pays homage to life and all its sorrows, cont...

“This is gay world, though. You win a major award and you go back to your little dressing room”. Trixie Mattel – Moving Parts presents a stark contrast to the colourful, hyperbolic world of Ru Paul’s Drag Race. Here, bickering does not lead to strengthening fraternal-like bonds and heartfelt testimonies of a bleak past do not result in warm embraces and words of encouragement.

One of the most popular drag queens to come out of Ru Paul’s hit reality show, Trixie Mattel (Brian Firkus) is once again in front of the cameras, this time attempting to navigate a blurry post-Drag Race world...

Georges (Jean Dujardin) enters the cabin of a hermit he found online with almost eight thousand euros in his pocket and high expectations in his mind. When he goes out the door, however, the money is gone. Instead, he now has a one hundred per cent deerskin, Italian made, one of a kind jacket and an old camcorder that was thrown into the deal but he has no idea how to operate.
Coming out of a failed marriage, broke and without a sense of what comes next, Georges allows himself to be consumed ...

There is much to be appreciated during small moments in Olympic Dreams. The charming awkwardness of athlete-turned-actress Alexi Pappas, the physical aspects of Nick Kroll’s portrayal of a sense of non-belonging and the ever-going multitude of stories colliding under the haze of this once-in-a-lifetime experience. It all becomes particularly spectacular when one learns that this was the first-ever narrative film to be shot at an Olympic Athlete Village during the actual 2018 Winter Games.

A feel-good tale of how unity can overcome sorrow
There is a very popular Brazilian saying that states ‘singing chases away the blues’. When times are hard, chanting a familiar tune helps to cope with the overwhelming certainty that life is not at all fair. It is far from being a cure, or even a medicine per se, but singing can be a potent anaesthetic. To confirm this hypothesis, one just needs to watch Military Wives, a feel-good tale on the soul-crushing reality of families who need to main...

The day-to-day of a luxury mansion and its inhabitants changes drastically over three years. The rich family who owns the property dissolves over a corruption scandal, leaving their employees waiting for news that never seem to arrive. Madá (Regina Casé), the main housekeeper, tries her best to establish a routine amidst the chaos, juggling her own personal burdens and the ones of the people around her with an unshakeable positive attitude.
The stark reality shown onscreen is the direct produ...