Cinema Roundup - September 2026: “A problem shared is a burden halved”
September was a very busy month of cinema going, partly because I attended the Venice International Film Festival between September 1-12 and it was also a busy month of new releases in cinemas generally.
The other big news related to cinema is the return of Dubai International Film Festival after being ‘postponed’ for 10 years. The 15th edition is scheduled of December 2027. Lots of thoughts about this that I’ve not had a chance to put in words, but watch this space.
FAVOURITES FROM VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL:
I wrote a brief recap about the festival here, and will write more about some of the films soon, but for now:
Top 5 (alphabetical order):
Agata the Writer (Kuba Dorabialski)
Dau (Ilya Khrzhanovsky)
Possible Love (Lee Chang-dong)
Queer Edward II (Theo Rollason)
Sometimes Sadness, Sometimes Rebellion (María Aparicio) - and favourite film title this year
Also liked:
Bucking Fastard (Werner Herzog)
A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra (Jacqueline Lentzou)
A Good Little Soldier (Stéphane Brizé)
Ink (Danny Boyle)
Naza (Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor)
Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger (Dylan Southern, Will Lovelace)
Primetime (Lance Oppenheim)
Wild Horse Nine (Martin McDonagh)
A Woman Today (Robert Guediguian)
Woman Unknown (May el-Toukhy)
FAVOURITE NEW RELEASE:
The Weight (Padraic McKinley)
Reel Cinemas, Marina Mall, Dubai
“A problem shared is a burden halved”
A depression era gold smuggling thriller that is also about class, race, and labour. Great cast, scenery and really felt like a hark back to heist films circa 1960s-70s. Shame it was treated as a minor release in our cinemas with a limited screening schedule.
Also liked:
Pressure (Anthony Maras), VOX Cinemas, Wafi Mall, Dubai
The Uprising (Paul Greengrass), VOX Cinemas, Mirdif City Centre, Dubai
Mixed Feelings:
Heart of the Beast (David Ayer) - Reel Cinemas, Dubai Mall, Dubai
Great dog acting, 4 dogs as Odin. Brad Pitt ain’t bad too. Great scenery of New Zealand as Alaska. But I hope Hollywood can one day make a film about PTSD suffered by people in countries where American soldiers are sent to “liberate” them.Sacrifice (Romain Gavras) - VOX Cinemas, Festival City, Dubai
Gavras should just stick to making music videos and commercials. The first 20 min or so was amusing, then just kept getting worse.
Didn’t like:
Resident Evil (Zach Cregger)
Fall 2: Deadpoint (Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig) - This was a disappointing sequel. It was so dumb, but will go watch Fall 3.
FAVOURITE REP SCREENING:
To Be Or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)
Watched in Sala Astra at the Venice Film Festival
REWATCHES:
Rewatched the following films and moderated a talk a talk after it, at Alliance Francaise in Dubai, and part of an event titled Meylas Aflam:
Noor (Thabit Al Mawaly,2024, 15 min)
The Battle (Eman Al Sayed,2023, 5 min)
Unsaid (Mansour Ahmed, 2025, 15 min)
Yathoom (Hana Kazim, 2025, 15 min)
A Small Dream (Sarra'a Al Shehhi,2022, 15 min)
Oug (Abdulrahman Al Madani, 2025, 10 min)Blue Heron (Sophy Romvari, 2025), organised by me as The Culturist Film Club and the first one hosted in Abu Dhabi. Thanks to Cinema Space.