Hammer to Nail

Brides, premiered in the World Dramatic Competition at Sundance 2025, marking the feature debut of acclaimed theatre director Nadia Fall. The film follows two teenage Muslim girls – Doe (newcomer Ebada Hassan) and Muna (Safiyya Ingar) – who run away...

Following its TIFF premiere last fall and upcoming screening at SXSW where it will close the festival, Daniel Minahan’s 1950s-set romantic drama On Swift Horses is making its way to U.S. theaters. Adapted by Bryce Kass from Shannon Pufahl’s 2019...

Tunisian director Amel Guellaty just premiered her feature-film debut, Where the Wind Comes From, at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival (where I reviewed it). The movie offers striking visuals and a compelling story of friendship in a road-trip structure, showing...

(Here at Hammer to Nail, we are all about true independent cinema. But we also have to tip our hat to the great films of yesteryear that continue to inspire filmmakers and cinephiles alike. This week, Brad Cook hustles into...

Premiering in the World Dramatic Competition at Sundance 2025, Luz is an ambitious exploration of reality, connection and redemption from director Flora Lau (Bends). Set across Chongqing, Hong Kong and Paris, the film follows Wei (Xiao Dong Guo), a reformed...

(The 2025 Sundance Film Festival ran January 23- February 2 in and around gorgeous Park City, UT. HtN has you covered for all the hottest titles like M.J. O’Toole’s Love, Brooklyn movie review. Seen it? Join the conversation with HtN on our Letterboxd Page.)...

(The 2025 Sundance Film Festival ran January 23- February 2 in and around gorgeous Park City, UT. HtN has you covered for all the hottest titles like Chris Reed’s Cutting Through Rocks movie review. Seen it? Join the conversation with HtN on our Letterboxd...

In André Is An Idiot, which premiered in the U.S. Documentary Competition at Sundance 2025 (where it won the Audience Award: U.S. Documentary), first-time feature director Tony Benna crafts an unexpectedly profound portrait of his friend André Ricciardi, a maverick advertising...

(The 2025 Sundance Film Festival ran January 23- February 2 in and around gorgeous Park City, UT. HtN has you covered for all the hottest titles like Chris Reed’s The Perfect Neighbor movie review. Seen it? Join the conversation with HtN on our Letterboxd...

After his romantic drama Genesis, Quebecois filmmaker Philippe Lesage is back with a new lush, intimate drama Who By Fire. It follows two families on a secluded getaway in the forest as they content with romantic intricacies and simmering tensions....