Stephen Dalton - The Film Verdict

Hotel Utopia

Posted by Stephen Dalton | Oct 30, 2026 | 2026, Festivals, Leipzig 2026 |

A team of digital nomads dream of creating a shared paradise in an abandoned Bulgarian hotel in ‘Hotel Utopia’, an engaging, amusing, slightly elusive documentary by German director Julia Groteclaes.

Club Kid

Posted by Stephen Dalton | Sep 25, 2026 | Featured, Festivals, San Sebastian 2026 |

Jordan Firstman writes, directs and stars in ‘Club Kid’, a big-hearted comedy about a gay New York party promoter forced to rethink his hedonistic lifestyle after learning he has a young son.

Border

Posted by Stephen Dalton | Sep 24, 2026 | Festivals, San Sebastian 2026 |

A trio of loveless, desperate souls fatefully collide in Chinese writer-director Ah Biao’s debut feature ‘Border’, a starkly beautiful but overly cryptic exercise in lo-fi noir minimalism.

The Debut

Posted by Stephen Dalton | Sep 23, 2026 | Featured, Festivals, San Sebastian 2026 |

Jesse Eisenberg both mocks and celebrates his fellow actors, writers and directors in ‘The Debut’, a warm-hearted backstage musical comedy co-starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti on fantastic form.

La bola negra

Posted by Stephen Dalton | Sep 22, 2026 | Cine Verdict, Festivals, San Sebastian 2026 |

El dúo de directores y guionistas españoles Javier Calvo y Javier Ambrossi revisitan la vida y el legado del ícono literario queer Federico García Lorca en esta épica deslumbrante, aunque ligeramente torpe; ha sido galardonada y ahora aspira al Óscar, cuenta con el respaldo de Penélope Cruz y Pedro Almodóvar.

Author: Stephen Dalton

Hotel Utopia

Club Kid

Border

The Debut

La bola negra