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Sam Behrend
Contributor

Meet Sam, he writes about wine by day and drinks it with the perfect movie pairing by night. He spent time freelancing on sets and made some short films – they were all about inanimate objects eating people. Hailing originally from the United States, he has spent most of his life in New Zealand, though has never shaken a blandly foreign accent. His life choices were all validated the night he saw Werner Herzog describe Nicolas Cage as the greatest human being alive.

Reviews by Sam Behrend:

Film reels and smoke
A Flickering Truth
Movie
I don’t usually think of documentaries as being so immersive, but A Flickering Truth is seamless.
Image: Beyond the Edge
Beyond the Edge
Movie
Beyond the Edge is the best account of the Everest expedition I’ve seen. Spoiler - they’re the first people in history to make it to the peak.
Image: A United Kingdom
A United Kingdom
Movie
While the UK has seen a rise in openly racist sentiment, A United Kingdom is about the true-life marriage of a Botswanan King to an English clerk.
Image: The Girl on the Train
The Girl on the Train
Movie
Rachel’s erratic behaviour is magnified as Megan’s disappearance becomes more sinister. It’s a tension that came close to giving me a heart attack.
Image: Labyrinth of Lies
Labyrinth of Lies
Movie
In post-World War II Germany, the film prods us to consider, How do we hold soldiers accountable for heinous actions, if they were just following orders?
Image: Songs My Brothers Taught Me
Songs My Brothers Taught Me
Movie
This movie became completely engrossing. The characters are so seamlessly real that I felt that same pang of loss that you get at the end of a good book.
Image: A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Movie
“The first Iranian vampire Western” with an awesome Iranian rock soundtrack.
Image: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
Movie
The movie is mostly successful in showing off the ridiculousness of America’s longest war and the inverse attention span of the media and the public.
Image: Sherpa
Sherpa
Movie
This is a superb portrait of the forces at play in the tourism industry of Everest, the Himalayan culture and the skewed perspectives that are popularly held.