Did you ever think you would engage with a film that transplants Iranian New Wave cinema to the stony, rigid, cold streets of Winnipeg, Manitoba? I certainly didn't. In fact, I have given the ...

It’s not unusual for a city to double for another metropolis in movies. New Yorkers have long been able to spot when Toronto has been substituted for the Big Apple. Matthew Rankin, though, has gone ...

Still from Universal Language (2024), dir. Matthew Rankin, with Rojina Esmaeili as “Negin” (image courtesy Oscilloscope Laboratories) In Universal Language, director Matthew Rankin transforms the ...

It all starts with a turkey. Though “starts” might not be the correct word to use for Universal Language, Matthew Rankin’s surreal, loopy film set in some bizarre alternate version of Winnipeg, ...

On the heels of its world premiere at Cannes, Matthew Rankin‘s comedy Universal Language has been named as Canada’s official entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards. The ...

Universal Language, the original and quietly funny Oscar-shortlisted Cannes and TIFF premiering feature by Canadian filmmaker Matthew Rankin debuts on one screen each in New York and LA. Chinese ...

There is a good chance that “Universal Language,” the latest feature from writer, director and actor Matthew Rankin, will earn some well-intentioned if superficial comparisons to the work of Wes ...