Women are tough. Perhaps even tougher than we realize. If you need any further reminder of this truism, I give you Julien Faraut's documentary, The Witches of the Orient.

| Nov 8, 2021

This is one of those documentaries that does what historical documentaries should do: it takes a monumental achievement that the viewer might not know about and gives it the presentation and love it deserves.

| Aug 28, 2021

More than presenting the mere facts of history, the film explores how a series of events can capture the attention of a culture at large, and what that means for the people at its center.

| Aug 3, 2021

The director has an eye for arresting visuals as well as an ear for a good tune, but some of his artistic montages do needlessly drag out what is an otherwise fascinating story of sporting glory.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 23, 2021

Fusing exquisitely shot color 16mm footage from 1964 of the team's training sessions, drone-like music and splices of animation, we get a delirious sense of what these committed women endured six out of seven days a week.

| Jul 22, 2021

Moving from the 1950s to the 1960 World Championships in Rio to the 1964 Olympics, this is an astonishing journey.

| Jul 20, 2021

Packs a lift.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 20, 2021

Faraut finds and obsesses over the rhythm of bodies in motion, using repetition and cross-cuts of the team's training footage and gameplay with anime sequences and textile manufacturing.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jul 16, 2021

Despite these frustrating moments where The Witches of the Orient feels designed for a different audience, one which doesn't need to either race to catch up or be calmed into tranquility, the story of the Japanese volleyball team is undeniably remarkable.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 15, 2021

A sports documentary that has some interesting footage, but which could stand to focus more on its archive material, and boiling that down into a more focused story.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 15, 2021

The film might be mistaken for pure style. But all kinds of narrative freight is in the mix and between the lines: the traumas of 20th-century Japanese history, cultural stereotypes, changing norms.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 14, 2021

Faraut's editing is astounding in how it reinforces the team's cultural legacy, and the intensity of the athleticism that built it.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 14, 2021

By pairing real-life events with their animated interpretations, the film not only offers a fresh approach to documentary style but also draws out the tension between reality and artifice, private and public memory.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jul 13, 2021

Captivating, stylishly edited and ultimately rousing.

| Original Score: 8.75/10 | Jul 11, 2021

By giving historical and social context to a relatable sports story, Faraut created a victorious hit that serves as a tribute to a team with borderline magical athletic skills

| Original Score: 9/10 | Jul 9, 2021

The Witches of the Orient has an unusual pace and structure for a sports documentary, lending a mythical tone to its subject.

| Original Score: 7/10 | Jul 9, 2021

If the team was derided by their prejudiced (and defeated) foes in the moment of their success, this documentary elegantly restores the glow of legend, saving the champions the trouble of having to explain their heroism in words.

| Jul 9, 2021

As was the case in his previous film, 2018's John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection, Julien Faraut's The Witches of the Orient is hypnotic, idiosyncratic, often beautiful and surprisingly fun.

| Jul 8, 2021

Here, absent that added dimension, the intriguing flourishes and meditative montages don't fully cohere with the underdog-sports-movie narrative, leaving "Witches" slightly less than the sum of its parts - but what frequently wonderful parts they are.

| Jul 7, 2021

This accumulation of small touches gives the film plenty enough personality to overcome its more rote elements, and upholds Faraut's stature as a director to keep an eye on.

| Jul 6, 2021