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A woman and her bird go on adventure to New York City and back. One of the oddest films included within the 2026 Venice Film Festival line-up is this enjoyable road trip comedy called Place to Be, made by the Hungarian filmmaker Kornél Mundruczó. This is actually his second feature film premiering in 2026 – he also directed At the Sea from Berlinale earlier this year (read my review of that one). Thankfully this one is much better, and much more uplifting, which is the kind of cinematic balm we could use right now. It’s also much more conventional, and much more formulaic, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t mostly entertaining as well. Place to Be is a road trip movie about an elderly woman, played by the exceptional Ellen Burstyn, who ends up running away with a pigeon that flies in through her window. Along the way she connects with an alcoholic divorced dad and learns about the sport of pigeon racing while rediscovering the world anew. Something exciting to praise: this has one of the best bird character performances I’ve ever seen in any film. // Continue Reading ›
