Like Father, Like Son Review
Hirokazu Koreeda’s latest in a run of tender explorations of family dynamics rests on a rather unusual high concept, the idea of two children being swapped at birth in a hospital and the error not being discovered until much later. The two children, six year-old boys named Keita and Ryusei, have had very different experiences … Read more
The Lost Weekend Review
One of the greatest horror films of all time, The Lost Weekend is not a pleasant film to watch but it is a gripping, disturbing and utterly brilliant film from the masterful Billy Wilder. Wilder traps us with its protagonist, Don Birnam (Ray Milland), in the nightmarish world of an addict. In this case the … Read more
Double Indemnity Review
Writing about a film as critically adored and much discussed as Double Indemnity inevitably results in treading similar ground to those that have gone before and it’s particularly hard to introduce such a film with the requisite amount of praise without simply gushing. Added to this is the lingering thought in my head that I could never write such … Read more
Island of Lost Souls Review
Another adaptation and another stellar performance by Charles Laughton, Island of Lost Souls has also arrived on Blu-ray in the UK thanks to Masters of Cinema. The film’s release history in the UK is one fraught with censorship issues and it is one that provides an interesting case study for the shifting Zeitgeist that has … Read more
Ruggles of Red Gap Review
Originally serialised in 1914, Harry Leon Wilson‘s novel Ruggles of Red Gap would go on to be released as a novel, adapted into a stage play and three films, the films released in 1918, 1923 and 1935. The most famous of these, the 1935 film adaptation directed by Leo McCarey and starring the multi-talented Charles … Read more
Lifeboat Review
Based on a script by John Steinbeck Lifeboat at first appears on the surface (pun purely accidental) to be a piece of stunt filmmaking, an attempt to do something that may seem impossible. To set an entire feature film in a boat and, barring one establishing shot, and never move from the boat in question must have seemed like lunacy in 1944 … Read more
The Gospel According to Matthew Review
It does seem almost perverse that a non-believer, Pasolini, could make what is perhaps the definitive cinematic version of the story of Christ and one that was even endorsed somewhat by the Vatican, with its placement on a Vatican film list compiled in 1995. But simply being a non-believer does not hamper Pasolini’s ability to convey belief and most importantly, … Read more
Accattone Review
Accattone is an appropriate opening to the impressive directorial career of Pier Paolo Pasolini, playing as it does as something of an open ended question and an unfinished thought. The film deals with a unlikeable protagonist named Accattone, which roughly translates as ‘beggar’ or ‘bum’, but rather than condemn or judge Accattone, Pasolini’s film explores … Read more
All Is Lost Review
From the Mamet-lite and dialogue heavy Margin Call J.C. Chandor moves onto a very different project for his ‘difficult second album’, the elemental drama All is Lost. Starring just Robert Redford All is Lost is also far removed from the star-studded ensemble cast of Margin Call, offering no other characters beyond Redford – who is … Read more
The Immigrant Review
We are first introduced to Ewa (Marion Cotillard) and her sister Magda (Angela Sarafyan) as they queue at Ellis Island, having travelled from Poland to America to start a new life. Magda is suffering from tuberculosis and despite her attempts to cover up her coughing it’s quickly discovered and she is sent to the infirmary, … Read more
Jeune & Jolie Review
François Ozon, the former enfant terrible of French Cinema, returns after his career best In the House with a rather sedate, even if it is occasionally mildly provocative, character study into the sexual awakening of a seventeen year-old girl. Isabelle, the girl in question, is played by Marine Vacth, an actress for who this will … Read more
Inside Llewyn Davis Review
The Greenwich Village Folk scene of the early sixties provides the setting for the Coen Brothers’ wonderfully meandering portrait of a struggling folk musician. The folk setting does not define Inside Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac) though, Llewyn is in many ways more a representative of artists in general and in particular one struggling to have … Read more
Heli Review
A depressing insight into a poor family in Mexico makes for uneasy if occasionally powerful viewing in Heli, Amat Escalante’s third feature following Sangre in 2005 and Los bastardos in 2008. Heli is named after its central character, a poor young man who works at a local Japanese Automobile factory and lives with his partner, … Read more
Good Vibrations Review
Music biopics so often get it drastically wrong, from over enthusiastic hagiography to a complete lack of understanding of the subject of the film, the missteps often quickly mount up. Significant blunders in these films are far more common than redeeming qualities but, thankfully, Good Vibrations is one of the better ones. Focusing not on … Read more
Blue is the Warmest Colour (La Vie d’Adèle) Review
Deriving its English title, Blue is the Warmest Colour, from the source graphic novel Le Bleu est une couleur chaude by Julie Maroh, La Vie D’Adele Chapitres 1 et 2 (its French title) is the fifth film from director Abdellatif Kechiche, since his debut in 2000 with La Faute a Voltaire, and it is certainly destined … Read more
Max Rose Review
Directed by Daniel Noah, only his second feature since his debut in 2001, Max Rose premiered at the Cannes Film Festival with dozens of photographers, multiple video cameras and hundreds of highly excitable guests in attendance. Why so much fanfare and a circus like atmosphere for such a relatively small screening? It’s all because of … Read more
Only God Forgives Review
Nicolas Winding Refn gained something of a cult following after Drive, his previous team up with Ryan Gosling, and the film even gained the Danish filmmaker a number of fans who would most likely usually favour more mainstream fare. His and Gosling’s follow-up, Only God Forgives, has just premiered at Cannes, playing in Competition, but … Read more
Behind the Candelabra Review
Whilst Side Effects has received a lot of publicity for potentially being Steven Soderbergh’s last film, the HBO produced Behind the Candelabra is currently playing in competition at the Cannes Film Festival and will receive a theatrical release throughout Europe next month. ‘TV Movies’ have played Cannes before and they will no doubt play here … Read more
The Bling Ring Review
Based on real events and inspired by an article in Vanity Fair, Sofia Coppola’s latest directorial turn concerns itself with those that emulate the kind of characters she has previously devoted whole films to; Dorff’s Johnny Marco in Somewhere, Kirsten Dunst as Marie Antoinette and to a lesser extent Bill Murray’s Bob Harris in Lost … Read more
Simon Killer Review
Discussion about the title of a film is not something that generally finds its way into a film review, and with good reason. The title of a film is usually somewhat extraneous to the actual experience of watching the film and its importance lies outside of the film itself. Much like the marketing that surrounds any film … Read more
