The Artist Review
With the release of OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies in 2006 Michel Hazanavicius and the seemingly effortlessly charismatic Jean Dujardin looked set for global domination and a real crossover into the mainstream cinema-goer’s consciousness. Outside of France OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies, and the equally smart and entertaining sequel OSS 117 – Lost … Read more
Wild Bill Review
The release of a inmate from prison and their subsequent reintegration into ‘regular’ society is an area that is filled with potential for interesting drama. Ulu Grosbard’s under-seen and underrated 1978 film Straight Time (based on the equally excellent book No Beast So Fierce by Edward Bunker) uses this premise to explore the way in which the released inmate’s, played by Dustin Hoffman, life is defined by the … Read more
Curling King Review
It’s a widely held belief by many that comedy doesn’t travel well. Comedies from Hollywood often face more uncertain futures when it comes to international takings than other genres, particularly action films, and non-English speaking comedies seem to struggle to find an audience outside of their native countries. There are of course exceptions and I … Read more
Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai Review
Anyone who has already seen Masaki Kobayashi’s 1962 film Harakiri, of which this film is very much a remake, will very quickly realise when watching Miike’s 2011 update that little in the story has been changed but whilst the mechanics of the story are unchanged Miike makes significant changes in the way this story is … Read more
Nobody Else But You Review
Wider aspirations dominate proceedings in Gerald Hustache-Mathieu’s frothy thriller, Nobody Else But You, both in the filmmaking and the story itself. Nobody Else But You focuses on a recently deceased character, local pin-up turned weather girl and cheese mascot Martine Langevin (Sophie Quinton). Martine adopts the stage name Candice Lecoeur, following her ‘discovery’ at a … Read more
Dark Horse Review
Todd Solondz’s seventh feature length film finds the writer/director swimming in familiar waters but in this blackly comic tale Solondz has crafted perhaps his most complete and restrained film since Welcome to the Dollhouse in 1995. Solondz first introduces us to protagonist Abe, a hard to like schlub played with skill and conviction by Broadway … Read more
The Kid with a Bike Review
Cyril is a restless and stern-faced child with dogged determination, played brilliantly by Thomas Doret. The current subject consuming his determined mind is the loss of his bike and the absence of his father. The two are interconnected. Cyril has been abandoned at a care home by his father (Jeremie Renier), stranded with no clue … Read more
Miss Bala Review
Miss Bala opens on a static shot of a wall, a wall filled with cut out pictures of American female fashion icons – Madonna, Monroe, Audrey Hepburn – and a mirror. Reflected in the mirror we get a glimpse at our protagonist, Laura Guerrero (Stephanie Sigman), partially obscured as she busies herself around her room. … Read more
13 Assassins Review
Edo period Japan and the untouchable brother of the Shogun, the villainous Lord Naritsugu (played wonderfully by SMAP member Goro Inagaki), is out of control and a group of samurai (and a wandering bandit) set out to assassinate Naritsugu before he rises too high and things get far worse. Laying a trap for him and his … Read more
Superheroes Review
In the 2010 fiction film Kick-Ass the titular character comments, following his defense of an unarmed man being beaten up outside a diner, “…three assholes, laying into one guy while everybody else watches? And you wanna know what’s wrong with me?”. This apathetic attitude and the desire to do something tangible about it is really … Read more
Headhunters (Hodejegerne) Review
Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie) is 1.68 meters tall and feels very inadequate about it. Despite working in a highly paid job, as a corporate headhunter, having a beautiful house and spending a fortune on luxury gifts for his wife, his tall wife, Diana (Synnove Macody Lund), he believes that he is not enough for her. Roger is … Read more
Howl Review
Written in 1955 Howl is a seminal poem by Allen Ginsberg and in this new film Rob Epstein and Jeffery Friedman direct James Franco as Ginsberg and attempt to tell the story of the poem and the court case that followed its publication. Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman have previously worked in the documentary field … Read more
Smash His Camera Review
In Ron Galella the makers of Smash His Camera (namely director Leon Gast) have found a wonderful subject for a documentary but one that is perhaps too engaging, a character too seductive to not just fall in love with. Galella is a paparazzi photographer but unlike the stereotypical image that this profession has, Galella is … Read more
Of Gods and Men Review
Based on the true events that occurred at a Trappist monastery in Algeria in 1996, Of Gods and Men focuses on a group of monks in the period before they are massacred at the hands of an Islamic group. Despite the potentially sensationalist and somewhat hot button subject matter, Of Gods and Men is a … Read more
I Am Kalam Review
I Am Kalam, from director Nila Madhab Panda, tells the story of a young boy, Chotu, who is sent by his mother to work at a roadside food joint in Rajasthan. One of the food joint’s biggest customers is the Royal Palace where the wealthy but somewhat irrelavent Royal family reside. The young prince of … Read more
Catfish – Online Identity, Ethics And Audience Reactions
Contrary to the poster for Catfish, which declares “Don’t let anyone tell you want it is.” the following will in detail discuss the film and therefore reveal elements of the plot that some would perhaps rather remain a mystery until they are unravelled on screen. Although the film is constructed in a way that builds the tension for the … Read more
The Tillman Story Review
NFL linebacker turned US Army Ranger Pat Tillman tragically died in Afghanistan in 2004. The events surrounding his death were quick to break on news outlets around the world and he was quickly commended as an American hero. Pat Tillman was a high profile member of the US Army and the information released by the … Read more
Trash Humpers Review
Harmony Korine has described Trash Humpers not as a film but something you might find in a ditch, with blood on, perhaps in a zip lock bag. Korine is right, this is not his new film, it is a fictionalised artefact of twisted Americana, a VHS document of a very strange collection of people doing … Read more
Capitalism: A Love Story Review
Playing as the ‘surprise film’ at the London Film Festival, Capitalism: A Love Story (henceforth referred to as CaLS) was a genuine surprise to me, as I had pretty much assumed that the ticket I was buying was for Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are. It was therefore very surprising when the film began … Read more
Burning Down the House Review
CBGB’s was a venue that opened in 1973, founded and run, until it’s eventual close, by Hilly Krystal. Although the famous initials stood for Country Bluegrass and Blues, Hilly’s personal musical passion, it was punk that would find its home at CBGB’s, with many influential groups finding a haven there, including The Ramones, Patti Smith, … Read more
