January Film Highlights

Please visit the blog.

Jack Reacher (2012) Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Richard Jenkins, Werner Herzog, David Oyelowo, Robert Duvall. Dir: Christopher McQuarrie.

A sniper kills 5 at random, and in his defense, simply asks for a man called Jack Reacher. Reasonably entertaining, but not very original and with cheese around the edges. Reacher is a typical know-it-all jack-of-all trades hero, but not an especially engaging one. Still, there are decent suspense/action sequences.

DDDd



Murder By Decree (1979) Christopher Plummer, James Mason, David Hemmings, Susan Clark, Frank Finlay, Anthony Quayle, Donald Sutherland. Dir: Bob Clark.

Holmes and Watson are called to investigate Jack the Ripper. Holmes believing a psychic or getting over-emotional over a case? There are plenty of uncharacteristic elements, less an interpretation of Holmes, more a misunderstanding of what makes the character work. A wobbly series of clues, but looks very handsome.

DDD
Life of Pi (2012) Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Tabu, Adil Hussain, Rafe Spall. Dir: Ang Lee.

When a boat carrying zoo animals sinks, a boy survivor is trapped on a lifeboat with a tiger. Simply gorgeous – proof that CGI and even 3D can be genuinely beautiful if used gracefully. An inspiring adaptation that has just the right balance of feel-good magic and darkness and danger.

DDDDD


Magic (1978) Anthony Hopkins, Ann-Margret, Burgess Meredith, Ed Lauter, David Ogden Stiers. Dir: Richard Attenborough.

A ventriloquist rekindles and old romance and considers leaving showbiz, but what will his dummy think? The old mad ventriloquist/sinister dummy story; not desperately original, but it’s done well; the script is good, it’s briskly paced, well directed and scored. But the crowning touch is Hopkins, whose intensity is electrifying.

DDDD

The Impossible (2012) Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin, Oaklee Pendergast. Dir: J.A. Bayona.

 

A holidaying family are caught up in the Asian tsunami and must fight for their survival. At its best when at its starkest, but when it attempts the life-affirming and melodramatic, it arteface is revealed. Tsunami sequences are terrifying, but does seem to suggest white tourists were worst affected.

DDDD

Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack, Marie Richardson, Todd Field. Dir: Stanley Kubrick.

When his wife confesses to fantasising about other men, a doctor goes on a dark journey of sexual discovery. Kubrick’s last is refreshingly character focused, which makes his signature detail and grandeur rather unnecessary - a simple story lengthy and overblown. Certainly intriguing and seductive, if a touch anti-climactic.

DDDD



Rear Window (1954) James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter, Raymond Burr. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.

A wheel-chair bound photographer suspects a neighbour of murder after spying on him from his window. One of the Hitchcock’s best; a superbly staged suspense thriller, that delivers not just edge-of-the-seat entertainment but one that works on multiple levels, exploring voyeurism, commitment and the nature of cinema. Ingenious, near perfect.

DDDDDd

Slade Flame (1975) Noddy Holder, Dave Hill, Don Powell, Jim Lea, Tom Conti, Alan Lake. Dir: Richard Loncraine.

New band Flame could be huge, with the right management… Considering Slade were amongst the most up-beat 70s acts, this is surprisingly grim, taking place in shabby clubs and crumbling suburbs, the band pawns of moneymen with little affection for them beyond profitability. Rough, but interesting piece of its time.

DDDD

December Film Highlights

It's possible I might have mentioned that I do these film reviews all the time on a seperate blog, which can be found here...

 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt, Aidan Turner, Stephen Hunter, Graham McTavish, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Elijah Wood, Andy Serkis. Dir: Peter Jackson.

 

A hobbit is persuaded to join a dwarf group in reclaiming their homeland from a dragon. It’s not the dragging, padded story that kills it, not even the 48fps, which makes the image muddy; it’s banal scripting, with one-note characters and cliché-ridden dialogue that renders it lifeless and cheesy.

DDD

  

 

Hitchcock (2012) Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johansson, Toni Collette, Danny Huston, Jessica Biel, James D'Arcy, Michael Stuhlbarg. Dir: Sacha Gervasi.

Hitchcock’s determination to make Psycho puts strain on his marriage when he’s forced to finance it himself. At best when staging this as Hitch’s great caper. When it explores rumours, obsessions and mysteries surrounding him and Alma, it’s frequently badly club-footed. Quite liberal with truth also; Whitfield Cook’s harshly treated.

DDDd

 

 

Seven Psychopaths (2012) Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson, Christopher Walken, Tom Waits, Abbie Cornish, Željko Ivanek. Dir: Martin McDonagh.

A screenwriter’s work is interrupted when his dog-kidnapping friends steal a gangster’s pooch. A film that’s enjoying its cleverness too much, and distracted by supporting characters. Unlike In Bruges, it’s missing an emotional core. But it’s funny, well cast and riffs on how movies now inform our perspectives on everything.

DDDD

 

 

Swiss Miss (1938) Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Walter Woolf King, Della Lind, Eric Blore, Adia Kuznetzoff. Dir: John G. Blystone.

 

A composer retreats to a hotel to write, just as Stan & Ollie are forced to work in the kitchen. A musical plot makes forced inclusion of songs more organic, but does reduce the boys to supporting characters in their movie. Not quite classic, but consistently funny and fairly brisk.

DDDD

 

Strangers on a Train (1951) Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock, Laura Elliott. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.

A tennis champion meets a man who suggests they swap people to murder to escape suspicion. Highsmith’s book was dream Hitchcock material. One of his most entertaining thrillers, riffing on the idea of doubles to explore the darkness that exists in all of us. Walker is a brilliantly seductive psychopath.

DDDDd

 

 

Sightseers (2012) Alice Lowe, Steve Oram. Dir: Ben Wheatley.

A shy woman goes caravanning with her new boyfriend, but things take a bloody turn. A black-comic ramble around UK’s more bizarre tourist hotspot and an insight into people (just) on the fringes, whose isolation has borne a narcissism that finds it acceptable to murder over minor slights. Brutally funny.

DDDDd

 

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) John Wayne, James Stewart, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin, Edmond O'Brien, Woody Strode, Andy Devine, John Carradine. Lee Van Cleef. Dir: John Ford.

A senator tells the true story of a legendary shoot-out, revealing a surprising truth. A film that still has plenty to say about myth-making, masculinity, society, justice and politics. Pretty cynical Ford shoots it in a surprisingly dark, almost noir style. But foremost, it’s a great story brilliantly told.

DDDDDd

November Film Highlights

Read das 50 word blog.

Argo (2012) Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Victor Garber. Dir: Ben Affleck.

To rescue diplomats trapped in Iran, a CIA man pretends to be Hollywood film maker. Strikes a not entirely easy balance between serious factual drama and the tropes of Hollywood heist capers. Fortunately, Affleck pulls it off with great suspense. If the comedy seems misplaced, it grips when it counts.

DDDD

Berberian Sound Studio (2012) Toby Jones, Cosimo Fusco, Antonio Mancino, Fatma Mohamed. Dir: Peter Strickland.

A meek Englishman’s tasked with creating a soundtrack for a blood-drenched giallo horror. One of 2012’s best-kept secrets; a film about how cinema works. Through the power of suggestion a hacked cabbage or twisted root becomes an act of violence, which the brilliant Jones becomes complicit in committing. Ingeniously good.

DDDDD

Bedazzled (1967) Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Eleanor Bron, Raquel Welch. Dir: Stanley Donen.

A love-sick burger chef sells his soul to the devil in exchange for seven wishes. Pete and Dud’s improvised drawn-out style isn’t ideally matched to movies, and this could’ve benefited from some trimming. That said, there are many dazzling sequences, it’s funny throughout, and Donen makes a worth contribution.

DDDD

Rope (1948) James Stewart, John Dall, Farley Granger, Joan Chandler, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Constance Collier. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.

Two men murder a friend for the thrill, then hold a party with his body in the room. Hitchcock’s real-time thriller doesn’t quite convince; it’s hard to believe straight-arrow Steward – who has his moments - could’ve inspired the Nietzschen philosophy the killers follow. Involving nevertheless; script’s witty and cast strong.

DDDD

Mighty Joe Young (1949) Terry Moore, Ben Johnson, Robert Armstrong, Frank McHugh, Douglas Fowley. Dir: Ernest B. Schoedsack.

A girl and her pet gorilla are discovered by a showman and brought to Hollywood. Team behind Kong reunite in this retelling (part send-up) where ape becomes the hero and decadent city-folk get chance to redeem themselves. Animated effects and trick shots are remarkably good, though climax is crazily left-field.

DDDD

Godzilla (1954) Akira Takarada, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hirata, Takashi Shimura. Dir: Ishiro Honda.

 

Nuclear tests awaken a prehistoric monster that causes carnage across Japan. The original monster movie is surprisingly grim, focusing as much on resulting suffering and death that result from the explosive chaos. Characters a bit rubbish, but otherwise carried off with charisma and skill, surprisingly moody in its look.

DDDD

October Film Highlights

The blog's still there if you want to visit it.

Skyfall(2012) Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Albert Finney, Bérénice Marlohe, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear. Dir: Sam Mendes.

Bond must save M and MI6 when they’re targeted by a cyber terrorist. Less glamorous, more serious spy return-to-form, with well-timed humour, but lots of angst in-between actioneering, and only a couple of silly moments. Craig, Bardem and Dench are a wonderfully dysfunctional family and Mendes adds tremendous visual flair.

DDDD

A Cottage on Dartmoor (1929) Norah Baring, Uno Henning, Hans Adalbert Schlettow. Dir: Anthony Asquith.

A barber’s driven wild with jealousy when the girls he loves gets engaged, leading to a tragic accident. The story’s scant, but this is about the visual expression of emotion – jealousy, anger, desire, despair – and it’s electrifying. There aren’t many films that express the visual language of cinema so powerfully.

DDDDD


Sinister (2012) Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Thompson, James Ransome, Vincent D'Onofrio. Dir: Scott Derrickson.

A writer moves his family into a former crime scene and discovers a box of disturbing films. Concept's strong and takes time developing atmosphere instead of predictable shocks moments, paying attention to character development and disintegration. But doesn't fulfil its potential; script's so-so and slips into clichés. Soundtrack used well.

DDDD

A Shadow of a Doubt (1943) Joseph Cotten, Teresa Wright, Macdonald Carey, Patricia Collinge, Henry Travers, Hume Cronyn. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.

Charlie wants her Uncle to shake up her family’s dull life, but he has a dark secret. Arguably Hitch’s darkest, where a girl desires escape from small-town madness, but is faced with a horrifying perspective of what exists beyond. Cotten's a revelation as a uniquely disarming psychopath. My favourite Hitchcock.

DDDDDd


Lawless (2012) Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Guy Pearce, Jessica Chastain, Mia Wasikowska, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman. Dir: John Hillcoat.

Three brothers in the bootlegging business are targeted by a ruthless, corrupt deputy. A high-quality production, but unfocused - dedicating time to unimportant sub-plots rather than developing more important characters and an arc. There’s also hints of cliché; Pearce’s character in particular being a familiar psycho archetype. Hardy superb again.

DDDd


The Orphanage (2007) Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Roger Príncep, Geraldine Chaplin, Mabel Rivera. Dir: J.A. Bayona.

An orphan tries to re-open her old orphanage, but a dark secret threatens her new family. A traditional ghost story with an emphasis on developing atmosphere and character; holding back scares, but making them worth the wait. Elegantly shot, what could’ve been a creaky melodramatic ending is rendered absolutely heart-wrenching.

DDDDd

September Film Highlights

Read the 50 Word blog if you can; I work very hard on it.

Dredd (2012) Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Wood Harris, Lena Headey. Dir: Pete Travis

Judge (jury & executioner) Dredd is trapped with a rookie in an office-block, hunted by a gang. Tightly-woven actioneering with plenty of violence and thrills, if few surprises. Hardly thought-provoking, but successfully showcases potential for future franchising. Urban manages to avoid sounding silly, but distinguishing between judges is a problem.

DDDD

God Told Me To (1976) Tony Lo Bianco, Deborah Raffin, Sandy Dennis, Sylvia Sidney, Sam Levene. Dir: Larry Cohen.

A Catholic policeman is distressed when several spree-killers claim God told them to kill. Makes The Omen seem like a skip through the park. The rough edges to this trippy horror actually work for it, creating an off-balance vision of religion and divinity which is psychedelic, mind-bending and very disturbing.

DDDDd

The Trial (1962) Anthony Perkins, Orson Welles, Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider, Akim Tamiroff, Elsa Martinelli. Dir: Orson Welles.

A man is arrested but without being told the reason. The surreal, black comedy of Kafka’s tale gives Welles plenty of opportunity to display his visual showmanship, transforming a ruined railway station into a decaying symbol of inertia, and self-consuming corruption. But like Josef’s case, it goes nowhere slowly.

DDDD

Rebecca (1940) Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, Judith Anderson, George Sanders, Nigel Bruce, C. Aubrey Smith, Gladys Cooper. Dir: Alfred Hitchcock.

A young girl marries a wealthy older man, but the shadow of his first wife hangs over her. Whatever battles Hitch and Selznick fought were ultimately worth it. It’s more Hollywood than Hitchcock, but this beautiful gothic melodrama is full of the master’s touches. Performances are pitch perfect.

DDDDD

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) Bela Lugosi, Sidney Fox, Leon Ames, Bert Roach, Brandon Hurst. Dir: Robert Florey.

A sideshow doctor wishes to combine the blood of his gorilla with a compatible female. Florey and cameraman Freund are an expressionistic dream team; every frame is exquisitely composed (even the monkey’s well handled). Surprisingly macabre, studio mandated cuts leave sections a bit choppy, and the support characters are rubbish.

DDDD

The Bat (1959) Vincent Price, Agnes Moorehead, Gavin Gordon, John Sutton, Lenita Lane. Dir: Crane Wilbur.

A fortune may be hidden in an old mansion and it’s sought by the a killer known as The Bat. Ropey old mystery play transferred to the screen with little imagination and a great deal of clumsy exposition. Very silly, very dated, and the twist is nicked from Agatha Christie.

DDd

Edge of Sanity (1989) Anthony Perkins, Glynis Barber, Sarah Maur-Thorp, David Lodge, Ben Cole. Dir: Gerard Kikoine.

When Jekyll becomes Hyde, long supressed desires are awakened. Takes the sexual undertones to their zenith, while relating the tale to Jack the Ripper, though that’s oddly incidental. Psychology’s rather simple and ultimately the story has nowhere to go but silly, and that’s in addition to gigglesome Ken-Russell-esque sauce and flamboyance.

DDD