Precious Doll wrote:
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) Lewis Gilbert 6/10
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) Peter Hunt 8/10
I’m a huge James Bond fan since I was a kid and this two films, alongside Skyfall, are my all time favorites.
Had On Her Majesty’s Secret Service stared another actor rather than the lame George Lazenby, the movie would be pitch perfect. A trivia note: big parts of this movie were shot in Lisbon and surrounding areas (beach sequence, the final wedding and even the jewelry story Bond enters to buy the wedding ring which still exists).
The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019) Joe Talbot 5/10
Tell It to the Bees (2019) Annabel Jankel 2/10
Halston (2019) Frederic Tcheng 6/10
Clemency (2019) Chinonye Chukwu 7/10
Repeat viewings
Tess (1979) Roman Polanski 8/10
Possessed (1947) Curtis Bernhardt 8/10
Heart of Glass (1976) Werner Herzog 6/10
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) Anthony 8/10
Return to the Ashes (1965) J. Lee Thompson 7/10
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) Lewis Gilbert 6/10
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) Peter Hunt 8/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
When a 91-year old Washington DC socialite (Vanessa Redgrave) is found dead with head injuries her much younger husband (Christoph Waltz) is arrested for her murder. True story is brought to the screen by Waltz who is perfect casting as the ambitious social climbing liar who charms his way into the life of an elderly widow and through her into the political circle of the capital for whom he hosts soirees. Waltz has a natural built-in sleazy demeanor about him which he has used particularly well in films playing oily but often charming characters and winning two Oscars along the way. He again uses charm and outrageous lies - claiming to be a high rank officer in the Iraqi army - to fool everyone around him except his wife's daughter (Annette Bening) who sees through him. The character is so delusional that he becomes almost a caricature. Waltz plays him like a petulant school boy with a violent streak - when he resorts to bursts of violence against his aged wife the scenes are scary but Vanessa Redgrave, in a rare lead role, is sublime one minute like a school girl and the next feisty giving back as much as she gets in this story which uses flashbacks to establish their weird relationship. Bening is good as the concerned and suspicious daughter but her role is underwritten and remains on the periphery of the plot.
A Hidden Life (Terence Malick, 2019) 7/10
Long rambling true story about the life of Franz Jägerstätter (August Diehl), an Austrian peasant farmer, who refused to fight for the Nazis during WWII. Exquisitely shot with the first part of the film focusing on his family - his wife (Valerie Parchner) and three daughters and their idyllic life in a tight-knit rural community as they farm the land. The film's stunning Austrian scenery is breathtaking as the camera captures in detail the beautiful countryside with its rolling green meadows and towering snow capped mountains. As the war carries on all the men are called up to register as soldiers which he openly defies causing him and his family to be ostracised by the community. When he finally leaves to join but refuses to take up an oath of allegiance to Hitler he is imprisoned. The story moves back and forth between the couple as they write letters to each other - she telling him about the farm and their daughters while he describes life in prison and about other prisoners worse off than him. After a long time they finally meet in a prison in Berlin where he has been moved. Facing constant brutality by guards he remains steadfast in his belief and despite an offer of non-combatant work if he signs the oath he is sentenced to death at his trial and executed. He was later declared a martyr and beatified by the Catholic Church. A lyrical film about love, faith and strong convictions which Malick shoots as a structured narrative unlike his last few experimental films which jumped all over the place using flashy editing and weird timelines. In addition to the moving performances by the two lead actors the film also benefits from a haunting score by James Newton Howard and the lush cinematography by Jörg Widmer a former camera operator to Emmanuelle Lubezki who shot most of Malick's previous films. The film is a spiritual experience told in a simplistic manner without delving deep into the man's soul or exactly making clear what made him tick.
Spenser Confidential (Peter Berg, 2020) 4/10
Rather tired buddy action-comedy with a plot that was already beginning to seem stale during the late 1980s. An ex-cop (Mark Wahlberg), just out of prison, teams up with an amateur boxer to chase corrupt cops who brutally murdered two of his former colleagues. Wahlberg is always fun to watch but the material here is just too repetitive and dull. Skip this.
Curtiz (Tamas Yvan Topolanszk, 2019) 8/10
Fascinating highly evocative Hungarian film about the making of the iconic Hollywood classic, "Casablanca". The film is inspired by actual events and seen totally from the perspective of the autocratic director Michael Curtiz. A Hungarian jew and immigrant who, after a prolific career in Europe, arrived in Hollywood and became a star director at Warner Brothers studio. He is under great pressure from Jack Warner, the studio head, to make a hit film revolving around the events unfolding in Europe at the time. Unfortunately the production is chaotic, the screenplay keeps changing on a daily basis and the film starts running over budget. Along with these problems the skirt-chasing Curtiz (Ferenc Lengyel) has to deal with assorted lovers, the unexpected arrival of his estranged daughter (Evelin Dobos) and his attempt to help his sister and her family escape the Nazis in Europe. The novelty of the film is showing Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, the two stars of the film, in total silhouette which puts the entire focus of the film on the background of the actual filming. Stunningly shot in black and white (by Zoltán Dévényi) which provides an atmospheric noir touch. Above all it is a portrait of Curtiz with the screenplay capturing the womanizer and his casting-couch escapades, coarse attitude toward peers and his irascible personality. It also provides a vivid look at film making during the studio years.
Desire in the Dust (William F. Claxton, 1960) 6/10
Tawdry overwrought melodrama set in the South where all men have sweat marks on their shirts while the women are blonde, sexually hot and seemingly cool as a cumcumber. A convict (Ken Scott) returns to his hometown after spending 6 years in the clink for a crime he did not commit. He took the rap for his sexually instatiable girlfriend (Martha Hyer), at the insistence of her rich plantation-owner politician dad (Raymond Burr), when she accidently killed her brother in a car accident. Her elegant mother (Joan Bennett) lost her mind and flits about celebrating her dead son's birthday at the graveyard bringing him toys. The young man's return creates ripples in town as he is not only hell bent on revenge but resumes his torrid affair with the woman who is now married to the town doctor (Brett Halsey - who won a Golden Globe award for best newcomer). Pulpy trash has a good cast, a fascinating if very familiar premise and Lucien Ballard's widescreen cinematography all of which lend it weight. The story takes its cue from the steamy Tennessee Williams' dramas, then in much vogue, with incest and nymphomania as its major plot points.
The Mustang (2019) Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre 2/10
Luce (2019) Julius Onah 1/10
Repeat viewings
Spartacus (1960) Stanley Kubrick 9/10
The Private Life of a Cat (1946) Alexander Hammind & Maya Deren 9/10
The Decameron (1971) Pier Paolo Pasolini 9/10
The Canterbury Tales (1972) Pier Paolo Pasolini 9/10
Arabian Knights (1974) Pier Paolo Pasolini 9/10
I, Claudius (1976) Herbert Wise 10/10
No Way to Treat a Lady (1968) Jack Smight 8/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
There are some films not to everyone's taste. This is certainly one of them. It's not that I didn't appreciate what the director was trying to say but he could have easily done it without boring the audience. I mean why have almost every shot go on and on with the camera focused on characters who are static while they either stare at the distance, potter around the garden or eat an apple. After a while you feel like kicking the director to make him move onto another scene. The main plot device is the rape and murder of an 11-year old girl whose body is discovered in a field by a cop (Emmanuel Schotté). The film opens with the first of about four shocking scenes - the camera focuses on the exposed mutilated genitals of the dead child while ants roam across her bare legs. The cop, who lost his wife and daughter - it's never explained if they died or if they left him - is almost a dimwit, a contemplative sort who barely speaks. The film focuses more on him as a type than on the murder investigation which also carries on but in a vague sort of way. There is also a suspicion in the air that he could be the murderer. He lives in a dead end town in Northern France with inhabitants who act as if they are in a haze of mental malaise. The cop is close friends with a neighbour (Séverine Caneele) who works in a factory and spends most of her time indulging in sex with her bus driver boyfriend. There are three graphic sex scenes where the two fornicate like hungry animals with the sex act played out without an iota of tenderness. This is followed by a gratuitous moment where the camera endlessly stares in close-up at the exposed moist vagina of the woman. Does the director include these scenes for their shock value or is there a reason for it? The film ends in a shocking and ambiguous manner leaving it up to the audience to decide its meaning. The film was awarded three prizes at the Cannes film festival with two going controversially to both the lead actors. Well made film is otherwise quite a head scratcher.
Gate of Hell (Teinosuke Kinugasa, 1953) 10/10
During a rebellion in 12th century Japan a samurai (Kazuo Hasegawa) falls in love with a lady-in-waiting (Machiko Kyō) who turns out to be married. A story about desire, obsession and unrequited love as the samurai relentlessly pursues the woman and in his anger is willing to kill her, himself and her husband in order to win her hand which she rightfully thinks is utter madness. Exquisitely crafted production was the first Japanese film to be shot in Eastman Colour and the result is specatcular with each frame resembling a painting. The deliberate pace enhances each scene as the camera moves in and out of palaces and characters, dressed in resplendent costumes, act with strict formality as per ancient Japanese custom. Never before has tension and anguish been performed with such subtlety. The film was awarded the grand prize at the Cannes film festival and won Oscars in the categories of costume design and foreign film. A must-see.
I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale (Richard Shepard, 2009) 8/10
Loving tribute to an actor who made only five films but which were easily the most memorable and remembered films of all time. A stage actor and chameleon with quirky looks who had the ability to draw the audience towards him even though he was surrounded by a bunch of spectacular actors in the same frame. His little moments and gestures stand out on screen along with his hang dog expression. This short documentary celebrates John Cazale the actor with friends and colleagues paying tribute to his craft. Al Pacino speaks about their collaboration playing brothers in "The Godfather" & "The Godfather II" - the title of this documentary is taken from Pacino's devastating dialogue from the latter film, "I knew it was you, Fredo". Also providing insights on Cazale are his co-stars Gene Hackman (The Conversation), Robert De Niro & Meryl Streep (The Deer Hunter) and directors Francis Coppola (who directed him in 3 films) and Sidney Lumet (Dog Day Afternoon). Streep, who was his friend, co-star and lover provides rare personal insights about the man she loved and took care of right to the end when he died at age 42 of lung cancer.
The Invisible Man (Leigh Whannell, 2020) 3/10
Prepostrous film takes the plot of "Sleeping With the Enemy" (also cloned thrice by Bollywood as "Yaraana", "Agni Sakshi" & "Daraar") and mixes the main element from H. G. Wells' classic story and comes up with this #metoo nightmare. A woman (Elisabeth Moss) escapes the clutches of her psychotic scientist boyfriend and hides out with her sister's ex-husband - a cop (Aldis Hodge). When it is revealed that her boyfriend has committed suicide she can't help feeling that something is amiss feeling his "invisible" presence around her. The film initially manages to maintain a creepy feeling of dread with a number of jump scares but then keeps getting more and more absurd with many glaring coincidences and potholes in the screenplay. Not sure if the writer's main intent was to make points about toxic male syndrome or was it meant to be a take on female vigilantism as a means to even the score. The science fiction aspect whipped in from the novel never rings true and seems to merely give the old Julia Roberts chestnut an extra padding in an attempt to make it seem something new and different but fails miserably. Even Moss, usually a good actress, flounders around giving a one-note performance.
Seberg (Benedict Andrews, 2019) 6/10
Kristin Stewart is compelling and poignant as American actress Jean Seberg who was hounded by the FBI for supporting the Black Panther movement and for her brief affair with its leader Hakim Jamal (Anthony Mackie). The toast of the New Wave film "Breathless", Jean Seberg (Kristin Stewart), has a flourishing film career in France with occasional forays into Hollywood, has an open happy marriage with famous french author Romain Gary (Yvan Attal) and a son. On a flight to America she meets by chance an activist in the black civil rights movement and shows him sympathy as he is being poorly treated due to race issues. She later makes contact with him, helps his cause by donating money and they also have a brief affair. As he is already under surveillance by the FBI she gets targeted as well. Her house is bugged, she is constantly followed and her pregnancy is falsely outed in gossip columns as being the result of her affair with the black activist. The child, a daughter who is white - fathered by her husband - is born but dies after two days. It becomes the start of her nervous psychotic condition leading to nervous breakdowns and suicide attempts at each subsequent death anniversay of the child. As the years pass the FBI continues to undermine her career and her personal life. In 1979 the actress suddenly disappeared and nine days later her decomposing body was found wrapped in a blanket in the back seat of her Renault, parked close to her Paris apartment. Next to her body was a bottle of barbiturates, an empty mineral water bottle and a note written in French from Seberg addressed to her son. It read, in part, "Forgive me. I can no longer live with my nerves." Police stated that Seberg had such a high amount of alcohol in her system at the time of her death, that it would have rendered her comatose and unable to get into her car without assistance. Police noted there was no alcohol in the car where Seberg's body was found. Police theorized that someone was present at the time of her death and failed to get her medical care. Jean Seberg lost her battle against the FBI against very suspicious circumstances. The film fails to address why Seberg's political belief's were so important to her and appears to waft through the various sad moments in her life. Stewart, dressed in chic Chanel, gives a superb performance and the film's outstanding production design goes a long way to invoke that period in history.
Haunting dream-like film has no dialogue with only a narrator providing feedback on what the camera is capturing on the screen. In 1930s Calcutta the bored french ambassador's wife (Delphine Seyrig) has a series of affairs while her husband shows tolerance towards her behaviour. The Vice Consul of Lahore (Michel Lonsdale) attempts an affair with her but fails. Fascinating film with its concentration on sound and imagery - characters appear standing stationary, walking gently towards or away from the camera and one fantastic shot has Seyrig fully dressed lying on the ground with her breast glaringly exposed as she stares at the ceiling while two lovers beside her stare at her face. Although set in India the entire film was shot at the Palais Rothschild in Boulogne - a splendid villa through which the camera snakes capturing its rooms, artifacts, an abandoned tennis court and gardens. Duras' screenplay makes pointed jibes at the decaying French Empire as seen through the actions of the promiscuous woman - the closeups capture her tousled hair, tangled jewellery, dishevelled gown and the general disarray of her life as she flits between different men. Dazzling, stylistic and hypnotic film has lovely Delphine Seyrig as its central and most memorable vision - never more beautiful than in her maroon coloured dress silently dancing the waltz or standing in front of a large mirror which covers a huge green wall in the large mansion. Seyrig was nominated for a Cesar award for her performance of silent posturing.
Devi (Priyanka Banerjee, 2020) 9/10
Hardhitting short film, running just 13 minutes, takes on the form of a mystery which is gradually revealed through dialogue. Nine women are seen conversing and doing chores in a room. A news reporter is heard on the television stating that yet another crime has been committed. The women represent different social strata and ages - two elderly Maharashtrian women (Sandhya Mhatre & Rama Jishi), an old Mausi (Neena Kulkarni), a medical student (Shivani Raghuvansi), an anglecized career woman (Neha Dhupia), a party girl (Shruti Haasan), a deaf and mute maid (Yashaswani Dayam), a Burka-clad lady (Mukta Barve) waxing her legs and a sensible and God-fearing young Maharashtrian housewife (Kajol). When the doorbell rings the ladies are all alarmed. Only the housewife wants to let the person in while all the others say it is already too crowded inside. They all talk of the dangers outside and each reveals how they were all raped describing their attackers. Gradually it is revealed that they are all dead and when the person desperately ringing the doorbell is allowed inside it is revealed to be a little child - the latest victim. The film graphically describes the trauma and struggles of rape victims and emphasizing that this crime does not depend on age, class, education, religion or appearance. It is in fact a crime against humanity.
Tanhaji: The Unsung Hero (Om Raut, 2020) 3/10
"Unsung" is the right word as Bollywood apes the nationalistic jingoistic fervour in the country and has started dredging up historical "heroes". Anyone who tried to stand up to the might of the Mughal rulers during their long and successful reign over India is now termed a hero while the Emperor of the country and his allies are portrayed as villains. During the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb the Mughal army takes over the Maratha fort at Kondhana in South India. The film depicts the battle fought between the Maratha army under the leadership of warrior Tanhaji Malusare (Ajay Devgan) and the Rajput Udaybhan (Saif Ali Khan) appointed by the Emperor to defend the fort using a large canon called "Naagin". The film lacks bite in its dialogue, the production design looks fake and the characters are underdeveloped. Saif Ali Khan plays the campy "villain" - a dark bearded savage - taking his cue from Ranveer Singh's portrayal of Khilji in "Padmaavat". Ajay Devgan, dressed in white, gives a stiff performance intoning his lines in a monotone. The second half of the story has the battle scenes shot using a great deal of CGI. Kajol, as Tanhaji's wife, is totally wasted and seems to be around just for decoration. Shockingly bad film.
The Durrells - Season 1 (Steve Barron and Roger Grimbo, 2016) 8/10
Charming series based on autobiographical novels by explorer and writer Gerald Durrell about his family's move from Bournemouth to Corfu in 1935. His mother (Keeley Hawes), in severe financial straits since the death of her husband, decides to sell their house, payoff their debts and move to Corfu in Greece with her brood of unruly kids. The eldest son Lawrence (Josh O'Connor), an aspiring writer, second son Lesley (Callum Woodhouse) who is fond of guns and girls, daughter Margo (Daisy Waterstone) and the youngest son Gerald (Milo Parker) who is fond of animals. The first season sees them settle in a house on the island, make new friends and soak in the almost primitive lifestyle on the island. This light series is held together by the charming Keeley Hawes as the vivacious widow and the gorgeous location seen in all its sun-dappled splendor.
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1997) 8/10
There are so many little moments (the action choreography) from "Raiders of the Lost Ark" in this sequel which Spielberg uses to wring maximum thrills from an already tried and tested formula - dinosaurs on the rampage - which he introduced in the classic "Jurassic Park". After the last film's havoc the owner of the park, Hammond (Sir Richard Attenborough), sends in a research team to another island where the creatures were initially bred in order to study them as they roam free in their habitat. The team consists of a scientist (Jeff Goldblum - survivor from the last film), his stowaway young daughter (Vanessa Lee Chester), his paleontologist girlfriend (Julianne Moore) and a documentarian (Vince Vaughn). Unbeknownst to the old entrepreneur and his research team his nephew (Arliss Howard) and an army of mercenaries, led by a crazy gung-ho game hunter (Pete Postlethwaite), descend on the island to capture the creatures for transportation to a theme park in San Diego. From the word go it's absolutely clear in this sequel that Spielberg's eye was purely on the film's boxoffice - the first film's sense of awe is completely missing and which is actually quite fine - because he goes straight for the jugular creating astounding set pieces each topping off the one that came before. The dinosaurs are all back starting with the giant plant eating ones to set the scene followed in quick succession with scenes involving the ferocious T-Rex - a stomach churning sequence involving two pushing a trailor off a cliff with cast members dangling from a rope high above a terrifying drop - the cute but deadly tiny carnivourous Compsognathus, the cunning Velociraptors and the final set piece which is an homage to "King Kong". Don't look for proper character arcs, ignore the potholes in the screenplay and just belt yourself in for a rollercoaster ride of excitement through a film packed with action and adventure.
The Killer That Stalked New York (Earl McEvoy, 1950) 6/10
By coincidence came across this film with a plot that scarily mirrors what is going on all around the world. A woman (Evelyn Keyes) arrives in New York from Cuba. She has smuggled in a cache of diamonds, is being followed by a detective and is very ill. After a brief visit to a clinic where she comes in contact with a little girl she meets up with her husband (Charles Korwin) who is having an affair with her sister (Lola Albright). Meanwhile it is discovered that the little girl has come down with small pox. It becomes a race against time to get everyone vaccinated and find the person who is carrying the virus and spreading it to everyone she is coming into contact with in New York. Tense, briskly paced drama is shot like a noir with Keyes very good as the ill woman who realizes she is married to a louse and wants revenge for being betrayed.
St. Elmo's Fire (Joel Schumacher, 1985) 7/10
Coming-of-age story is one of the seminal films from the 1980s with the Brat Pack in full force playing friends just out of college and floundering in the real world. Don't look for any emotional resonance in any of the snug and obnoxious characters. Just enjoy the location (Washington DC), the hideous hair and fashion of the period, the tinkling piano theme music by David Foster, the #1 hit song "Man in Motion" sung by John Parr and most of all the ensemble cast - actors who were just coming into their own and some who would go onto become huge stars working in a number of familiar films of the decade. The characters are intertwined in love and friendship as some form into couples - the sweet but frumpy social worker (Mare Winningham) in love with the married sax-playing fuck up (Rob Lowe), the would-be lawyer (Emilio Estevez) infatuated by an older woman (Andie MacDowell), the smug yuppie politician (Judd Nelson) dating but eventually rejected by the architect (Ally Sheedy) who is secretly loved by the sullen journalist (Andrew McCarthy) and the banker and coke-snorting party girl (Demi Moore) whose life is unraveling. They all gather at St. Elmo's fire, a jazz club, where their angst ridden, self absorbed problems get a slight break while they drink, gossip, fight and listen to music. This is one of those so bad it's good kind of films which bring back happy memories of the time this film first came out. Winningham, Sheedy and Moore come off best while Rob Lowe won a Razzie award for the worst supporting actor of the year.
Farewell to the Night (2019) Andre Techine 5/10
Queen and Slim (2019) Melina Matsoukas 5/10
The Translators (2019) Regis Roinsard 4/10
In the Name of the Land (2019) Edouard Bergeon 5/10
Someone, Somewhere (2019) Cedric Klapisch 4/10
Only the Animals (2019) Dominik Moll 8/10
Edmond (2019) Alexis Michalik 4/10
The Lost Prince (2020) Michel Hazanavicius 1/10
How to Be a Good Wife (2020) Martin Provost 7/10
Raining in the Mountain (1979) King Hu 7/10
Repeat viewings
Scandal (1989) Michael Caton-Jones 9/10
King of Hearts (1966) Philippe de Broca 7/10
Julius Caesar (1950) David Bradley 8/10
The Mark (1961) Guy Green 7/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
Thrilling but little known B-film with a great cast in a percursor to all the disaster films so in vogue decades later. A typically contrived plot - group of diverse passengers fight for survival after their plane crashes into the sea - is given an interesting twist. The stock list of passengers are all very flashy with interesting character arcs - the alcoholic pilot (John Gregson) in love with the stoic stewardess (Pier Angeli), a handcuffed prisoner (Eddie Constantine), a shifty sniveling louse (Richard Attenborough), a prostitute (Eva Bartok), a prim spinster (Jean Anderson), a cop and a german physicist. The bickering survivors manage to make it to an island after the crash only to discover they are on an A-bomb testing site with a short time before the island will be decimated. The only chance for survival is to disable the detonator which is on another island 2 miles away. Can it be done by swimming through shark infested waters? Not withstanding the low budget - the crash effects are laughable - this is a solid suspenser with a wonderful cast who at the time just went through the motions working on what they thought was a "potboiler" but which actually turned out quite fine.
The Weapon (Val Guest & Hal E. Chester, 1956) 6/10
Post-War London streets are the setting for this chase film. A young boy (Jon Whiteley) playing in the ruins of a bombed out building discovers a gun and during a skirmish with his chums inadvertently shoots one of them when the gun goes off. Scared he goes on the run as his frantic mother (Lizabeth Scott), a US army officer (Steve Cochran) and the local police chief (Herbert Marshall) search for him. It appears the same gun was used in a murder ten years before and the murderer is also on the lookout for the boy to retrieve the weapon. Solid little susepenser is well cast and acted particularly by Nicole Maurey as a hooker who knows a little too much about the murderer.
The Hollow Crown - Henry IV: Part 2 (Richard Eyre, 2012) 6/10
The third part of Shakespeare's tetralogy is an extension of Henry IV Part 1 placing more emphasis on the wheeling dealings of the Knight Falstaff (Simon Russell Beale). King Henry IV (Jeremy Irons) is aging and still critical of his son and heir Prince Hal (Tom Hiddelston) whose great friendship with Falstaff falters as they go their separate ways. After the King's death Hal comes to the throne as King Henry V. He is approached at the coronation by Falstaff who thinks his old friendship with the Prince will get him great rewards only to find himself totally rejected and his thieving lowlife friends imprisoned. The story suffers from too much forced comedy in the scenes between Falstaff and his rowdy friends at the tavern - Mistress Quickley (Julie Walters) and the prostitute Dolly Tearsheet (Maxine Peake). Irons and Hiddelston superbly play off each other in the scene where the King who is assumed to be dead suddenly awakens to find Hal putting the crown on his own head. They reconcile and the old man crowns his son before dying. The saga continues with Shakespeare's next play about Henry V.
Chariots of Fire (Hugh Hudson, 1981) 9/10
Exhilarating film about the 1924 Paris Olympics focusing on two runners from Britain - Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), a devout Scottish Christian who runs for the glory of God, and Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), an English Jew who runs to overcome prejudice. When they first run against each other Liddle beats Abrahams who takes it poorly but later uses the help of professional trainer Sam Mussabini (Ian Holm) to improve his technique. This brings on criticism from his Cambridge college masters (Lindsay Anderson & Sir John Gielgud) who consider it ungentlemanly for an amateur to hire professional help - the perceptive screenplay takes sharp digs at the anti-Semitic and class based prejudices prevalent at Cambridge. The film's highlight is the recreation of the Paris Olympics where the two star runners and their team mates, Lord Andrew Lindsay (Nigel Havers), Henry Stallard (Daniel Gerroll) and Aubrey Montague (Nicholas Farrell), all run and return home triumphant. Sharply edited film is helped greatly by the iconic music score by Vangelis. A huge boxoffice hit, the film received a surprise Best Picture Oscar along with awards for original screenplay, music score and costume design. Hugh Hudson, Ian Holm and the film's editing were all nominated. Impeccable production is an incredibly moving and inspirational cinematic experience.
Cinderella Man (Ron Howard, 2005) 7/10
Biographical film inspired by the life of world heavyweight boxing champion James J. Braddock (Russell Crowe). Formerly a light heavyweight contender he is forced to give up boxing when he breaks his hand in the ring. Lack of jobs during the depression, no money, a sick son and a constantly sniveling and worried wife (Renée Zellweger) bring him to the breaking point. His faithful manager and friend (Paul Giamati) manages to get him one fight opposite the number-two contender of the world which proves to be a turning point for him when he beats the champion. To his wife's dismay he returns full time to the boxing ring this time with continuous success and wins against John Henry Lewis and Art Lasky. His rags to riches story inspires the sportswriter Damon Runyon to nickname him "Cinderella Man", and he becomes a hope for many Americans struggling through the depression. His next fight has him confront the heavyweight champion Max Baer (Craig Bierko), portrayed here in full vicious mocking mode, which proves to be a historical fight. Crowe gives a remarkable physical performance and his interactions with the hammy Giamati (who was nominated for an Oscar) are funny and moving. Howard bathes the film in sepia tones capturing the poverty and despair during the Great Depression and also making very clear how ugly boxing can be as a sport.
The Missing (Tom Shankland, 2014) 8/10
Harrowing 8-part tv film deals with the abduction of a child and its aftermath. The story jumps back and forth between two time periods - the abduction and the police investigation in 2006 which comes up with no evidence despite clues leading up to a pedophile and a gang of vicious criminals who may be involved with sex trafficking. Eight years later the frantic father (James Nesbitt) obsessively still pursues clues while his wife (Frances O'Connor) has left him and moved in with a detective (Jason Flemyng) who was on the case as a liaison to the french investigative team led by a Parisian cop Tchéky Karyo). Fresh clues revealed help to re-open the case bringing the retired detective back on track while also reuniting the estranged couple on their endless pursuit for answers. Hard-hitting drama moves like a suspenseful detective novel throwing in vague clues that raise hope only to dash everything to bits followed by a cliffhanger at the end of each episode.
Honey Boy (2019) Alma Har'el 5/10
Of Love and Lies (2019) Julien Rappeneau 4/10
Two of Us (2020) Filippo Meneghetti 7/10
The Extraordinary (2019) Olivier Nakache & Eric Toledano 4/10
Alice and the Mayor (2019) Nicolas Pariser 7/10
Sibyl (2019) Justine Triet 8/10
Room 212 (2019) Christophe Honroe 7/10
Mathias & Maxime (2019) Xavier Dolan 7/10
The Queen's Corgi (2019) Vincent Kesteloot & Ben Stassen 4/10
Repeat viewings
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988) Philip Kaufman 10/10
Shame (1968) Ingmar Bergman 10/10
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) Vincente Minnelli 7/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
Convoy (Pen Tennyson, 1940) 5/10
L'avenir / Things to Come (Mia Hansen-Løve, 2016) 4/10
The Hollow Crown: Richard II (Rupert Goold, 2012) 8/10
Superbly filmed series of Shakespeare's second historical tetralogy, the Henriad with this episode covering the last two years in the life of King Richard II (Ben Wishaw). Indecisive, fey, almost Christ-like - Wishaw plays the role with great confidence and with an air of effeminacy - the King clashes with his cousin Henry Bolingbroke (Rory Kinnear), banishes him, usurps his property after the death of his father (Patrick Stewart) and uses that wealth to finance a war with Ireland which he loses. While the king is away the nobles help Bolingbroke return to England to claim his usurped land and the throne. Richard is imprisoned and Bolingbroke is crowned King Henry IV. A plot to overthrow the new king is averted by the Duke of York (David Suchet), uncle to both the new and old king, whose own son (Tom Hughes) is involved but is saved by his mother (Lindsay Duncan) who begs the king for her son's life. The King forgives his young cousin who then murders the imprisoned former King Richard and drags the body in a coffin to present to Henry VI who repudiates the murderer and vows to go to Jerusalem to cleanse himself of the death of Richard. The dense plot flows remarkably well and with ease as the production ensures to often incorporate scenes that are filmed on outdoor locations thus breathing life into what is basically a talky play. The cast is superb across the board with Wishaw, by turns foolish and moving as the tragic king, giving a remarkable performance winning a well deserved Bafta award.
The Hollow Crown: Henry IV Part 1 (Richard Eyre, 2012) 9/10
Second part of Shakespeare's historical tetrology has King Henry IV (Jeremy Irons) having an unquiet reign. Guilty for having usurped the throne from his cousin King Richard II he is further troubled by the Percy family - the Earl of Northumberland (Alun Armstrong), his son Hotspur (Joe Armstrong) and brother the Earl of Worcester (David Hayman) - who helped him to the throne but are now brewing treason. The King is also disappointed with his son, Prince Hal (Tom Hiddelston), who spends his time thieving and whoring in low taverns with his fat corrupt but charismatic friend Falstaff (Simon Russell Beale). However, the prodigal son returns to the fold taking on his father's enemies with the help of foot soldiers led by Falstaff (who is after all a knight) on the battlefield and the future king in single combat kills Hotspur. The first part of the play ends with victory at the Battle of Shrewsbury but there are yet more enemies to deal with. Grand drama is superbly staged with every cast member at the top of their game with even small roles perfectly cast - Julie Walters as Mistress Quickly owner of the debauched Boar's Head tavern and Michelle Dockery as Hotspur's spirited wife. Irons and Hiddelston are superb in the scene where the king confronts his wayward son giving him a dressing down and slapping his face. Simon Russell Beale won a Bafta award for his funny performance as the fleshy, lying and debauched Falstaff one of Shakespeare's most memorable characters. Wonderful adaptation of the Bard and a must see.
Along the Great Divide (Raoul Walsh, 1951) 7/10
Solid Western with noir overtones. A lawman (Kirk Douglas) rescues an old man (Walter Brennan) from getting lynched by a rancher who claims he shot his son. Wanting him to stand trial the lawman and his deputy (John Agar) decide to take him to the nearest town which lies across a desert. They are joined on the dangerous journey by the suspect's feisty daughter (Virgina Mayo) and chased by the rancher and his men. This has typical characteristics of the director's films - hard men with complex psychological issues braving a hostile environment and battling both the elements and themselves. Douglas, in his first Western, fits into the genre perfectly and creates sparks with lovely Virginia Mayo a most underrated actress who never got her proper due in Hollywood.
Ajami (Scandar Copti & Yaron Shani, 2009) 9/10
Riveting Israeli-Arabic drama is set in the multi-ethnic Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa in Israel where the religiously mixed community of Arabs, Palestinians, Jews and Christians reside together under extremely tense conditions. The film has a cinema verité feel about it bringing to mind such highly explosive films like Alejandro G. Iñárritu's "Amores Perros" and Fernando Meirelles' "City of God". The screenplay covers a group of disparate citizens all living under threat of death. A young muslim is gunned down mistakenly by two assailants on a motorbike. The hit was instead meant for a 19-year old boy whose uncle shot a criminal - the boy is innocent but automatically becomes the target for revenge because he happens to be the only male member of his household. The boy's employer (whose Christian daughter he is secretly in love with) tries to broker a peace deal between the clans - a hilarious scene where a huge amount is demanded at first but is brokered down by a court of elders with discounts pleaded in the name of Allah and the Prophet. Other story arcs involve a Palestinian illegally in Jaffa to raise money for his mother's surgery and a distraught Jewish policeman who is desperately searching for his brother who has disappeared without a trace. Innocent people caught up in a myriad of problems - poverty, drugs, violence - while living in an area ticking like a time bomb. The film's different story lines occur out of chronological order often overlapping, so we see incidents from various points of view and have information gradually filled in at strategic points. This structure gives the film an unsettling feeling which the two co-directors, an Israeli and a Palestinian, manage to maintain right to the end. Superbly acted by a cast of non professionals the film was nominated for an Oscar in the foreign language category.
Ha-Bayit Berechov Chelouche / The House on Chelouche Street (Moshé Mizrahi, 1973) 8/10
Soap opera about Egyptian Jewish immigrants from Alexandria settled in 1947 Tel Aviv is a semi-autobiographical film by the director. The screenplay alternates between parallel stories of a mother and her eldest son. A 33-year old widow (Gila Almagor), with four kids, struggles with social pressure to get remarried and is relentlessly pursued by a neighbour. Her eldest son goes from being a shy boy to a working man who falls in love with a Russian immigrant librarian (Michael Bat Adam) and joins the resistance movement against the British as the country erupts into a potpourri of violence between the Jewish settlers and the Arab Palestinians. Appealing coming-of-age story with the awakening of a young boy as he grows up during a turbulent period of Israeli history. Almagor, highly acclaimed Isreali star of stage and screen, is very moving as the mother. The film was nominated for an Oscar
Gli ultimi cinque minuti / The Last Five Minutes / It Happened in Roma (Giuseppe Amato, 1955) 8/10
Charming froth takes its cue from the romantic Hollywood comedies of the 1940s invoking Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant in a battle of the sexes. Renata (Linda Darnell) and Carlo (Vittorio De Sica) covet the same apartment and both intend to rent it for themselves. A truce is reached through an unusual agreement. They will get married, live as husband and wife together in the apartment with the option that if she falls in love with another man she is free to leave the marriage. Witty romp flows delightfully on the great chemistry between dashing De Sica and ravishing Darnell. Putting a spanner between the couple is suave Rossano Brazzi who catches Darnell's eye causing complications. Adding to the fun are Peppino De Filippo and Nadia Gray as a battling couple who are close friends of the couple.
Queen and Slim (Melina Matsoukas, 2019) 9/10
An ode to the blaxploitation flicks of the 1970s which also channels crime road movies like Spielberg's "The Sugarland Express" and "Dirty Mary Crazy Larry". The couple on the run, called the "black Bonnie and Clyde", meet up on a blind date. She (Jodie Turner-Smith) is a lawyer - tall, slim and sexy. He (Daniel Kaluuya) is short, a noisy eater and out of her class. A minor traffic incident results in an altercation with a trigger happy cop who winds up dead. So they are forced to go on the run and drive on south from Ohio finding brief refuge with her uncle (a funny Bokeem Woodbine) who is a pimp. Along the way they bicker and get to know each. There is a lovely moment of respite on the dance floor at a bar. The screenplay, although thin and familiar, makes pointed comments about police racism, the revival of African-American activism and folk heroes born of violence. What helps the film most is the crackling chemistry between the two leads and an eclectic mixture of songs heard on the various car radios during the journey.
Motherless Brooklyn (Edward Norton, 2019) 7/10
A passion project for Norton who sets this contemporary story, based on the novel by Jonathan Lethem, in 1959 which automatically makes things very atmospheric taking it into neo-noir territory. The plot involves a detective agency and the mysterious death of its owner (Bruce Willis) followed by a dogged investigation by the man's quirky - he suffers from Tourette Syndrome - protegé (Edward Norton). The case is complicated and involves a tough property developer (Alec Baldwin) who is using strong arm tactics to buy out black, latino and jewish neighborhoods, demolishing them, kicking out the residents and constructing freeways and bridges where they once stood. At the center of it all is a young black woman (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) who seems to hold an important key to the puzzle and an architect (Willem Dafoe) who also seems somehow involved. The detective pursues the case through black jazz clubs in Harlem while getting viciously knocked about by goons. The story has a strong whiff of a Phillip Marlowe mystery ("The Big Sleep" and "Farewell, My Lovely" both come immediately to mind) and in fact invokes most of all Polanski's classic L.A. based "Chinatown" - the detective in a fedora, cheap hoods beating up on him, a powerful financier involved in corrupt local government deals, a damsel who seems to be in distress but could be hiding the truth and especially the languid pace of the story with a music score that sharply brings to mind Jerry Goldsmith's iconic score. Stylish film is overlong but is well acted by the star cast who worked for free on this project as a favour to Norton.
Could you post your review on Jennifer Kent's The Nightingale?
I'd loved to read your thoughts on the film.
Never managed to write a review for it but will soon. I liked the film. Franciosi is very good.
I look forward to it.
Motherless Brooklyn (2019) Edward Norton 5/10
Horse Girl (2020) Jeff Baena 2/10
Meeting Gorbachev (2019) Werner Herzog & Andre Singer 7/10
Dark Waters (2019) Todd Haynes 5/10
Chained For Life (2019) Aaron Schimberg 8/10
Go Down Death (2014) Aaron Schumberg 3/10
Suzi Q (2019) Liam Firmager 6/10
Repeat viewings
My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) Stephen Frears 8/10
Some Like It Hot (1959) Billy Wilder 10/10
Heat and Dust (1983) James Ivory 7/10
The Pillow Book (1996) Peter Greenaway 8/10
The Lady Eve (1941) Preston Sturges 10/10
A Room with a View (1986) James Ivory 10/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
Portrait From Life (Terence Fisher, 1949) 7/10
Angels One Five (George More O'Ferrall, 1952) 5/10
A Yank on the Burma Road (George B. Seitz, 1942) 3/10
The Seagull (Michael Mayer, 2018) 6/10
Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler, 2013) 7/10
Bombay Talkies (Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar & Anurag Kashyap, 2013) 6/10
Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977) 10/10
The film holds up perfectly 40 plus years on. The plot is basically Woody doing his stand-up comedy routine into which he incorporates a romantic love story. Diane Keaton is superb as the ditsy title character and richly deserved the Oscar she won. All the non-stop one liners - "Hey, don't knock masturbation. It's sex with someone I love" - are now part of movie lore. Touching and hilarious the film is a must-see even for folks who are not hardcore Woody fans.
Bitka na Neretvi / The Battle of Neretva (Veljko Bulajic, 1969) 6/10
The spectacular WWII battle around the Neretva river between Yugoslav partisans and the Axis forces during the German occupation in 1943. The outnumbered partisans provide a heroic resistance in trying to save themselves and thousands of refugees as they attempt to cross the only bridge standing over the river Neretva and into neutral territory. Epic film is seen through the eyes of various characters - a demolition expert (Yul Brynner), a defecting Italian captain (Franco Nero) who is against fascism and joins hands with an artillery officer (Sergei Bonderchuk) among the partisans, a proud Italian general (Anthony Dawson) captured by the partisans, a brave Yugoslav female (Sylva Koscina) caught in a stranghold by Chetniks being led by a senator (Orson Welles), a vicious Nazi officer (Curd Jürgens) determined to annihilate the partisans and a German colonel (Hardy Kruger) who realizes the partisans are a formidable force. Unlike many war films during the 1960s with all-star casts the stars here play characters with complete arcs and have not been added to the film merely for boxoffice appeal. Unfortunately there are many versions of this film and the original 3 hour version is very hard to find. The film was sponsored by the State under President Tito and was nominated for an Oscar in the foreign film category. It was one of only two films for which Pablo Picasso designed the movie poster (in exchange for a case of Yugoslavia's best wines).
Panipat (Ashutosh Gowarikar, 2019) 5/10
The Third Battle of Panipat was fought in 1761 between the Maratha Empire and the invading Afghan army of the King of Afghans, Ahmad Shah Abdali who was supported by three Indian allies — the Rohilla Najib-ud-daulah, Afghans of the Doab region, and Shuja-ud-Daula, the Nawab of Awadh. Gowarikar's ambitious epic is yet another in an increasing spate of attempts by Bollywood to align itself with India's ruling Bharatiya Janata
Party, a Hindu nationalist party led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a series of recent historical films - "Bajirao Mastani", "Padmaavat", "Manikarnika", "Kesari" and "Tanhaji" - history is given a scrubbing via jingoistic fervour where we get to see "sophisticated" and brave Hindus take on "debauched" Muslims who are often presented as cunning and cruel. The Marathas were severely defeated by Abdali (Sanjay Dutt) and the local Indian Muslim armies - the largest being of the Nawab of Oudh (Kunal Kapoor) - during a pitched battle fought on the field at Panipat. The Marathas are led by the brave young general Sadashivrao Bhau (Arjun Kapoor), the nephew of Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao (Mohnish Bahl), and the convoluted screenplay goes through great pains to take in all the characters involved on both sides. The obvious testosterone elements of the story are counter-balanced by showing prominent female characters as well - the Peshwa's duplicitous wife (Padmini Kolhapure) constantly sowing seeds of doubt against her husband's nephew and his plucky lower-class young wife (Kriti Sanon) who accompanies her husband to the battlefield, the old loving grandmother (Suhasini Mulay) and Sakina Begum (Zeenat Aman) who plays a crucial part in the battle when the Peshwas turned to her kingdom for help. While it is fascinating to see the period recreation on screen - gorgeous sets and costumes - the film's inordinate length works to its disadvantage along with an erratic screenplay that fails to rouse dramatic emotions. Both Arjun Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt give lifeless performances - the role seems to be totally beyond Kapoor's acting abilities while Dutt strictly relies on his "wild look" and impassioned grunts to play his part. While Kriti Sanon is a charming presence she looks too modern in the part. The detailed final battle scenes are thrilling but go on and on with some pretty shoddy CJI - the angry swirling waves on the River Yumuna, in particular, appear very fake. This is Gowariker's second turkey after "Mohenjodaro" and either needs to change tracks drastically or take lessons in making epic films from Sanjay Leela Bhansali. At least the latter's films are entertaining even if in a vulgar way with old fashioned emotions at fever pitch with an ear for dramatic and stinging dialogue along with spectacular songs and dances which are also presented in a shockingly dull manner in this film.
The Last Full Measure (Todd Robinson, 2019) 6/10
True account of William H. Pitsenbarger (Jeremy Irvine), a United States Air Force
Pararescueman, who died saving the lives of 60 soldiers after he was lowered down from a helicopter straight into a raging battle known as Operation Abilene during the Vietnam War in 1966.
He was initially posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross, which was later upgraded to the Medal of Honor. The screenplay moves like a thriller and attempts to show the reasons why he was recommended for the honour by survivors of the offensive and why it took the government 34 years to bestow it. In doing so the film also shows the toll taken on veterans who survived the war but remain badly scarred reliving its trauma on a daily basis. A Pentagon staffer (Sebastian Stan) is assigned the task to investigate a Medal of Honor request by the deceased man's best friend and partner (William Hurt) on that mission. He gets to meet the hero's aged parents (Christopher Plummer & Diane Ladd) and survivors of that battle (played movingly by Ed Harris, Samuel L. Jackson, John Savage and Peter Fonda in his last film appearance) who provide their insight about that fateful night in the jungle. All the battle scenes are shown in spurts throughout the film as the relentless investigation reveals a high-level conspiracy behind the decades long denial of the medal. Well acted film was a labour of love for the director taking him 20 years to bring this moving story to the screen. All the big name stars (including Amy Madigan, Linus Roache, Bradley Whitford) are memorable despite limited time on screen.
Color Out of Space (Richard Stanley, 2019) 6/10
H. P. Lovecraft's 1927 short horror story set in the 1880s is brought into the present and given the full Hollywood CGI treatment. A small meteor crashes into the front yard of a farm and all hell breaks loose. The family living there already have enough troubles - Dad (Nicolas Cage) is eccentric and has moved his family to a farm to raise alpacas for their milk, Mom (Joely Richardson) is a financial advisor and cancer survivor, the older son likes to smoke pot, the nubile daughter chants and performs rituals and the younger son is withdrawn and interacts only with the family dog. A strange pink light emitted by the meteor causes havoc. Water gets contaminated, veggies grow fast and large, strange insects emerge as the power gradually starts picking off the characters, including a hydrologist and the local sheriff, one by one. Blood and gore flies across the screen with fingers chopped off, self mutilation, the pink light fusing two human bodies into a single deranged and screaming mess, animals turning into giant monsters and Nicolas Cage in his usual odd-ball mode. Despite the cheesy effects and the hideously loud score the film has enough creepy moments to keep fans satisfied on this wild ride of horror.
Notting Hill (Roger Michel, 1999) 9/10
A quirky bookshop owner (Hugh Grant) meets by chance a famous Hollywood actress (Julia Roberts) and they fall in love in what is basically only a slight variation of the plot from "Roman Holiday". Memorable romantic comedy has Grant again doing his charming "4 Weddings" shtick as he creates sparks with Roberts and her ever dazzling smile. Witty, moving film has a hilarious turn by Rhys Ifans as Grant's scruffy flat mate but it's the two stars - both basically playing themselves - who lift up this very frothy comedy.
About a Boy (Chris & Paul Weitz, 2002) 5/10
Cynical, selfish layabout (Hugh Grant) has his life gradually change after a chance encounter with a 12-year old boy (Nicholas Hoult). His days of conning single mothers into his bed comes to an end when he unexpectedly finds himself rushing a woman (Toni Collette) to hospital after she has tried to kill herself. The depressed woman's lonely son latches onto him hoping to match him up with his mother. Instead he ends up helping the man find his maturity. Rather maudlin film despite a winning performance by Grant who dispenses with his usual mannerisms but still manages to make this cad charming. Rachel Weisz is around in a brief role as one of Grant's numerous conquests.
Still of the Night (Robert Benton, 1982) 4/10
Benton and Streep team up again after the huge success of "Kramer Vs Kramer" with this lackluster thriller which attempts to pay homage to Hitchcock. The screenplay goes through great pains to reference a number of the Master's films as we catch glimpses of "Spellbound" (the main character here too is a psychiatrist and there is a long eerie dream sequence), "Rear Window" (voyeuristic peak at a naked woman through a window in a building across), "Vertigo" (the fall from a bell tower is recreated using a drop down an ocean cliff onto rocks below), "North By Northwest" (scene set in an auction room), a sudden startling look at a screeching bird (shades of "Psycho" & "The Birds") and the presence of Jessica Tandy (who was in "The Birds") playing a domineering mother, a character often found in Hitchcock's films. However, the most effective touch is the trademark blonde heroine. When a man is found viciously murdered his psychiatrist (Roy Scheider) not only comes under suspicion for holding back information to the police but also falls in love with the image of the dead man's mistress (Meryl Streep in a blonde wig) who was described to him in great detail by his patient. When the cool blonde suddenly appears in his office his obsession with her clouds his judgement as he foolishly tries to search for the murderer on his own while studying his private notes about the dead patient and his affair with his blonde co-worker. Streep surprisingly fails at being enigmatic which is what her character is meant to personify while Scheider makes a lifeless amateur detective. The film's highlight is the moody cinematography by Nestor Almendros who shoots using muted colour hues of grey, brown, black and blue. Also going against the thriller genre is the film's almost total lack of action until the last frame making it a very dull slog to sit through. The film's best performance is by Josef Sommer in the flashback sequences as the murdered lothario.
Love Actually (Richard Curtis, 2003) 8/10
Richard Curtis was really on a roll with his romantic screenplays starring a group of British actors who appeared in his films over and over again. This one is over-loaded by couples - eight - and all in the throes of romantic complications set in London during a month leading up to Christmas. The delightful ensemble cast all shine with special mentions going to - Hugh Grant as the PM who dances to the Pointer Sisters' "Jump", all but shows his middle finger to the sleazy US President (Billy Bob Thornton) and finds unexpected sweet love in the bargain; grieving widower (Liam Neeson) finds the will to go on while encouraging his step-son (Thomas Brodie-Sangster - who would go on to play Jojen Reed on GOT) to declare his love for the girl of his dreams; Colin Firth finding love with his Portugese maid; a long married couple (Alan Rickman & Emma Thompson) facing issues of infidelity; a man (Andrew Lincoln) secretly in love with the wife (Keira Knightley) of his best friend (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and the aging rock star (Bill Nighy) making a comeback through a cover recording of the Troggs' "Love is All Around". The film has far too many characters and intertwined plots but the cast is game with charm overflowing throughout. Special mention to Richard Curtis' longtime association with Rowan Atkinson who here appears in two delightful cameos as a store clerk wrapping a gift and as a passenger at the airport who provides a crucial diversion in the nick of time. The film's fantastic soundtrack of hit songs also helps to digest the bloat and often cloying sentimentality which thankfully is devoid of cynicism and allows the viewer to wallow in this mush. It's like diving head first into a syrupy Christmas pudding. Delicious fun.
L'Atlantide (Georg Wilhelm Pabst, 1932) 5/10
Slow stilted exotica is almost like a silent movie. Pabst's adventure film about the discovery of the lost city of Atlantis - it's under the sands of the Southern Sahara desert - has two french legionnaires, both close friends, trying to solve the mysterious disappearance of various soldiers in the desert. They eventually stumble upon the lost city after they are ambushed and carried off unconcious. The city is in catacombs under a small derelict village deep in mountainous terrain and consists of assorted rooms connected by corridors with arches - the city seems to be rather sparse, no doubt due to the film's meagre budget or maybe Pabst's intention was to show grubby authenticity, although astonishingly the entertainment in town involves nubile women lifting their skirts high while dancing the Can-Can. The friends find themselves separated and held prisoners of the goddess Antinea (Brigitte Helm) who falls in love with one of the men, is rejected by him and then convinces the other to kill his friend who spurned her. In a drug induced stupor he does what she asks and then tries to kill her after realizing what he has done. He manages to escape with help from a local woman who loves him. The events are presented in a dream-like haze and despite the short running time the film is deathly slow as too much time is taken by the characters stumbling through underground corridors in search for the mysterious goddess who likes to play chess with her victims. Helm plays her with a glacial impassivity, reclining on a divan dressed in a skimpy outfit - later one of the men will fondle her breasts as a prelude to sex - with her neck and arms adorned by native jewellery. She has slaves around her and a growling cheetah at her side. The plot has more than a passing resemblance to H. Rider Haggard's "She" although it was based on the novel by Pierre Benôit which was subsequently adapted various times for the screen with the exotic "Antinea" played by such diverse actresses as the Dominican Maria Montez, Israeli Haya Harareet, Russian Ludmilla Tchérina and New Yorker Victoria Mahoney all of whom followed in the part created by German Brigitte Helm.
The Deep (Peter Yates, 1977) 6/10
The film's major highlight is lovely Jacqueline Bisset in a black bikini bottom topped by a wet see-through T-Shirt, an image which later became an iconic poster and launched her as a Hollywood sex symbol resulting in huge boxoffice receipts for the film. Otherwise surprisingly this is a lackluster film about a couple (Nick Nolte & Jacqueline Bisset) on holiday in Bermuda who find a cache of ampules on a buried WWII ship while scuba diving. They are menaced by local crooks led by Louis Gossett Jr and encounter voodoo, a gruff Robert Shaw and a deadly Moray eel which was the new monster concocted by Peter Benchley who adapted his own bestseller following the huge success of "Jaws". The film's memorable score is by John Barry with the theme song "Down Deep Inside" sung by Donna Summer.
High Season (Claire Peplo, 1987) 7/10
Quirky film about a bunch of eccentric characters who converge on the small town of Lindos on the Greek island of Rhodes. The stunning beauty of the island is perfectly captured through the lens of Chris Menges. An expatriate English photographer (Jacqueline Bisset) lives a life of genteel poverty with her teenage daughter on a house high up on a cliff in Lindos while her estranged sculptor husband (James Fox) also lives in close proximity. Peplo's screenplay appears to be a gentle tirade about the intrusion of tourism and how it can transform virgin towns into a commercial mess. Desperately in need of money to maintain her house she hopes to sell an antique vase given to her by an elderly art historian (Sebastian Shaw) who arrives for a visit and a deal is struck with a wealthy Greek-American (Robert Stephens) to purchase it. Her close friend, a local widow (Irene Papas), is dead against the tourist trade while her son wants prosperity for the island through visitors. The arrival of a young British government official (Kenneth Branagh) and his wife (Lesley Manville) triggers various romantic complications along with secrets that are exposed. Charming film has a laid back quality and its mesmerizing location lulls you into a state of euphoria which the delightful cast are clearly enjoying as well.
The Unknown (Henry Levin, 1946) 6/10
Effective horror-mystery with a plot that has become a cliche of the genre. A young woman (Jeff Donnell) returns to her decaying family mansion for the reading of her late grandmother's will and finds her mother (Karen Morley) mentally unbalanced and her own life in peril. Hostile relatives, the memory of a domineering matriarch, creaky stairs, strange wailing sounds in the night, a secret passage leading into the house from the family crypt, something buried inside the fireplace and a will that goes missing. Fast-paced B-film has suspense and moody atmosphere in keeping with the macabre plot.
Hanover Street (Peter Hyams, 1979) 6/10
Throwback to all the WWII romantic Hollywood films of the 1940s like "Waterloo Bridge" and "This Above All". In place of Robert Taylor and Tyrone Power we get an earnest but dull Harrison Ford - this was shot in between the first two "Star Wars" films. And in place of Vivien Leigh and Joan Fontaine we get the equally ravishing Lesley-Anne Down. Yank bomber pilot (Harrison Ford) meets cute with lovely english rose nurse (Lesley-Anne Down) during a terrifically staged air raid on Hanover Street during the Blitz. They fall instantly in love as is wont in all deliriously romantic stories. A swooning John Barry score and lush cinematography by David Watkins helps the situation although there is the proverbial catch in their romance. She is married to a senior intelligence officer (Christopher Plummer) and they have an angelic and precocious (also rather annoying) daughter (child actor Patsy Kensit who would go on to be an adult star). Their furtive romance seems doomed when the pilot finds himself on a mission with her husband over occupied France and their plane goes down. Old fashioned heroics full of coincidences and romantic dialogue that sounds pretty trite are the order of the day. Down's beauty and an exceptional performance by Plummer who lends elegance, humor and vulnerability to his characterization are the film's saving graces. Interesting trivia - original B-25 Mitchell bombers were flown all the way to England from the United States especially for this production. The film was originally cast with Sarah Miles who dropped out followed by Genevieve Bujold who also left the project when singer-actor Kris Kristofferson decided to go on a concert tour instead.
Good Newwz (Raj Mehta, 2019) 6/10
Farce involves a mix-up of sperm when two couples undergo invitro-fertilization at a clinic. After being married for many years Varun Batra (Akshay Kumar) is under great pressure to impregnate his anxious wife (Kareena Kapoor). When repeated sex fails they are advised to try the invitro method. The procedure is a success but they, along with another couple (Diljit Dosanjh & Kiara Advani), are hastily summoned back to the clinic and informed of a goof-up.
The surname of both men is Batra and the doctor inadvertently switched their sperm so each woman is carrying a baby fertilized by the other's husband. This silly set-up is milked for laughs with both leads in fine form playing off each other with great comic timing. Dosanjh is over-the-top as a loud Sikh while pretty Advani tries to keep pace as his equally gregarious wife. Funny dialogue, a Bhangra soundtrack and the comic twists in the screenplay make this an amusing watch. Both Kareena Kapoor and Diljit Dosanjh were nominated for Filmfare awards.
The Body (Jeethu Joseph, 2019) 5/10
Bollywood remake of Oriol Paulo's Spanish film "El cuerpo". A rich businesswoman's body disappears from the morgue and a cop (Rishi Kapoor) suspects foul play when her husband (Emraan Hashmi) acts suspicious. The entire film is set during one long night inside a creepy hospital with flashbacks showing the relationship of the man with his wife and mistress. As the night progresses the man gets the feeling that his late wife is alive and is trying to haunt him. The suspense is carried out almost to the end when suddenly the plot goes off into an overwrought tangent that is not only ridiculous but absurd. Throwing in four songs into the mix also seems foolish as it hampers the suspense. The scenes between both actors are tense as they play cat and mouse with each other. Good premise is sadly marred by its conclusion.
Saturday Night Fever (John Badhan, 1977) 9/10
Early on in the film when Tony Manero (John Travolta), a Brooklyn teenager, is advised to save and build for the future his response is "Oh fuck the future!". Tony works all week in a hardware store for a thankless paycheck but lives for every Saturday night when he comes alive on the dance floor at the 2001 Odyssey disco. He and his gang of buddies are a cynical bunch living aimlessly, enjoy raising hell, drinking and chasing girls for a quickie in backseats of cars. Tony is their leader, the most confident, the best dressed and the best dancer but his life is just as screwed up as the rest. Spunky Annette (Donna Pescow) loves him but he tolerates her because she is a good dancer. He longs for a better life and wants to escape Brooklyn and go to Manhattan. He sees his chance in local girl Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney) who has made it in Manhattan and takes her for his partner in a $500 dance contest at the disco. Dazzling but extremely dark film hasn't lost a bit of its incredible power and made Travolta, already huge on tv, into a mega movie star and a household name. The iconic soundtrack of hit songs by the Bee Gees helped define the disco boom during the 1970s. The film has many memorable moments starting with the snappy opening credits sequence as we see Tony walk to the beat of "Staying Alive", his interaction with his Italian family at the dinner table, dressing for the disco, shouting "Al Pacino" while dressed in briefs and startling his old grandmother, the various skirmishes with his friends, dancing the "Hustle" in a group and his electric solo performance to "You Should Be Dancing". This is one of the seminal films of the 1970s with hypnotic dance sequences dazzlingly shot by Ralf D. Bode. Incredibly the film did not receive any Oscar nominations for its music or songs although Travolta was awarded a nomination for his energetic and deeply nuanced performance. A classic film and a must see.
Garm Hava / Scorching Winds (M. S. Sathyu, 1974) 9/10
In 1947, just after Partition, a prosperous Muslim shoe manufacturer (Balraj Sahni) decides to keep his family in India instead of fleeing to Pakistan. His daughter (Gita Siddharth), in love with her cousin who has migrated, is devastated when he returns for her but gets deported before they can be married. Later she finds love with another cousin who also decides to migrate leaving her inconsolable. Her brother (Farooq Shaikh) cannot find work as employers are hesitant to hire Muslims. Banks and even moneylenders refuse to give loans to Muslims and eventually their shoe factory loses business and the family is faced with losing their home. The film chronicles the shattering effects of Partition in 1947 on a Muslim family who choose to stay in Agra instead of migrating to the newly formed Muslim country of Pakistan. Based on a short story by Ismat Chughtai, it shows how this catastrophic event in history broke up families with some members choosing to migrate while others decided to continue living in their home towns. The story sharply recalls the current "troubles" in India as Muslims face persecution at the hands of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party which is a political wing of RSS the Hindu nationalist organisation.
Parinda (Vidhu Vinod Chopra, 1989) 10/10
The gangster milieu in Hindi cinema got a spectacular makeover with this film. The campy over-the-top theatrics in films of the 1970s and 1980s was nowhere to be seen. Chopra brings a gritty sense of realism to the genre shooting the film in and around popular tourist locations of Bombay and presenting them as places of terror and death. A cop (Anupam Kher), on the trail of a crook (Nana Patekar), is shot dead by henchmen. He dies in the arms of his best friend (Anil Kapoor) whose older brother (Jackie Shroff) is the crook's right-hand man. The story pits the two brothers against the gangster who wants the younger brother dead as he wants to avenge the cop's death. Riveting, highly influential film, creates a sense of dread through its use of sound design, sharp editing and dazzling images (the repeated scenes of flying pigeons is especially memorable). Most of the film is shot at night or in shadows with the camera capturing scenes from unusual angles. The cinematography was inspired by Gordon Willis' lighting in "The Godfather". The entire cast is superb with actors even in small roles making a strong impression - Suresh Oberoi as a flute-playing assassin, Tom Alter as a rival gangster and Madhuri Dixit as the dead cop's sister. This is Jackie Shroff's best performance in a long career of memorable roles but the film's most striking performance is by Nana Patekar as the psychotic gangster with a serious flaw - he is petrified of fire ever since burning alive his wife and baby son. Sanjay Leela Bhansali shot all the songs including the hit "Tum Se Milke" which uses the melody from Leo Sayer's "When I Need You" and is filmed on Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit who would go on to become one of Hindi cinema's most memorable star couples on screen during the following decade - one of the film's great set pieces is their wedding night which is shot in complete darkness with just a blue strobe light outlining their naked bodies, a scene which ends with a shocking twist never seen in Hindi cinema before. It won Filmfare awards for Best Director (Chopra), Best Actor (Shroff), Supporting Actor (Patekar), Screenplay and Editing, losing Best Picture to "Maine Pyar Kiya".
Faces in the Dark (David Eady, 1960) 7/10
Taut little British noir with a nasty streak. Hard driving businessman (John Gregson) is blinded in a freak accident at his factory and begins to think he is losing his mind. Or is he being driven mad by the combined efforts of his loving wife (Mai Zetterling), his business partner (Michael Denison), his ne'er-do-well brother (John Ireland), the ex-convict chauffeur (Tony Wright) and the new maid (Nanette Newman)? Gregson who is cast against type - a major departure from his usual forte of frothy comedies - is superb as the harsh and bossy man suddenly finding himself at the mercy of various individuals who may or may not be trying to kill him. The amazing camera work uses shadows and dizzying angles to portray the blind man's sense of confusion as he stumbles around inside a house which may not even be his own.
Mr Morgan's Last Love (Sandra Nettelbeck, 2013) 6/10
Routine but effective May-December romance between two lonely souls. A retired Philosophy professor (Michael Caine), living in Paris after the death of his wife (Jane Alexander, in flashbacks), meets a young dance instructor (Clémence Poésy) on a bus and they form an attachment. She is in her thirties and he is in his eighties and both harbour regrets - he was too absorbed with his wife and neglected his children and she longs for a family. When he tries to commit suicide she looks after him in hospital until his son (Justin Kirk) and daughter (Gillian Anderson) suddenly arrive and show resentment towards her. A film about loss, friendship and family and the awful things people do to each other while competing for love. It's nice to see Caine still creating sparks on screen although his American accent is horrendous. He gets to play fiery scenes opposite Kirk as father and son discuss long simmering resentments and his scenes opposite Poésy are full of small poignant moments. The film moves at a snail's pace but has great shots of Paris.
Phantom (Kabir Khan, 2015) 4/10
When a Bollywood film regurgitates jingoistic Indian patriotism it gets banned by Pakistan.....just as this one was following a petition by Islamic militant Hafiz Saeed, co-founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba. So the film totally fell under the radar for me until I discovered it now on Netflix. The prepostrous plot not only redeems the tarnished reputation of its protagonist but he also manages to avenge the 26/11 terrorist attacks on the Taj Hotel and its environs in Mumbai. A wrongfully disgraced Indian Army Officer (a grim Saif Ali Khan), known as the "Phantom", is coerced by RAW agents to go after the four masterminds of the terrorist attacks. Katrina Kaif is around to not only add eye-candy to the proceedings, as an ex-RAW agent, but from time-to-time also conveniently turns up to offer help. With great precision two of the terrorists are killed off in London and Chicago. The latter half of the film is his attempts to enter Pakistan - the sequence that was instrumental in the film's ban - which he manages by making contact with "Lashkar" goons during a battle in Syria (streets of Beirut being the location) allowing the two leads to dodge a load of bullets. Once they enter Lahore the plot thickens as the film (based on the book "Mumbai Avengers" by Hussain Zaidi) dares to throw some unsettling questions, one of them being, are Pakistani locals supportive of the militant outfits in their country? It even shows the ISI as hand in glove with the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba as they go all out to protect the two alleged terrorists. After much cloak and dagger the two terrorists are despatched and it is followed by an even more absurd sequence which hilariously apes the ending of "Titanic" after which an Indian submarine appears to the rescue. Glossy over-simplified thriller is merely a fantasy of wishful thinking since the actual masterminds behind the Mumbai attacks still remain at large. When all is said and done the film unfortunately does raise a number of alarming questions which need to be answered.
Quicksand (John Mackenzie, 2003) 4/10
Uneven suspense thriller takes tips from Hitchcock's "North By Northwest" but keeps stumbling as it moves along. A compliance officer (Michael Keaton) goes to the South of France to investigate a suspicion of money laundering by a french movie production house - a front for prostitution, gambling and human trafficking - being run by the Russian mob. After refusing a bribe to back off he is framed for the murder of the police chief and goes on the run to prove his innocence. Chased by the mob's goons and corrupt cops his only allies are the film company's production assistant (Judith Godreche) and the washed by actor (Michael Caine) who is playing the lead in the film being supposedly made. Matters go from bad to worse when his daughter is kidnapped by the mob and used as bait to get him. The plot is full of holes and silly coincidences but Keaton valiantly makes a go with the part. The film even manages to make the South of France look dull.
Enigma (Michael Apted, 2001) 5/10
Handsomely produced film is a rather dull apaptation (by Tom Stoppard) of the Thomas Harris book. A fictional suspense thriller based on the Enigma codebreakers of Bletchley Park during WWII. A brilliant codebreaker (Dougray Scott) - the character is the fictionalised Alan Turin who was the subject of the later film "The Imitation Game" - is hastily summoned back to Bletchley Park after suffering a nervous breakdown over a failed affair with a co-worker (Saffron Burroughs). He is needed to break the code again as the Nazi U-boats have changed one of their code reference books. Meanwhile the girl has mysteriously disappeared, there appears to be a mole in the Park and an MI5 agent (Jeremy Northam) is sniffing at his heels. With help from the girl's roommate (Kate Winslet) he sets out to break the code, solve his lover's disappearence and get the mole. The fascinating aspect of the film is seeing that actual espionage during the war was a far cry from the glamorous lifestyle of "James Bond" and was actually handled by nerdy men and dumpy women. Winslet looks like a frump dressed throughout in grey tweeds wearing round glasses and with disheveled hair - she was pregnant throughout the shoot which added to the authenticity of her "look". The lovely locations are captured in breathtaking detail by the camera of Seamus McGarvey.
Maqbool (Vishal Bhardwaj, 2003) 7/10
Bhardwaj's first film in his trilogy of Shakespeare adaptations sets the story of "Macbeth" in the backdrop of the Mumbai underworld. Ambitious Maqbool (Irrfan Khan) is the right-hand man of the much feared underworld Don Jahangir Khan (a superb Pankaj Kapur) popularly known as "Abbaji". He is secretly having an affair with the don's young mistress Nimmi (Tabu) who slyly urges him to kill the old man and take over his operations. The screenplay seamlessly incorporates the Bard's tragedy with most of the play's memorable moments brought to life under this fresh avatar. Abbaji is brutally murdered with his blood splattering across Nimmi's face as she lies beside him. Taking over the old man's "business" he does not find peace as his own gang suspects him of the murder while rival gangs snap at his heels. Intense guilt results in Nimmi imagining blood on her hands and face as she slowly begins to lose her mind. Shakespeare's famous three witches in the play get re-booted as two corrupt cops (Naseeruddin Shah & Om Puri) who predict Maqbool's rise and appear sporadically to provide black comic relief with their comments on the proceedings. Extremely dark film with obvious tragic overtones is acted to perfection by the wonderful cast with special mention for the brilliant Pankaj Kapur who won a well deserved Filmfare award as the vicious Don.
Love in the Time of Cholera (Mike Newell, 2007) 2/10
Gabriel García Márquez's acclaimed sprawling philosophical novel about a love that spans 50 years is brought to the screen in plodding fashion with not an iota of feeling. Love, pain and passion as described on the written page not always translates well to the screen. The story revolves around a love triangle between Fermina Daza (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and her two suitors - Florentino Ariza (Javier Bardem) with whom she has a brief but passionate relationship which consists of written correspondence until she is forbidden by her father to meet him and whom she later rejects and instead gets married to the upright Doctor Juvenal Urbino (Benjamin Bratt) who hopes to eradicate cholera. 50 years pass with Florentino vowing to stay celibate but succumbing to a life of fornication and recording each tryst - there are 600 of them starting with a willing widow his own mother (Fernanda Montenegro) sends to him as a starting point as she can't bear to see her inconsolable son moping around. He finds that constant sex numbs his pain and is a better cure than opium. It takes him a lifetime's work as a lowly clerk to reach the status of the doctor who has his own cross to bear in his outwardly perfect marriage. He confesses an affair to his wife sealing their marital fate. When he dies the waiting is over for Florentino who comes and proposes to Fermina whose initial anger gives way and they finally resume a life together that was thwarted 50 years before. Sumptuously produced film fails to capture the emotions on display. The nude Bardem accosting various women using assorted sexual positions quickly becomes a joke. It's as if he is going through the Kama Sutra chapter by chapter. And despite a white wig lovely Mezzogiorno looks younger than her grown up children. Lifeless film should be avoided and was a mistake to bring it to the screen. Stick to the book instead.
Tully (Jason Reitman, 2018) 7/10
The trials and tribulations of an overstressed mom (Charlize Theron) of three - one child is autistic and another is newly born - and a useless and demanding husband who offers no help in the house. As her life becomes more and more chaotic she gives in and summons for help offered through her brother for a nanny. Tully (Mackenzie Davis) proves to be a godsend as she takes charge of the baby, the other kids, the housework and proves to also be a close confidante. After a night out Tully informs her that she wants to quit and move on with her life which leads to a sudden life-changing experience and an eventual revelation that the perceptive screenplay signals is a case of serious post-natal psychosis. Theron, who gained 50 pounds to play the pregnant mom, gives a sharply nuanced performance and gets excellent support from Mackenzie as the too good to be true nanny. The film smartly balances comedy and unchartered dark material as it provides an insight into a woman's deteriorating mental state.
Bridget Jones's Diary (Sharon Maguire, 2001) 8/10
Bridget (Renée Zellweger) is 32, single and fat. She has resigned herself to a life of being the butt of jokes at the office and at family functions. Just when all seems lost she is not only pursued by her sleazy boss (Hugh Grant) but also meets the arrogant barrister Darcy (Colin Firth) with whom its hate at first sight. The amusing screenplay by Richard Curtis (based on Helen Fielding's bestselling book which has more than a passing resemblance to Jane Austin's "Pride and Prejudice") keeps things moving at a fast pace as Bridget juggles her love life with the two men, feels mortified by her pretentious mother (a delightful Gemma Jones) and knocks about with her close chums. Zellweger, a Texan, performs a neat balancing act between scenes of mortifying slapstick and pathos while easily taking on and maintaing a posh British accent throughout as the often clumsy but lovable character. Fans of the book were outraged when Zellweger was cast but she managed to make the part a great success and was nominated for an Oscar. As with all the British romantic comedies written by Richard Curtis this too has a great soundtrack of hit songs.
Guilty Bystander (Joseph Lerner, 1950) 7/10
An ex-cop (Zachary Scott), an alcoholic with a permanent thirst, works as a house detective in a sleazy run-down hotel. When his ex-wife (Faye Emerson) arrives with the bad news that their infant son has been kidnapped he has to rise above his alcoholic stupor and descend into the seedy underbelly of New York City in search for the child. He ends up beaten, shot, drugged, jailed and pathetically drunk but remains persistent in his quest. Extremely convoluted but atmospheric film noir has a great performance by Scott who spent most of his career in similar films. Also outstanding is the great Mary Boland, a far cry from her usual comic ditsy roles, as the blowsy and tough owner of the hotel where Scott resides.
Raise the Titanic (Jerry Jameson, 1980) 2/10
Lifeless adaptation of one of Clive Cussler's "Dirk Pitt" series of adventure books. A dead American miner is discovered buried on Russian soil along with the remains of an extremely rare mineral called byzanium. This sets off a chain of events and a disclosure by a survivor (Alec Guinness) of the Titanic to divulge that the mineral had been loaded on to the ship. The mineral in question is needed to fuel a powerful new defence system, codenamed "the Sicilian Project". To get to the mineral a search is conducted for the sunk ship after which it is decided to raise it to the surface. Dull film has no action except for the spectacular sequence where the ship is raised and brought into New York harbour. Interesting to see that the Titanic in Cussler's book and this film is intact in one piece which was in reality later discovered to have broken into two when it sank and which was confirmed when the ship was finally found. A good cast - Jason Robards, Richard Jordan, Anne Archer - are wasted as they stand around pontificating. The film's only saving grace is the brief appearance of Guinness and the scenes of the ship rising to the surface. It was a huge boxoffice failure.
Shadow Run (Geoffrey Reeve, 1998) 1/10
Disjointed trashy flick has a gangster (Michael Caine) rounding up a group of men to pull a heist on a bank van at the behest of his aristocratic boss (James Fox). Convoluted plot makes no sense and also involves a young school kid who has witnessed the crooks in action. I hope the two leads got a huge paycheck because this film is the absolute pits and went straight to video.
Patsy and Loretta (Callie Khouri, 2019) 5/10
By-the-numbers tv film about country legend Patsy Cline (Megan Hilty - Tony nominated Broadway star) and her friendship with the up and coming country singer Loretta Lynn (Jessie Mueller - Tony winning Broadway star). Strong and opinionated Patsy grooms naive Loretta, the girls sit around discussing their abusive husbands and brood of kids. Their extremely close friendship lasted from the time Cline was in a terrible car crash in 1961 to the time when she was killed in a plane crash in 1963. The film soars during the concert sequences as we get to hear Cline's “Crazy,” “I Fall to Pieces,” “Walkin’ After Midnight” and Loretta's "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl", "The Girl That I Am Now" and "This Haunted House". Both actresses sing the famous songs bringing their own singing experience to the songs without trying to emulate Cline and Lynn.
The Bad and the Beautiful (Vincente Minnelli, 1952) 10/10
Kirk Douglas became a huge star playing a ruthless louse in a string of hit films - Champion (1949), Young Man With a Horn (1950), Detective Story (1951), Ace in the Hole (1951) and this John Houseman production which was a sharp exposé of Hollywood. Egomaniac Hollywood producer (Kirk Douglas) ruthlessly claws his way up the ladder using immense charm but along the way betrays his close friends who were instrumental in his success - a writer (Dick Powell), a director (Barry Sullivan) and an actress (Lana Turner). Years later, while down and out in Paris, he pitches an idea for a film to a producer (Walter Pidgeon) provided his three former friends join him on the project. Douglas is the personification of male ego on a rampage and is superb as the vile and selfish man with no scruples. Minnelli's sharp satire has the three friends recall, via flashbacks, how they were used, betrayed and cast aside. The film gets the full MGM treatment with dazzling production values - the sets, costumes (by Helen Rose), the stunning noir-like cinematography (by Robert Surtees), the incisive screenplay and Gloria Grahame (as Powell's shallow but ambitious Southern belle wife who runs off with a suave actor (Gilbert Roland) all won Oscars. Douglas was nominated as best actor but shockingly the film, Minnelli, the bittersweet score by David Raksin and Lana Turner were not. This is easily Turner's best performance on film playing the alcoholic starlet who is groomed to become a huge star, falls in love with the producer who then callously dumps her. The film's highlight is the beautifully shot scene in medium to tight close-up of Turner driving a car in full hysteria as the camera captures her sobbing anguish followed by a frenzy of screaming and flailing arms as the car careens down a busy highway through pouring rain. Turner did this difficult sequence in one shot. Minnelli brilliantly captures this moment of great human despair in a film with many such moments where characters are shown at the mercy of ruthless Hollywood. This is, along with Billy Wilder's equally cynical "Sunset Blvd", a bitter look at the Hollywood machine and how it functioned during the Studio era. Classic film not to be missed.
Jurassic Park (Steven Spielberg, 1993) 8/10
This still remains an adrenalin-pumping ride all these years later. The genetically engineered dinosaurs are truly a triumph of special effects although one can see Spielberg repeat certain set-pieces from past films which he does in inventive new ways. A paleontologist (Sam Neill), a paleobotanist (Laura Dern) and a mathematician (Jeff Goldblum) are invited by an eccentric mogul (Sir Richard Attenborough) to visit his island animal theme park where he has created dinosaurs. Also visiting the island are the old man's young grandchildren. When the park's electrical system malfunctions the group finds themselves at the mercy of the giant beasts in particular the ferocious Tyrannosaurus rex and a trio of cunning and equally deadly Velociraptors. The screenplay mixes humour with chilling suspense and like all of Spielberg's adventure films this too is basically a wide-screen video game and a throwback to the old movie serials with built in cliffhangers at short intervals. The scientific explanation behind the dinosaurs' creation comes in short bursts of dialogue which we are expected to believe in order to experience the expected mayhem in store for the characters - and us the audience. Eye-popping film is great fun.
Guilty (Ruchi Narain, 2020) 6/10
Bollywood is the first to jump on the #metoo movement with this fairly graphic film. The film is in english with dialogue replete with four letter expletives never heard before in Indian cinema. A young woman (Akansha Ranjan Kapoor) accuses her college mate (Akansha Ranjan), the campus stud (Gurfateh Pirzada), of rape. This impacts all their close friends, including the man's girlfriend (Kiara Advani), as they all, along with the teachers and lawyers, try to figure out if the incident actually happened. Has the accusation been made up by the small-town woman with an axe to grind with her upper-class "English medium" college mates like the accused and his girlfriend? Also going against the accuser is that she was seen sexually coming onto the drunk man the night of the incident. The screenplay, like the classic Japanese film "Rashomon", has various characters recall the night of the alleged rape when all the students were at a concert drinking and taking drugs. Advani, the star of the film, plays the film's most complex character who is used as the mouthpiece to condemn rape and bring to light how society accepts and takes for granted certain male behaviours. The film is unfortunately marred by a melodramatic, unrealistic and in-your-face ending which nevertheless rams home a very important message.
Diary of a Mad Housewife (Frank Perry, 1970) 9/10
Eleanor Perry's lacerating screenplay, based on the bestselling novel by Sue Kaufman, dissects the bored life of a housewife (Carrie Snodgress). Married to a smug, ambitious and verbally abusive lawyer (Richard Benjamin) she decides to gamble on an affair with a narcissistic writer (Frank Langella) only to discover that relationship is equally distasteful. Hilarious film takes jibes at the American dream and how a seemingly perfect outward appearance in a marriage houses contempt, bitterness and boredom. All three actors, at the beginning of their careers, are superb. Benjamin is very funny as an over-the-top, revolting, name-dropping husband who can't stop nagging his wife or praising himself. Langella, harbouring a secret and bitter about his failing writing career, is very good as the sexy lover who turns out just as wretched as the husband. The film belongs to Snodgress who, although appears scarily passive, manages to convey great depths of emotion through subtle facial movements and the flicker of her sad eyes. She was nominated for an Oscar, received a fan letter from singer Neil Young and all but gave up her career when she stopped working and moved in with him. Her comeback years later consisted only of small roles sadly followed soon after by death of cancer. A film that speaks volumes about the sense of isolation humans often find themselves in even when surrounded by friends and family. A forgotten gem.
Mean Streets (Martin Scorsese, 1973) 10/10
The film that first put Scorsese on the map with his familiar milieu of gangsters and the streets of New York which would go on to be regular staples in his films. It was also his first collaboration with Robert De Niro who is dazzling as a crazed small-time hood. The nephew (Harvey Keitel) of a Mafia kingpin works the streets for him as a "debt" collector, undergoes Catholic guilt and secretly dates the epileptic cousin of his street smart buddy (Robert De Niro) who is in big trouble with loan sharks. Scorsese sets the story on the streets where he grew up and around familiar characters which he later honed to far greater perfection in "GoodFellas". The film was shot mostly with a hand-held camera on a tiny budget so has a raw quality that lends it authenticity. He stages some great set pieces - the fight in the pool room, the shooting in the bar and the end where honour ends up in betrayal and a sacrifice. The film has a great choice of hit songs on the soundtrack all used by Scorsese from his personal collection.
Bang the Drum Slowly (John D. Hancock, 1973) 7/10
Touching heart-warming story set in the world of baseball is more about male bonding and the importance of friendship. A star pitcher (Michael Moriarty) forms a close relationship with the team's catcher who is diagnosed with a terminal disease. The drama revolves around the pitcher refusing to sign a fresh contract holding out for more money and then making a bargain with the team owner of continuing only if the catcher is not let go as planned. The team nor their gruff manager (Vincent Gardenia who was nominated for an Oscar) are aware of the catcher's fatal illness but once revealed it brings the team together and they start playing better. The film along with "Mean Streets", which came out a few months later, brought De Niro great acclaim with
diametrically opposite
performances in both. And for a film about an impending death the screenplay thankfully avoids a maudlin tone and instead concentrates on the relationship of the two friends and the humourous banter between the players.
Aashiqui 2 (Mohit Suri, 2013) 6/10
Bollywood's second adaptation of "A Star is Born" comes 47 years after the first, the classic "Abhimaan". Alcoholic rockstar (Aditya Roy Kapoor) on the way down meets a young singer (Shraddha Kapoor) in a bar and promotes her. When she becomes a huge singing sensation he realizes that his erratic behaviour and drunken binges are creating chaos for her which leads to the inevitable conclusion. Like the previous version this too was a huge boxoffice hit with memorable songs - "Tum Hi Ho" & "Sunn Raha Hai" - on the soundtrack. Both actors became huge stars with Shraddha Kapoor recieving the bulk of the praise and a nomination for the Filmfare award.
Guzaarish (Sanjay Leela Bhansali, 2010) 8/10
The star of this film is the stunning production design of the gothic mansion inside which most of the story is set and which Bhansali enhances via beautifully framed shots using light and shadow. Most of the interior shots are dark but punctuated by dramatic bright colours on the walls. The colour scheme also extends to the choice of costumes for Aishwarya Rai - always dressed in stark black but with flowing red scarves and scarlet lips giving her drab character an underlying sexual tension. Bhansali's film, inspired by Alejandro Amenábar's "Mar adentro", is set in Goa glimpses of which we see through the remarkable camerawork of Sudeep Chatterjee. A once great magician (Hrithik Roshan) has been bedridden for the past 14-years after suffering an accident that made him a paraplegic and at the mercy of the tender care provided by a prim nurse (Aishwarya Rai). He has spent the years writing books and hosting a popular radio show from his bed. When he is informed that his internal organs are beginning to fail he requests his best friend and lawyer (Shernaz Patel) to file a petition in court for euthanasia causing great consternation for those close to him - the nurse, his mother (Nafisa Ali) and his protege (Aditya Roy Kapoor). Roshan, known for his on-screen dancing and lithe body always in constant motion, is strictly confined to a bed or a wheelchair in the film with just movements of his head. There are brief flashbacks to the past showing the magician on stage and the gut-wrenching sequence of the accident. Despite the story's dark subject matter the film celebrates life and has humour, song and dance - an impromptu number that allows Aishwariya, also a great dancer, to perform a Spanish number. Underrated film failed at the boxoffice but won Filmfare nominations for Bhansali's inspired direction and for the performances by Hrithik and Aishwariya.
but will soon. I liked the film. Franciosi is very good.