Merry awards season, one and all. Preparations of excitement, glee and eye-rolling apathy are well under way. We’ve had the Golden Globes and Baftas and today, we’ll have the Oscars – the most confusingly tiresome yet still engrossing film event of the year. While I’m too old to watch the Oscars (I’ve always been too … Continue reading
Category Archives: Reviews
Film reviews
LFF 2016 Round-up: Part 3
BORN IN FLAMES (1983)/ Dir. Lizzie Borden (US) PREVENGE (2016)/ Dir. Alice Lowe (UK) Alice Lowe – how I do covet a friendship with thee. What mind must a person have who writes, directs and stars in a luridly violent revenge horror/commentary on antenatal depression, with such merciless black humour and glee? The mind of … Continue reading
LFF 2016 Round-up: PART 2
LOST IN PARIS (2016/2014)/ Dir. Dominique Abel, Fiona Gordon (France) MANCHESTER BY THE SEA (2016)/Dir. Kenneth Lonergan (US) One of the more anticipated films on my list, MANCHESTER BY THE SEA will almost certainly quietly asserts itself in many a year-end best films list. Kenneth Lonergan, a meastro of slice-of-life film and observing the ‘ordinary’, … Continue reading
The Girl With All The Gifts
Nothing against zombies but they’re not usually my cup of tea. If I respect your tastes then I’m up for trying new things – cuture-wise. That is how I came across the novel by Mike Carey or (M.R. Carey is his professional signature). I was sold on the existential coming-of-age tale of a young … Continue reading
When a film you think you’d like is REALLY problematic? BLACK
Compared to other social commentary films like LA HAINE, BLACK is a love story set against the violent world of urban warfare of young second generation immigrants – the 1080s of Moroccan descent and the Black Bronx, presumably of Congolese descent. Both groups alienated by the racism and prejudice in language and skin colour of … Continue reading
Cannes Coverage: After Love
(There currently isn’t an official trailer – that’s how exclusive this film is.) Saving my in-depth analysis for my favourite film that I saw at Cannes. I need to stress that there were many great films that I didn’t get to see – this was the best of what I saw. AFTER LOVE for me … Continue reading
New Must-sees: Love & Friendship, Mustang
https://youtu.be/KhvyupqNhL8 I could rightly be called a charlatan in making this admission but do know I aim to rectify this current state in the immediate future – I am loathed to admit that I have never seen a Walt Stillman film. After LOVE & FRIENDSHIP, this will soon change. Thoroughly charming in every way, … Continue reading
A RAGE IN HARLEM (1991)
Based on the 1957 crime-noir novel by Chester Himes, this 1991 film adaptation is a strange beast, a sort of R-rated BUGSY MALONE. While I wasn’t expecting Native Son, I wasn’t anticipating so much slapstick which I think tries to reflect the darkly comic absurdity of its source material (which I’ve yet to read), if … Continue reading
The Oscars 2016
There are but a few certainties in life – taxes, death and The Oscars inciting indignant rage amongst the masses. 2016 seems to be the year of particularly intense debate. Personally inspiring a spectrum of opinion from”about bloody time” to “oh wait, the point’s been missed again”. Movements such as #Oscarssowhite, have once again been … Continue reading
BAFTAS 2016
The Baftas are on tonight! And I feel a little bit warmer towards them than I do the Oscars (I will explain my reasoning next week), so here’s a quick round-up of nominations. I’ve selected in Pink who MIGHT win and GREEN for who I would like to win because it’s all about me and … Continue reading