Trying to do too much with too little

Free State of Jones (2016)

Directed by Gary Ross this film inspired by real events stars Mattheew McConaughey, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mahershala Ali and Keri Russell. During the US Civil War deserters from the Confederate army join escaped slaves in fighting back against the Confederacy.

Mixing fact with fiction it is a little hard to pin down this film and it is not helped by superfluous scenes set nearly 80 years after the fact. While this is not a terrible watch I can see why it failed to connect at the box office despite it's unusual subject matter. Generally the direction and acting are decent but the script probably needed a little more polish.

3/5

To live and work on the river

Douro, Faina Fluvial (1931)

Directed by Manoel de Oliveira this is a silent era documentary. We see life on the Douro river through labour and industry.

Starting out showing a somewhat pre-industrial ideal we see technology and increased hardship seep into the lives of people. Not the deepest documentary in my opinion this is still an interesting watch. Clearly influenced by similar city symphony films this is a decent watch.

3/5

Commanding colour

La Cucaracha (1934)

Directed by Lloyd Corrigan this film stars Steffi Duna, Don Alvarado and Paul Porcasi. A big shot in the entertainment business comes to evaluate a dancer at a small club.

One of the earliest uses of Technicolor this film is a visual treat, making really great use of the new technology. The plot is nothing to write home about but the colours and composition more than make up for that. It seems some of the praise has to go to Robert Edmond Jones who designed the film rather than it all falling on the director but whatever the case I really recommend this film.

4/5

Not peak Elba or Winslet

The Mountain Between Us (2017)

Directed by Hany Abu-Assad this film based on the novel of the same name stars Kate Winsley, Idris Elba and a dog. Following a plane crash in the mountains in winter a journalist and a doctor try to survive.

Mixing a survival story with a love story his film does neither well and just left me disappointed. The plot is far too obviously constructed with both story and character beats so heavy handed as to be off putting. Given the two great actors in the cast I thought this film was a real let down.

2/5

Nice sets, shame about the rest

Uncle Tom's Cabin (1903)

Directed by Edwin S. Porter this film is based on the novel of the same name. A slave refuses to escape with others when given the chance and we follow his fate.

This is not the easiest silent film to follow without prior knowledge of it's source material and it also brings with it the source material's racial baggage as well as adding in some of it's own by using blackface. With all that being said the film actually has some really nice back drops and good production values for such an early film. It's hard to balance out the many negatives against the positive this film has but it is certainly of historical note if nothing else.

3/5

Found and jazz

Trade Tattoo (1937)

Directed by Len Lye this is an experimental short film. Out take footage from documentaries is used to build a swirling, action packed piece.

Exploring editing and manipulating found footage this is a pretty interesting early film. We see a variety of bits of trade or industry jazzed up to give it some real energy. Not the deepest film you will ever see but entertaining none the less.

3/5

A ballet of some type

Ballet Mecanique (1924)

Directed by Dudley Murphy and star Fernand Leger this film also features Kiki of Montparnasse. We see a bunch of weird images, shapes and people set to music.

I like the way that this short is edited to it's score but otherwise this is a bit too abstract for my taste. To my eye there does not appear to be a lot of context or connection between the images. One for those more into experimental cinema.

3/5

Fits like a glove

The Hand (1965)

Directed by Jiri Trnka this is an animated short film. A potter gets oppressed by a gloved hand as he tries to live a normal life.

Clearly this is about living under oppressive regimes and the film does a good job of exploring this idea through the slightly strange world it depicts. Well worth a watch if a little on the long side this is an interesting effort. The animation style is pretty cool and it's always nice to see some stop motion.

4/5

Weighed down

The Lead Shoes (1949)

Directed by Sidney Peterson this is an experimental art film. We see a woman, a diver and a bunch of other odd stuff.

I will be honest this one was far too out there for me. The on screen events were so disjoint it was really hard for me to keep track of what was going on at all. Certainly some may enjoy this film but it's requires an acquired taste.

2/5

Cuban propaganda and conspiracy

LBJ (1968)

Directed by Santiago Alvarez this is a found footage documentary. A montage of American political events and Lyndon B. Johnson are the subject matter of this piece.

Essentially this is a propaganda piece painting it's subject as behind a big old conspiracy. Cutting against the grain of what we know on LBJ and relying on conspiracy theory the content of this film isn't up to much in my opinion. Some of the editing is nice but it's a little whacky for my taste.

2/5

Ragna-rocking

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Directed by Taika Waititi this super hero sequel stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum and Tessa Thompson. Odin's death and the arrival of Hela, older sister to Thor and Loki, means a big shake up for Asgard.

Finally we get a decent Thor film. Removing the character from Earth was the best thing the franchise could have done and it really gives both the character and world he lives in a chance to shine. Maybe following the lead of Guardians of the Galaxy slightly this is a fun filled romp that while not exactly thoughtful is supremely entertaining. I enjoyed this film so much more than the previous Thor films and I hope Taika Waititi gets to do a follow up.

4/5

The record

The Battle of Midway (1942)

Directed by John Ford this documentary has voice over from Henry Fonda, Verna Felton and Ray Millard. We follow American troops on the island of Midway in the lead up to the 1942 battle there.

Clearly this is propaganda but it captures some impressive images from a pivotal point in history. While the film is not a blow by blow account of the battle it does show a very human side to war, focusing on the people rather than events. Undoubtedly an important historical record and an interesting watch.

4/5

Damn ghosts

Au Secours! (1924)

Directed by Abel Gance this film stars Max Linder, Gaston Modot, Jean Toulout and Gina Palerme. Fresh from getting married Max heads out to meet up with his buddies at a club who bet him he cannot spend an hour in a haunted castle.

Taking a simple premise this film messes around with some fun stuff to create a pretty charming comedy. There is plenty to enjoy here if not a lot to think about. Generally well made this film is a good example of silent comedy as you would expect from two of the big names of the era.

4/5

Dealing with the end

Andrei Svislotskiy (1991)

Directed by Igor Kovalyov this is an animated short film. We see the strange life of a master and his two servants.

It is hard not to view this film in the context of the large change about to come in Russia at the time the film was made. The weird nature of events depicted makes it hard to fully pin down what is going on in the film on any level but it's certainly something. While the animation style is not especially to my taste this is not a bad watch.

3/5

Unseen enemy

An Unseen Enemy (1912)

Directed by D. W. Griffith this film stars Lillian Gish, Dorothy Gish, Elmer Booth and Robert Harron. Two sisters are held at gun point as thieves try to steal their family money.

Taking a simplistic plot this is a good example of what Griffith does well with early cinema, setting up a good climatic end race. Not exactly a stand out piece otherwise this is still a decent watch. It also helps this film does not come with the same baggage as some of Griffith's other films.

3/5

The slapstick of the shrew

The Taming of the Shrew (1908)

Directed by D. W. Griffith this film based on the play of the same name stars Florence Lawrence, Arthur V. Johnson, Linda Arvidson and Harry Solter. A man seeks to marry a woman with a reputation for a bad attitude.

More slapstick than Shakespeare this is not the easiest adaptation to follow and it's on the short side. The title cards are not overly illuminating either so basically all you have here are a couple of scenes of slapstick. In the end this is not one of the early films I would recommend.

2/5

Tripping balls yo

Pig: The Dam Keeper Poems (2017)

Directed by Erick Oh this is an animated short film. A pig goes on a picnic and proceeds to go on a strange trip.

I'm not really sure what this short is getting at but it's certainly interesting and has a charming style. The images are cute but the content probably not for younger children. A decent little watch over all.

3/5

Italy, where they don't mind that sort of thing

The Wilde Wedding (2017)

Written & directed by Damian Harris this film stars Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Patrick Stewart, Minnie Driver and Grace Van Patten. A large family gets together for a retired actress's latest wedding.

With a ton of acting talent on screen this film is sadly a disappointment and it's hard to know what drew so many people to the project. There are too many characters that do not get enough screen time for this film to really work. It's strange to say but a longer version may have worked better, as it is this film is a bit too thin and obvious.

2/5

For the love of title cards

The Squaw's Love (1911)

Directed by D. W. Griffith this film stars Mabel Normand. A misunderstanding between Native Americans in love.

Not the easiest to follow this silent film is at least not as racist as I feared it might be give the director. Still there is not much to recommend this one on. I suppose for the era the action is fairly well shot but the lack of titles really hammers the film.

2/5

The side you don't usually see

More (2017)

Directed by Onur Saylak this film stars Hayat Van Eck, Ahmet Mumtaz Taylan and Turgut Tuncalp. A 14 year old boy with dreams of leaving his small village to go to science school in Istanbul works for his father trafficking refuges through Turkey.

It is some what unusual to see a film from the point of view of the people smuggling refugees rather than from the point of view of the refugees but this is still an interesting film. The plot shows how the protagonist descends into cruelty and how the cycle starts to repeat itself. There are decent performances and good direction.

4/5

Left wondering

Professor Martson and the Wonder Women (2017)

Written & directed by Angela Robinson this film based on real events stars Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall and Bella Heathcote. A psychology professor and his wife begin a relationship with one of his students, also he creates Wonder Woman.

Enjoyable as this film is it does unfortunately belabour it's points rather heavily at times when a softer hand might have been better. Certainly the psycho-sexual origins of the Wonder Woman character are interesting but the Wonder Woman character seems to be an after thought at times. There are good performances from the cast but Luke Evans in particular does not seem to fit the look and age of his role.

3/5

Sparkle sparkle

Behind the Candelabra (2013)

Directed by Steven Soderbergh this film based on real events stars Matt Damon and Michael Douglas. In 1977 a young man meets Las Vegas performer Liberace and becomes his live in lover.

Not knowing anything about Liberace before watching this film was not a hindrance and while the film is really interesting I'm not sure it ever gets to the core of how Liberace became Liberace. We only see Liberace in his twilight years and the script also covers over the protagonists problems later in life. There are good performances from the stars but as a biopic I wanted a little more from this film.

3/5

Not a magic ring

The Ring and the Rajah (1914)

Directed by Harold M. Shaw this film stars Edna Fulgrath, Arthur Holmes-Gore, Vincent Clive and Edward O'Neill. Invited to visit England a Rajah falls in love with his host's betrothed and he seeks to get his rival out the way.

Not exactly progressive in it's plot this film will undoubtedly raise eyebrows for the modern viewer. Well made for the period and surviving in a pretty good quality version unfortunately the content is just a bit too questionable. Hard to recommend really.

2/5

Just another day

Life Cycles (2017)

Directed by Ross Hogg this is an animated short film. We see the daily repetition of one man's life over the course of several days.

I really liked the way this film contrasted the hum drum modern existence with the voice of current news in the background. The sensationalised events from around the world versus the banal existence most of us lead. There is a nice art style to the animation as well.

4/5

Nearly as stupid as destroying the planet

Geostorm (2017)

Directed by Dean Devlin this film stars Gerald Butler, Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Ed Harris, Andy Garcia and Alexanda Maria Lara. In the near future a satellite system built to control the weather is malfunctioning.

Best leave your brain else where before watching this film, it's a disaster-thriller with a side serving of stupid. At times the script is so unsubtle as to beat you over the head with it's attempted character moments. Unfortunately this is one of those films where the paint by numbers parts are just too obvious.

2/5

Different but still the same

Nice Coloured Girls (1987)

Written and directed by Tracey Moffatt this is a short film from Australia. We see three young Aboriginal women on a night out in Sydney.

I really liked the way this film compares the way Aboriginal women are treated by men both in the present and historically. Using a mix of narrative voices, some historical, the film really brings different time periods to life in a smart way. Well made an with interesting subject matter this is well worth a watch.

4/5

Not smooth

Barracuda (2017)

Directed by Julia Halperin & Jason Cortlund this film stars Allison Tolman, Sophie Ried, Luis Bordonada and JoBeth Williams. An English woman travels to Austin, Texas and introduces herself to the woman she claims is her half sister.

Certainly something of an odd film I am not sure this piece ever clearly hits a genre. I enjoyed the film as an exploration of an awkward situation but it never took off as a thriller. There are decent performances and direction but nothing amazing.

3/5

11 Cloverfield lame

Alien Invasion: S.U.M.1 (2017)

Written & directed by Christian Pasquariello this film stars Iwan Rheon, Andre Hennicke and Rainer Werner. In the near future following a terrible war with alien invaders a soldier is sent on his own to a guard tower.

Unfortunately this film is cheaply made and poorly thought out. The final reveal completely undercuts any shot the film has at having a psychological level. There is something in the premise to this film but I would skip this effort.

1/5

Italian Apricot

Call Me by Your Name (2017)

Directed by Luca Guadagnino this film based on the novel of the same name stars Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer. In Italy in 1983 a 17 year old boy explores his sexuality over the summer vacation and experiences romantic love for the first time.

Certainly this film captures something of summer holidays and coming of age experiences, that is beyond question. For some the plot is going to be just a little too gentle and maybe a bit too much of an upper class fantasy. In general this is a really well made film with some stunning shots of Northern Italy.

4/5

More shart than heart

The Zulu's Heart (1908)

Written & directed by D. W. Griffith this film stars Charles Inslee, George Gebhardt, Florence Lawrence and Gladys Egan. Zulu's capture a white woman and her daughter.

Oh boy, Griffith and another suspect subject. This film involves a lot of black face and the usual Griffith racism. Not even showing the director's flair for dramatic editing this is one to skip.

1/5

Flat

Flatliners (2017)

Directed by Niels Arden Oplev this remake stars Ellen Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Slemons. Idiot student doctors play with dying and end up troubled by their past guilt.

If I have seen the original version of this film I don't remember anything about it so I can't compare but there is not much of value going on in this film. The characters in the film seem hell bent on ignoring any sane line of thought which is a bit concerning given their profession. I suppose the special effects are not too bad but it's hard to recommend this film on much.

2/5