Lost in fiction

 

The Lost City of Z (2016)

Directed by James Gray this film based on the book of the same name stars Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller and Tom Holland. We follow the expeditions of historical figure Percy Fawcett in the Amazon jungle.

Clearly this film wishes it was directed by Terrance Malick but is nowhere near that poetic. The plot never lets history get in the way of it's own interests making this more fiction than fact by the looks of it. All in all a bit of a damp squib.

2/5

Charge back

 

English Lancers Charging (1900)

Directed by James H. White this is an early short film. A group of lancers charge a position defender by Boers.

Unfortunately the image quality is so bad in the version I saw it is near impossible to tell what is going on here. I assume this is a recreation, if so I am not sure what we are even getting out of this. Not really worth seeking out.

1/5

Desperately lacking

 

The Desperate Hour (2021)

Directed by Philip Noyce this film stars Naomi Watts. A woman is out running in the woods when her son's school is locked down because of a shooting incident.

As a piece of tension cinema this film is not too bad however it does not have anything interesting to say on the underlying issues. Towards the end I found some of the plot twists unrealistic and unbelievable. Unfortunately the film heads straight for the cheesy ending over something with weight.

2/5

Shocking

 

Woman at War (2018)

Directed by Benedikt Erlingsson this film stars Halldora Geirharosdottir in two roles. A woman's eco terrorism gets in the way of her plans to adopt.

I found this to be an enjoyable, off beat film. The pace of this film might be a little slow for some but it is a good watch with some stunning landscapes. Maybe not as deep as it could be, still worth watching though.

4/5

Moving

 

Ballett 16 (1984)

Directed by Peter Tscherkassky this short film stars Regina Baumgart. A woman dances in front of the camera.

Not one for those with photosensitivity this film uses special effects to achieve an usual study of movement. I really enjoyed the look of the film even if there is not much to it. An interesting experiment in what you can achieve.

4/5

Drifting through the memories

 

The Neon Bible (1995)

Directed by Terence Davis this film based on the novel of the same name stars Jacob Tierney, Gena Rowlands and Diana Scarwid. A teenage boy grows up in 1940s Georgia.

This film drifts in and out of a boys life without much drive or clarity. If you are big into art house style films this might be for you, otherwise it is a tiny bit oblique. I found the protagonist far too passive for this film to work, he is mostly an observer rather than a participant.

2/5

Leaves you cross

 

The Cassandra Crossing (1976)

Directed by George Pan Cosmatos this film stars Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Ava Gardner, Martin Sheen and Burt Lancaster. A train travelling across Europe carries a man infected with a deadly plague.

Starting with a beautiful shot and the promise of a star studied cast this film quickly turns out to be dire. Even a Tom Mankiewicz rewrite can not save the script which is consistently terrible. Other than the opening shot I am not sure what redeeming features this film really has.

1/5

The kid and his kid

 

Old Henry (2021)

Written & directed by Potsy Ponciroli this film stars Tim Blake Nelson, Scott Haze, Gavin Lewis and Stephen Dorff. A farmer and his son find a man with a gunshot wound who has a satchel full of cash.

There is nothing massively original about this western but it is still well made. There are some nice shots of the grasslands and good performances. The script has a gentle touch as well as a clear love for the mythos of the old west.

4/5

A Rear Blow Up

 

Kimi (2022)

Directed by Steven Soderbergh this film stars Zoe Kravitz, Byron Bowers and Rita Wilson. A woman who works for a tech company hears a murder recorded on one of their devices.

Not overly original this film mixes together elements of Rear Window and The Blow Up in a post covid world. What this film really lacks for a thriller is uncertainty and paranoia, especially when it comes to the police given the protagonist's back story. Decently made but never fulfilling it's potential unfortunately.

3/5

The Purge: Ethnic Cleansing

 

The Forever Purge (2021)

Directed by Everardo Gout this 5^th film in the series stars Ana de la Reguera, Tenoch Huerta and Josh Lucas. The purge is back but this time no one wants to stop.

In attempting to get yet another film out of the franchise the people behind the purge are back in charge despite being removed from power in a previous film. The plot is heavy handed and not entirely logically consistent. All in all I really do not think we needed another purge film even if this one means well.

2/5

Not so sweet really

 

Life is Sweet (1990)

Directed by Mike Leigh this film stars Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Clair Skinner, Jane Horrocks and Timothy Spall. We follow a family over a week in the summer.

I found this film to be a bit lacking in subtlety, both in the script and the acting. It is not until right near the end we get some of the hard hitting drama we might expect from Mike Leigh. Definitely not my favourite of the director's work.

2/5

Counter to this being shot

 

Shot/Countershot (1987)

Directed by Peter Tscherkassky this is a short film. We see a cowboy raise and fire his gun then get shot himself.

There is barely anything to this film both in run time and concept. At around ten seconds long if you blink you will miss the whole thing. I am not sure the simple joke on offer here is really enough to justify this as a short film.

2/5

As expected

 

Dream Horse (2020)

Directed by Euros Lyn this film based on real events stars Toni Collette and Damian Lewis. People from a small village in the Welsh valleys come together to fund a race horse.

As you might expect this is the usual feel good sentimental type film that British cinema seems dependent on turning out. The plot appears to stick largely to true events although I expect it over eggs them in places. To my great surprise the cast all manage to avoid doing bad welsh accents.

3/5

Not exactly killer

 

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot (2018)

Written & directed by Robert D. Krzykowski this film stars Sam Elliot, Aidan Turner and Caitlin FitzGerald. In 1987 an old man reflects on his life and is convinced to do one last job.

Much more considered and melancholy than you would expect for this kind of genre piece this is an enjoyable film. I expected this film to be much more about the hunt for the bigfoot but it still works. Well worth a watch for something different.

3/5

Book of disappointment

 

Book of Love (2022)

Directed by Analeine Cal y Mayor this film stars Sam Calflin and Veronica Echegui. A British novelist finds his book is popular in Mexico because his translator has rewritten it.

I can see what they are trying to do with this film but it falls horribly flat. Ironically with a serious re-write I think you could salvage something of interest from this film if you chuck out most of the script as is. All in all a bit of a disaster.

2/5

The what now?

 

Akrobatisches Potourri (1895)

Directed by Max Skladanowsky this is an early short film featuring the Grunato family. Eight people perform a balancing act.

This film is so short you can miss it if you blink. Between the shortness of the film and the low quality of the surviving image there is not much to see here, it is difficult to make out what is happening. Not one of the better examples of film of the period.

2/5

Space Jam: Tron

 

Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021)

Directed by Malcolm D. Lee this film stars LeBron James, Don Cheadle and Cedric Joe. Basketball star LeBron James and his son end up inside the Warner Brothers server and have to find a way out.

To get the obvious out of the way this is not as good as the original, it lacks some of the charm and is pretty heavy handed with the message. I thought a lot of the cross promotion of other WB properties involved some really odd choices that just would not fit with the age of the target audience for this film. Despite all the flaws the film has I did still enjoy parts of it, apparently making me the only person in the world to do so.

2/5

Not well staged

 

Stage to Thunder Rock (1964)

Directed by William F. Claxton this film stars Barry Sullivan, Marilyn Maxwell and Scott Brady. In his last job before retirement a sheriff tries to bring in a man wanted for bank robbery.

For an eighty minute western this film sets up a lot of moving parts, most of which do not really go anywhere. This is a pretty average b movie that never builds on the tension of the situation properly. Some of the casting is also a bit suspect with regards to the age of the actors for the rolls they have.

2/5

All about the shadow

 

Der Jongleur (1895)

Directed by Max Skladanowsky this short film features Sylvester Schaffer Sr. A man juggles some balls and his hat.

This is a very simple film that barely runs more than ten seconds but the inclusion of the subjects shadow really adds some charm to the film. While the juggling is not that impressive compared to some acts it still provides a decent subject. A fun little short.

3/5

More brimstone than tombstone

 

Hellfire (1949)

Directed by R. G. Springsteen this film stars Wild Bill Elliott, Marie Windsor and Forrest Tucker. A gambler promises a dying preacher who saved his life that he will build him a church.

I really do not like preachy films but the tone of this one is not too over bearing. The plot is pretty much your standard western with a love triangle, nothing to be surprised about here. For what it is this is a fairly decent genre piece.

3/5

The Irish Alien

 

Isolation (2005)

Written & directed by Billy O'Brien this film stars John Lynch, Ruth Negga, Sean Harris and Essie Davis. An experiment on cattle in a rural Irish farm goes horribly wrong.

As Alien knock offs go this is a decent one in an unusual location. There is nothing new or deep to the plot but it functions as a basic horror film fairly well. The highlight of the film is seeing a young Ruth Negga, otherwise it is not that memorable.

3/5

Not worth a slice

 

The Birthday Cake (2021)

Directed by Jimmy Giannopoulos this film stars Shiloh Fernandez, Val Kilmer, Lorraine Bracco and Ewan McGregor. A young man in an Italian-American crime family takes a cake to the dinner party to mark the anniversary of his father's death.

Unfortunately this film is disappointing on many levels. The protagonist is incredibly passive right up to the end of the film and there are times when the dialogue is incomprehensible. It is hard to find anything worth salvaging out of this film which is really sad given the decent cast.

1/5

Move your feet

 

Kamarinskaja (1895)

Directed by Max Skladanowsky this is an early short film. We see three dancers in traditional clothes doing a Russian folk dance.

There is not a huge amount to this film, like many other short ones of the period. The dancing is entertaining enough even if we do not see a huge amount of it. A fun little short.

3/5

Your usual body swap stuff

 

Freaky (2020)

Directed by Christopher Landon this film stars Vince Vaughn and Kathryn Newton. A high school girl and a serial killer get body swapped on Friday the 13^th.

There are times when this film hints at having some interesting social, gender or genre commentary but it never really follows through and delivers. I found the script takes too long to get started, has an unnecessary five minutes at the end and never really gives any details on the serial killer. Some fun is definitely had here even if this does feel like a missed opportunity.

2/5

They forgot the back part

 

To Hell and Back (1955)

Directed by Jesse Hibbs this film based on the book of the same name stars Audie Murphy as himself. A young man from a poor background signs up for the Army in WW2 and becomes the US's most decorated soldier.

Unfortunately the fascinating story of Audie Murphy is made on the cheap here, the battle scenes pretty obviously being filmed in the US. The other negative is that the film glosses over the struggles Murphy had following the war with what we would now call PTSD. There is a great film about Murphy out there somewhere, sadly this is not it.

2/5

Golden movement

 

Komisches Reck (1895)

Directed by Max Skladanowsky this is an early short film. We see two people doing a nice little stunt.

Very simple in terms of content but full of movement and action. A decently made film for the period compared to a lot of the static films of the time. Pretty impressive honestly.

4/5

No loud clap

 

Thunder Bay (1953)

Directed by Anthony Mann this film stars James Steward, Joanne Dru, Gilbert Roland and Dan Duryea. Two men want to start drilling for oil in shrimping waters off the coast of Louisiana.

One of many collaborations between Stewart and Mann this is not the most memorable of the bunch. This is a fairly average film that trundles through predictable plot points and an inevitable conclusion. Decent enough but not worth seeking out.

3/5

One shot of lots of shots

 

One Shot (2021)

Written & directed by James Nunn this film stars Scott Adkins, Ashley Greene and Ryan Phillippe. A CIA black site is attacked by terrorists as agents try to get time sensitive intel from a detainee.

This film does not have much going for it other than the gimmick of appearing to be a single 95 minute shot. It is impressive to use such a gimmick for an action film but the plot is still an unoriginal b-movie that is not very believable. A nice effort if nothing more than that.

3/5