The Launch (2023)
Directed by KK Apple this film stars Alyssa Limperis, Kate Sisk and Tien Tran. A recreation of the Windows95 launch with a gender flipped cast.
This short does a decent job of capturing the onstage awkwardness of the Windows95 launch. I am not sure what the entire point is but this is certainly a fun watch. If you enjoy the slightly bizarre then this is one for you.
3/5
Biskra : une noce indigene (1903)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. People ride camels down the street.
Fairly entertaining foreground action with an average back drop. Nice to see some other parts of the world captured in the Lumiere catalogue. Decent street scene.
3/5
Deloping (2022)
Directed by Jon Olav Stokke this film stars Lola-Rose Maxwell and Eleanor Morton. In 1792 two women have a duel because “that is what the men do”.
Some of the dialogue on this short could definitely do with tightening up. The premise is fine, the execution is a bit on the weak side. Something more fitting of a youtube short than a short film in my opinion.
2/5
Red Right Hand (2024)
Directed by Ian & Eshom Nelms this film stars Orlando Bloom, Andie MacDowell and Scott Haze. A man trying to get away from his criminal past is drawn back into the criminal world to protect his family.
Nothing much is original here, this is a fairly familiar crime piece. Orlando Bloom is fairly unrecognisable as the protagonist, pulling off the rural American pretty well. Unless you are a big Bloom fan this one does not do much to stand out.
3/5
Knights of the Zodiac (2023)
Directed by Tomek Baginski this film based on a manga stars Mackenyu, Famke Janssen, Madison Iseman and Sean Bean. In the near future Athena has been reborn into the body of a young girl and needs protecting by her knights.
Oh dear, what a load of rubbish this is. Once you get beyond the poor script the whole film is made on a budget that makes it look extremely cheap. Nothing at all to recommend this one on.
1/5
Asteroid City (2023)
Written & directed by Wes Anderson this film has a large cast including Jason Schwartzman and Scarlett Johansson. We see a television show about a play about first contact with aliens.
Mixing together the usual tone of his films this one will be a joy for Wes Anderson fans, do not bother if you hate his films as this one will do nothing to change your opinion. What exactly is going on here is hard to say but it is funny, entertaining and just a bit thought provoking. Hopefully Wes Anderson keeps making these types of films because no one else ever could get close.
4/5
Bruxelles, Sainte-Gudule (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. We see a street scene from Bruxelles.
A narrow street with a church at the end provides a really nice backdrop for this short. There is not a huge amount of foreground action, just enough that there are people moving about. A decent street film of the period.
3/5
Les tribulations d'une concierge (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio and Georges Hatot this is an early short film. A hotel worker is trolled by children.
Very simple in concept this is a surprisingly familiar set up for a comedy short. Pretty funny for what it is even if it does look a bit cheaply made. Not really that remarkable in the grand scheme of things.
3/5
Sackville Street, Dublin (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. We see a street scene from Dublin.
A very short snippet of a street scene. There is foreground action and an average back drop. Fine for what it is, nothing special.
3/5
Entree du courtege royal a l'Exposition (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. Members of the Swedish royal family arrive at an Exposition.
I watched a colourized version of this film and it really brought history to life. It is amazing what the addition of colour and sound does to these older films, it really elevates them. In the original form probably fairly mundane.
3/5
Dashcam (2021)
Directed by Rob Savage this film stars Annie Hardy, Amer Chadha-Patel and Angela Enahoro. A woman who livestreams her life travels to the UK during the pandemic.
Found footage films with unlikeable protagonists are a tough sell. By about two thirds into this film it is hard to tell what is going on, as I no longer cared though that did not really matter. Not worth seeking out.
1/5
Dangerous Waters (2023)
Directed by John Barr this film stars Odeya Rush, Eric Dane, Saffron Burrows and Ray Liotta. A 19 year old girl goes on a sailing holiday with her mother and her mother's new boyfriend.
A bit predictable and treading over fairly familiar ground this is still a decent enough genre piece. No this one will never set the world alight but Odeya Rush does enough to carry the film. You can not help wondering if Ray Liotta's character would have had a larger part to play were it not for the actor's unfortunate death during filming.
3/5
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)
Directed by Christopher McQuarri this sequel star Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and Rebecca Ferguson. A literal key is the key to unlocking a rogue AI.
By this point the franchise has gotten pretty tired and the plot of this one is a load of nonsense. There are not even really enough big stunts to carry the film. Something of a disappointment really.
2/5
Sunless (2023)
Directed by Boris Vessenlinov this film stars Ben Holtzmuller and Erik Scilley. Two men on a small submarine descend to a dangerous depth.
Submarines are always a good basis for taught drama and this short is fairly decent in that regard. There is no a huge amount to this one given the eight minute run time however it still captures a human moment at the end. Maybe not as scary as it could be given the ending.
3/5
The Businessman (2022)
Directed by Nathan Ginter this short film stars Steven Gamble and Liviya Meyers. A school girl meets a businessman in the woods.
No doubt this short is very odd with some suitably creepy moments. I am not entirely sure what the thrust of the piece is even if it is entertaining. Smarter minds than mine may get more out of this.
3/5
The Adoration of the Magi (1898)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. Part one of Promio's version of the pasion play.
A pretty simple scene involving the three kings at the birth of Jesus. There is not a lot of action here, the staging is at least decent. Nothing remarkable.
3/5
Liverpool, panorama pris du chemin de fer electrique, III (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. We see a shot of Liverpool's lumber yards and docks.
The foreground detail is pretty interesting in this one and it has to be to make up for the blown out sky as background. Decent moving shot from a train. A pretty average genre piece.
3/5
Desperation Road (2023)
Directed by Nadine Crocker this film based on the novel of the same name stars Garrett Hedlund, Willa Fitzgerald and Mel Gibson. A man just out of prison helps a young woman and her daughter.
Very familiar in content the film lumbers on to a fairly predictable conclusion. I suppose the film is mostly decent it just lacks originality. A bit forgettable in the end.
3/5
Jules and Jim (1962)
Directed by Francois Truffaut this film stars Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner and Henri Serre. Two friends compete for the love of the same woman.
Of all the things I expected from French New Wave this was not really it. Certainly the central story is very French however the direction is not very New Wave, the film becomes more conventional the longer it goes on. The reputation of this film does surprise me a little even if there is nothing really wrong with it.
3/5
The Bricklayer (2024)
Directed by Renny Harlin this film based on the novel of the same name stars Aaron Eckhart and Nina Dobrev. A former CIA agent helps hunt down one of his former assets.
Clearly this wants to be a Tom Cruise film without the budget or talent that comes along with that. The plot makes little sense and the action sequences are not that impressive. Aaron Eckhart attempts to growl his way through the whole film which is not great either.
2/5
Liverpool. Panorama pris du chemin de fer electrique, II (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. We see a shot of some of the docks of the city of Liverpool.
Unfortunately this one is pretty blown out, it is not easy to make out much in portions of it. Not the best in the series. I wouldn't seek this one out.
2/5
Long Shot (2019)
Directed by Jonathan Levine this film stars Seth Rogan and Charlize Theron. The US Secretary of State hires an unemployed journalist she used to baby sit to be her speech writer.
As with most rom-coms this one is fairly predictable in terms of plot. There are some decent moments of humour but nothing amazing. In places the plot definitely pushes the bounds of belief, if you can over look that you will be fine.
3/5
Ben is Back (2018)
Directed by Peter Hedges this film stars Julia Roberts and Lucas Hedges. A young addict in recovery returns unexpectedly to visit his family for Christmas.
As addiction films go this one is fine but covers a lot of familiar ground. There is nothing especially new or impressive here. A solid genre effort, nothing more.
3/5
Le char funebre (1901)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. A short clip from the funeral parade of Queen Victoria.
The shot is taken from a decent angle, good height to capture the action. Sadly only a small snippet of a historic event. Pretty decent for what it is.
3/5
57 Seconds (2023)
Directed by Rusty Cundieff this film stars Josh Hutcherson, Morgan Freeman, Greg Germann and Lovie Simone. A blogger finds a ring that can take him back in time 57 seconds.
I can only assume all the budget of this film went on the cast because it looks super cheap. The script is in no way good either, stumbling through some sci-fi claptrap. Not at all worth watching.
1/5
Hypnotic (2023)
Directed by Robert Rodriguez this film stars Ben Affleck, Alice Braga and William Fichtner. A police detective attends a bank robbery seemingly connected to his missing daughter.
Clearly this film wants to be some sort of Inception meets Firestarter type thing and despite all the talent involved it falls far short. There are X-Files episodes that do this concept better. Maybe with some major rewrites of the script you could get something decent out of this.
2/5
Insidious: The Red Door (2023)
Directed by star Patrick Wilson this film also features Ty Simpkins and Rose Byrne. A man and his son heading to college struggle with missing memories.
When you come into the third film in a series having seen none of the previous entries things are always going to be a struggle. By the end of the film I had lost all interest in what was going on. There are some scary moments but my engagement with the story was pretty low by that point.
2/5
Bethleem, une place (1897)
Directed by Alexandre Promio this is an early short film. A street scene from the Biblically famous town of Bethlehem.
A bunch of people scramble over something unseen, the implication being they are beggars fighting for alms dropped by the film makers. The implication of the action leaves something of a bad taste, making the poor perform for our entertainment. Not my preferred of the Lumiere catalogue.
2/5
Homeward (2019)
Directed by Nariman Aliev this film stars Akhtem Seitablaev and Remzi Bilyalov. A Crimean Tatar and his son attempt to take his other son home to be buried.
An interesting look at the cultural differences in the Ukraine and the problems facing people after the annexation of Crimea by Russia. Clearly the film makers did not know worse was to come for Ukraine but this is still a good look at the state of the nation and the people in it. Definitely worth seeking out.
4/5
