Conjurer Making Ten Hats in Sixty Seconds (1896)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A man flips material round to make different styles of hats.
Unfortunately this one only survives as a fragment and not in good quality. It is a little hard to make out what is going on really. Not worth seeking out.
2/5
The Lilliputian Minuet (1905)
Directed by George Melies this is an early short film. The magician has tiny people dance on a table.
Nicely staged and with good costumes this has the familiar Melies touch of the theatrical. Unfortunately the camera trick the film relies on is a little obvious. Alright for what it is, nothing special.
2/5
Jericho Ridge (2023)
Directed by Will Gilbey this film stars Nikki Amuka-Bird, Olivia Chenery, Philipp Christopher and Solly McLeod. A deputy gets trapped in the Sheriff's Office as it comes under attack from criminals.
As Rio Bravo remakes go this one is fine, nothing special. The film does not really do much to stand out against the large number of other films with the same plot. Fine for what it is if not memorable.
3/5
What Happens Later (2023)
Directed by star Meg Ryan this film based on a play also stars David Duchovny. Two former lovers find themselves trapped together in the same small airport during a snow storm.
As attempts to bring back the rom com genre go this one is pretty tepid. The leads lack chemistry to carry the piece and the script is no great shakes. Not worth seeking out even if you are a big fan of either of the leads.
2/5
Robin and the Hoods (2024)
Directed by Phil Hawkins this film stars Darcey Ewart, Naomie Harries and Gwendoline Christie. A bunch of NIMBY kids attempt to protect their play area from development.
Attempting to do what The Boy Who Would Be King did for King Arthur to Robin Hood this film is not that good. Clearly the film is aimed at kids and fairly sloppily written. Trying to mix imagination and reality does not add enough charm to carry this film and Naomie Harries over acts to the point of distraction.
2/5
The Magic Dice (1905)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A man does a magic trick involving a large die.
Mixing together camera and stage tricks this contains a lot of familiar Melies elements. Both the costumes and staging are very theatrical. A fun, well made short if not overly impressive.
3/5
A Serpentine Dance (1896)
Directed by Georges Melies this early short film likely features Loie Fuller. A woman does a serpentine dance.
What sets this film apart from a number of similar films of the period is the use of colour tinting. I really enjoy the way the colour changes through out the film, doing so seamlessly. A cut above the rest.
3/5
Punch and Judy (1906)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. People sit and watch a Punch and Judy show.
Existing only as a fragment of a lost, longer film there is not much to this one. Because of the staging we can not really see what is going on with the puppet show. Not the best Melies effort.
2/5
Arrival of a Train (Joinville Station)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A train pulls into the station.
Unfortunately this film has a lot of stutter and distortion to it. You can just about make out what is going on but very little in the way of detail. Not the best surviving film of the period and similar in content to many others.
2/5
The Artist and the Dummy (1900)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A woman plays a simple joke on an artist.
Unlike a lot of the early Melies films this is based around a joke rather than camera tricks. There is some humour to the simple set up. The version I saw was not of the highest image quality.
3/5.
Uproar (2023)
Directed by Paul Middleditch & Hamish Bennett this film stars Julian Dennison, Rhys Darby and Minnie Driver. A mixed heritage teenager comes of age in 1980s New Zealand against the backdrop of protests against the visit of the South African rugby team.
Sad to say there is nothing terribly new here, some of the trappings may be a little unfamiliar but it is a very common coming of age type story. The racial tensions in New Zealand do add a little to the film, the problem is that nothing is very subtle here. A little bit less of a heavy hand might have helped.
3/5
Mean Girls (2024)
Directed by Samantha Jayne & Arturo Perez Jr. this film stars Angourie Rice, Renee Rapp and Auli'i Carvalho. A homeschooled girl moves to a high school and attempts to make friends.
Taking the familiar 2004 film this is just the same again with some songs slapped in. To be honest the conversion to a musical just slows things down and unnecessarily extends the length of the film. This new version really adds nothing to the original and comes off as weaker, the songs are bland and the cast unfortunately not as good as the original.
2/5
The Magician and the Imp (1902)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A magician does some tricks with the help of an imp.
A good collection of camera tricks that does not become repetitive. There is enough variety in characters here to keep things interesting. A decent example of films of the period.
3/5
Every Man His Own Cigar Lighter (1904)
Directed by Georges Melies this is a snippet of a short film. A man smokes a cigar.
Only eight seconds remain of this short so there is not much to it. We will never know how the cigar was lit. A shame it does not exist in the full form.
2/5
Eight Girls in a Barrel (1900)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. We see eight women step into a barrel and disappear.
Pretty simple and the same camera trick repeated eight times. Fine for what it is but it does get repetitive. There is better from Melies out there.
2/5
Dreyfus Meets His Wife at Rennes (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A man in prison is visited by his wife.
It takes forever for the titular wife to show up in this short film. Like many of the films in the Dreyfus series it also lacks a bit of context. Not the best.
2/5
Aporia (2023)
Written & directed by Jared Moshe this film stars Judy Greer, Edi Gathegi and Payman Maadi. A widow is offered the chance to use a time machine to bring her husband back from the dead.
A good look at what happens when you start to mess with the threads of fate, where do you stop? Low key science fiction films are something we lack and this is a great addition to the genre. Thought provoking and well made.
4/5
Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain (2023)
Directed by Paul Briganti this film stars Martin Herlihy, John Higgins and Ben Marshall. Three slacker friends in their mid 20s look for missing treasure.
I am not familiar with the comedy troupe behind this film and the plot is very middle of the road. There are a lot of familiar elements rehashed with some tepid humour. Might be one only for fans of the troupe.
2/5
The Nun II (2023)
Directed by Michael Chaves this sequel to a spin off stars Taissa Farmiga, Bonnie Aarons, Jonas Bloquet and Storm Reid. The evil demon nun returns.
If you enjoyed the previous film this is more of the same. The film has to get by on trying to build atmosphere as there is not really much to the script otherwise. One for fans of the series, not worth seeking out otherwise.
2/5
Devil's Island – Within the Palisade (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A man chills in an island prison.
The backdrop for the film is pretty impressive even if it is just painted on a sheet. As with the other films in this series it does lack a little context. There is also not much action in the short.
2/5
Landing of Dreyfus at Quiberon (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. Dreyfus lands at port and is escorted to land by marines.
Like many of the films in the Dreyfus series from Melies this one lacks context to know what is going on really. The set and costumes are decent as you would expect from Melies. Fine for what it is I suppose.
2/5
What is Home Without the Boarder (1900)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. Three men living upstairs rob their downstairs landlady.
A fairly silly little short. The shot is well constructed and the action fun. There is a decent set which serves as the backdrop of the film, we are verging on the limits of what you can do without moving the camera.
3/5
The Misfortunes of an Explorer (1900)
Directed by George Melies this is an early short film. Indiana Jones 1900 style.
Unfortunately this one only exists as a fragment. What we do have surviving looks to have an excellent set and costumes. A shame not more of this one is available.
2/5
Manodrome (2023)
Written & directed by John Trengove this film stars Jesse Eisenberg, Adrien Brody and Odessa Young. A troubled young man with a pregnant girlfriend falls under the sway of a group of men going their own way.
I was very impressed by Trengove's previous film, The Wound, however this one falls a little short. I am not sure the film ever really gets to grips with the toxic masculinity and the group depicted is the type that would operate more online than in real life. The ending was a little bit out of place for my taste as well even if it does take some of the ideas presented to their logical conclusion.
3/5
Eileen (2023)
Directed by William Oldroyd this film based on the novel of the same name stars Thomasin McKenzie, Shea Whigham and Anne Hathaway. In the 1960s a young woman with a retired, alcoholic father works at a prison for teenage boys.
I really enjoyed the first two thirds of this film where it was Carol (2015) in a prison as a young woman explores her unfulfilled sexual desires, the last third of the film rather took me out of things. The twist at the end does not really go far enough in my opinion. A fine film but I think it could have been better if it leaned into things one way or the other more.
3/5
Extravagant Struggles (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. Two women fight then transform into two men who also fight.
The camera tricks for this one are done pretty well, especially for the period. I suppose the fights are fine, nothing special. Decent little short.
3/5
Dreyfus Put in Irons (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. Dreyfus gets put in irons.
A simple short of a man getting clapped in irons. Not a huge amount to this one although the set is pretty nice. Fairly average short for the period.
3/5
The Fight of Reporters (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A group of reporters have a fight in a court room and get kicked out.
There is a decent amount of action in this short even if there is not really a clear motivation for it. Again as with all the films on the Dreyfus affair from Melies you really have to know what happened before watching. Not the worst in the series.
2/5
Dreyfus Court Martial – Arrest of Dreyfus (1899)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A man is arrested?
It is a bit hard to tell what is going on here, especially if you are not intimately familiar with the events of the Dreyfus affair. The image quality is also not great which does not help either. In the end I had no idea who was who.
1/5
The Colonel's Shower Bath (1902)
Directed by Georges Melies this is an early short film. A colonel eventually gets covered in paint.
A simple comedy against a decent backdrop. It is obvious what is going to happen so not a huge surprise when it does. I guess fine for a comedy of the period.
3/5
LaRoy, Texas (2023)
Written & directed by Shane Atkinson this film stars John Magaro, Steve Zahn and Megan Stevenson. A man finds out his wife is cheating on him with his brother.
As Coen brothers knock offs go this is a pretty decent one. There is nothing that special here really, a few chuckles along the way. Fine for what it is.
3/5
