Oh so fallen

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)

Directed by J. A. Bayona this sequel stars Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Rafe Spall, Justice Smith and Daniella Pineda. The remaining dinosaurs from the last film are about to get wiped out by a volcanic explosion so some people set off to rescue them.

Dumb at nearly every turn this is a heartless blockbuster that just reminds you at every turn what a poor echo of Spielberg's original it is. Lacking both heart and a sense of wonder this is yet another disappointing entry into the franchise. The action sequences are not too bad but are pretty uninspired like the rest of the film.

2/5

Rolling, rolling, rolling

The Train Rolls On (1973)

Directed by Chris Marker this is a documentary with archive footage and interviews. We look into the famous CineTrain run by Medvedkin in the 1930s.

Essentially propaganda for a propaganda effort this film never really questions the nature of using the train to get peasants to question each other. A decent watch but clearly pushing an agenda. Probably only of interest to historians.

3/5

Hammer goes full exploitation

The Vampire Lovers (1970)

Directed by Roy Ward Baker this film stars Peter Cushing, Ingrid Pitt, Madeline Smith and Kate O'Mara. In 19^th century Styria a female vampire uses her beauty to seduce and suck the life from young women.

While this film may have been somewhat ground breaking in terms of showing lesbian vampires realistically it is only doing so for exploitative reasons. The plot is a paper thin excuse for a bunch of nudity and there is only the merest hint of a tragic character in the final moments. Even the acting gets pretty hammy in places, not Hammer Horror's best work.

1/5

Lies, damn lies and classism

I, Tonya (2017)

Directed by Craig Gillespie this film based on real events stars Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan and Allison Janney. We follow the career of a young girl from a poor background who wants to be an ice skating star.

The truth is not entirely the point of this film but it is certainly an entertaining watch. Funny and not without a point it is easy to see why this film was so popular. Margot Robbie gives a good performance in the lead role and is well supported.

4/5

All the primary colours

La La Land (2016)

Written & directed by Damien Chazelle this film stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. An aspiring actress meets a man that wants to open a jazz club.

Harking back to the golden era of musicals this film is a celebration of both Hollywood past and the life style of those dreamers that settle in the city of angels. There is a huge amount to enjoy here both in the staging and the story telling. While the story is a little familiar in places that is always going to be the nature of the beast, about the only real criticism I have is that Donald Glover should have played the Ryan Gosling role.

5/5

That lost Pawnstars pilot form 1916

The Pawnshop (1916)

Directed by Edward Brewer and star Charlie Chaplin this film also features Edna Purviance and Henry Bergman. Late to his job at a pawnshop Chaplain's usual character gets into the usual shenanigans.

Featuring plenty of good slapstick comedy this is a decent watch and yet another good example of why Chaplin is a master of the genre. What the film lacks compared to some of Chaplin's longer and more famous work is a clear narrative to tie the whole thing together with some heart. Well made this is certainly worth a watch.

3/5

Honestly not that bad

Serenity (2019)

Written & directed by Stephen Knight this film stars Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Diane Lane, Jasone Clarke and Djimon Hounsou. A man living as a fisherman on a tropical island is contacted by his ex-wife to help kill her new husband.

To get it out the way this film is a hot mess that suffers from some problems. Yes the advertising is misleading for this bait and switch plot, yes some of the writing seems terribly cliché and yes I do think the script needed another revision or two. All that being said I actually liked what this film was trying to do.

What we have here is the confused day dream of an immature mind living in the daily nightmare of an abusive household. Some of the more cliché elements are a direct result of the conceit of the film so in that regard they not only make sense but are necessary. There are elements of the film I would have changed without doubt but I still think there is something interesting going on here and if you can put your preconceptions away when watching this film then it is enjoyable.

3/5