The Alpha Invention (2015)
Directed by Mark Towers this film stars Billy Boyd and William Hope. A man talks to an AI he has invented.
There is something to be said for the way this film does predict the rise of LLM but it does not go into a lot of depth on AI. The main thing here is the twist as the film is obvious to predict up to that point. Would help if Billy Boyd could pronounce Turing Test correctly.
2/5
Has He Hit Me? (1897)
Directed by William K. L. Dickson this short film stars Fred & Tom McNaughton. A simple slapstick boxing match.
Pretty fun for what it is. Survives with good image quality. A nice little piece of history.
3/5
This Time Away (2019)
Directed by Magali Barbe this film stars Timothy Spall and Jessica Ellerby. A widower befriends a robot.
Fairly simple and mostly heart warming short even if the twist at the end does make me a smidge uncomfortable. Well done, does not get overly sentimental. Maybe a little more subtlety in the dialogue would have been nice.
3/5
The Marvels (2023)
Directed by Nia DaCosta this sequel stars Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Mian Vellani, Zawe Ashton and Samuel L. Jackson. Connected by their powers three heroines have to save the galaxy from the Kree.
Obviously aimed at a slightly younger audience this film was not completely for me but it was fine. There are places where I would have liked a bit more work done on the script, something common of a lot of films in the genre these days. Fine for what it is, nothing memorable though.
3/5
The Friend (2024)
Directed by Scott McGehee & David Siegel this film based on the novel of the same name stars Naomi Watts and Bill Murray. A woman inherits her mentor's dog.
There are a lot of potential pitfalls here with some really obvious cliches and I am not sure the film entirely sidesteps them. While the film does not get as overly sentimental as you might worry it does fail to deal with the issue of the mentor being that literature professor who sleeps with his students. A bit of a let down in the end.
2/5
From Monte Carlo to Monaco (1899)
Directed by William K. L. Dickson this is an early short film. The view from a train ride in Monaco.
Part of what should be a nice view out over the sea appears to be completely blown out, otherwise a nice scenic short. We eventually get to see a decent wide view towards the end of the film. A fun little short similar to others of this type.
3/5
Super Real Super Grounded (2024)
Directed by Margaux Susi this film stars Austin Williams. An aspiring actress is pushed to her limits in a remote audition for a tiny role.
Pretty funny and no doubt based on real experiences. Good effort by the lead actress to show her range. Works well as entertainment and a highlight reel.
3/5
