Lock, stock and two resentful sons

Wild Bill (2011)

Directed by Dexter Fletcher this film stars Charlie Creed-Miles, Will Poulter and Liz White. After 8 years in prison a father returns home to find his 15 and 11 year old sons have been abandoned by their mother and resent his absence.

You may have thought the British gangster film genre was over but there is still life in there as this film shows. While there might not be anything revolutionary about the plot of this film it is well executed even if the plot resolution is a little easy. One thing I would have like to have seen more of was the relationship between the older son and the father as the relationship with the younger son dominated the plot.

3/5

Nicholson gonna Nicholson

Five Easy Pieces (1970)

Directed by Bob Rafelson this film stars Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, Susan Anspach and Lois Smith. A worker on an oil field returns home to visit his dying father and family of musicians with his pregnant girlfriend.

Like the protagonist the plot of this film drifts along and is more of a character study of a man that is unable to settle at any one place in the world rather than a tightly plotted film. There are some comedic moments but they do not dominate the film. The problem with the film is that in my opinion it neither explains the reason for the protagonists behaviour nor shows him changing.

3/5

Goose droppings

Wild Geese II (1985)

Directed by Reter R. Hunt this film based on the novel “The Square Circle” stars Scott Glenn, Barbara Carrera and Edward Fox. A group of mercenaries are hired by a television network to break Rudolf Hess out of Spandau Prison so they can interview him

Despite recapping the events of the first film during the opening sequence there are no characters in common between the two films as Richard Burton died days before this film went into production. The plot is fairly stupid and at various times the choices characters make have no reasoning at all. Some of the action sequences in this film are not too bad but otherwise it should be left well alone.

2/5

Fantasy follies

The Princess Bride (1987)

Directed by Rob Reiner this film based on the novel of the same name stars Cary Elwes, Robin Wright and Peter Falk. A grandfather reads his sick grandson a book about a princess and her husband to be.

Having something of a reputation as a cult classic I was expecting a fair amount from this film but it ended up falling a little short. What the film has going for it is a silly sense of humour through out that just about carries the film but the plot does not bare too much thinking about and suffers from the princess being one of the most passive characters in modern cinema. Some of the set and special effects look a bit ropey at time as well which does not really help matters either.

2/5

Lacking the gold

Black Gold (2011)

Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud this film based on the novel South of the Heart: A Novel Of Modern Arabia stars Tahar Rahim, Mark Strong, Antonio Bandaras and Freida Pinto. A young Arab prince is caught in the struggle between modernisation and tradition as oil wealth comes to the Arabian peninsula.

The subtext of this film is clearly to look at the choices facing nations in the Arab world that struggle between sudden vast wealth from oil but strong, conservative, religious traditions hold back progress. Where the film has problems is that the story does not really reflect either actual history or the situation on the ground, being more of an over simplification that does not really offer any concrete solutions. As a piece of pure entertainment it is not bad but a lot of the action sequences seem to borrow heavily from the exploits of Lawrence of Arabia and the romance element is largely unbelievable.

2/5

Wadiya looking at?

The Dictator (2012)

Directed by Larry Charles this film stars Sacha Baron Cohen, Anna Faris and Sir Ben Kingsley. The military dictator of a fictional North African country travels to the US where he is replaced by a double and has to mix with normal people for a change.

There is not a lot of originality about the plot which has a lot of elements are similar to other films. Humour in this film is both very funny but also probably not for those easily offended, there are also times when the film skirts stereotyping. The only time the film does really make any satirical point comes in the form of a rather obvious lecture that is far too heavy handed for my taste.

3/5

He is risen

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Directed by Christopher Nolan this film stars Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. After 8 years living as a recluse Bruce Wayne is drawn back into crime fighting after the arrival of a new threat.

This film is not perfect, it falls short in character development compared to the other entries in this series but these are weaknesses of omission rather than weaknesses that actively damage the film. In general this film is amazing with great action sequences that keep you gripped through out it's long run time. The themes of social responsibility of the rich and consequences of revolution add some depth to the film giving a fitting conclusion to a series which will sadly end.

5/5