Rise of the planet of the dogs

White God (2014)

Directed by Kornel Mundruczo this film stars Zsofia Psotta andSandor Zsoter with dogs Bodie & Luke. A teenage girl is sent to spent 3 months with her father but he throws out her pet dog as he does not want to pay the “mongrel” fine set by the government.

Taking a simple story of a lost dog this film provides an excellent allegory for how we treat those members of society we deem of lesser value. The film balances human and dog stories well and never becomes one of those overly sentimental pet films. Zsofia Psotta gives a great performance that holds together the film.

4/5  

Limp imitation

Shangri-La Suite (2017)

Directed by Eddie O'Keefe this film also known as “Kill the King” stars Emily Browning, Luke Grimes and Ron Livingston. Two teenagers in a mental hospital break out and head off to LA to kill Elvis.

It is very easy to see the tradition of American cinema that this film is birthed from but I am not sure it ever really connects with it's ancestors and instead feels like imitation. I found it near impossible to connect with the characters and the plot rather drifts along attempting to be dreamy. There is a filter applied to the film to give it a cheap 1970s look which also adds little to the film.

2/5

A small thing

The Cheese Mites, or Lilliputians in a London Restaurant (1901)

Directed by Walter R. Booth this is an early short film. A man at a restaurant has a drink and sees small people on the table.

Essentially this is just one photography trick and the quality of the surviving film is not that high. Given the age of the film you can allow some wiggle room and this is a fairly standard example of a film of the period. While this film is briefly enjoyable there is not a lot to it.

2/5

A custody battle 1909 style

La Possession de l'enfant (1909)

Directed by Loius Feuillade this short film stars Renee Carl. The courts put a young boy in the custody of his rich father but bored the child desires a return to his mother.

An early custody battle film does not offer the most modern or in depth look on it's subject matter as you might imagine. This simple drama is still a fairly decent watch but not an overly remarkable example of early cinema. The camera is largely static and the performance may seem a little over the top to modern viewers.

3/5

A weak farce

Kill Me Three Times (2014)

Directed by Kriv Stenders this film stars Simon Pegg, Alice Braga, Teresa Palmer and Sullivan Stapleton. A hit man hired to kill a woman watches her get seemingly killed by two other people.

This black comedy is not really up to the standards of some of the greats of the genre but it is watchable at least. The characters go through a number of stupid actions which is fairly entertaining. There is a good cast but I'm not sure Simon Pegg was a good fit for playing against type here.

3/5

A fantasy of WW2

Allied (2016)

Directed by Robert Zemeckis this film stars Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard and Jared Harris. A Canadian officer dropped into North Africa falls in love with the French agent posing as his wife.

Attempting to construct a thriller this film is never bad but always somewhat of a disappointment in never fulfilling it's potential. The plot never really feels in the balance and the version of WW2 we see on screen is some what of a dreamy unreal version. For all the talent involved this is a surprisingly damp effort that wishes it was Casablanca (1942) but never gets close.

3/5

Reflections and projections

Man with Mirror (1976)

Directed by Guy Sherwin this is an experimental short film with on screen performance from the film's director. A man stands in front of the camera with a mirror while a film is projected onto him.

Taking a very simple idea this is a fascinating little film built on a great performance. I have no idea how many takes it must have required to get right but the interplay between projection and reflection make for a great watch. There is certainly something unique about this film and a lot of skill in the execution.

4/5