Reviews in a nutshell
Paul Haggis is a master of tension building, from Crash to In The Valley of Elah, putting his characters through the emotional mill, and challenging preconceptions. On face value, his latest film, The Next Three Days, starring heavyweight Russell Crowe, is a surprisingly toned-down affair and a true popcorn flick. But it still has a …
Jack Black is an acquired taste. Let’s face it; if you’re not a fan, you wouldn’t even contemplate going to see a film, which is effectively another stage for self-depreciating Blackmania. The only issue is whether as a fan of the tale of Gulliver’s Travels, the version from director Rob Letterman – the man behind …
With highly respected film-maker Peter Weir (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World) behind a new adventure, you know you are in for a visually stunning treat, born of meticulous planning and hard graft to get it factually right. The Way Back is no exception to the Weir catalogue of cinematic triumphs, a …
The original Tron was silly, almost camp, with the programs’ skin-tight, luminous Spandex-styled suits and comical overreactions. But it was undeniably groundbreaking, especially in production design and imagination. It also helped to later produce an Oscar-winning actor in Jeff Bridges, who isn’t shy of playing an odd array of quirky characters, from Starman, Lebowski and …
It seems that once having seen images of war first-hand, it’s impossible to lead a ‘normal’ existence on Civvy Street. This is certainly the case from personal experience, and writer/director Brian Welsh’s second feature, In Our Name, would have you believe this, too. In fact, as the media is quick to remind us, it appears …
For a film with such an emotive title that conjures up all kinds of stereotypical sci-fi imagery of Earth being taken over by extraterrestrial life forms, Monsters by documentary film-maker Gareth Edwards is quite the opposite. It’s actually a surprisingly tender relationship study between two humans that blossoms amongst nature of the Earth and alien …
It’s silly season again, and the thought of yet another Santa movie thrills some and has others gnawing the furniture in despair. But writer/director Jalmari Helander’s alternative Christmas tale, Rare Exports, is one you’ll not forget in a hurry, based on two short films. It’s designed to challenge the schmaltzy, commercialised holiday season head on, …
Oscar-winning The Departed writer William Monahan’s directorial debut, London Boulevard, is one of those films that prompts the immediate reaction of ‘hmmm’: You really don’t know how to process what you’ve just seen – unless you’re an avid Colin Farrell fan, so can be rest assured that his sexy charm is in full flow in …
Forget the troublesome Pelham of 2009: Action guru Tony Scott and his muse Denzel Washington are firmly on the right tracks with this year’s adrenaline-fuelled thriller, Unstoppable, that really hits the mark, despite triggering an initial groan of yet another potential train-wreck of a movie on the cards. After suppressing giggles from hearing that there’s …
