About Sam S-P
Writer and film fanatic fond of black comedies, sci-fi, animation and films about dysfunctional families.
(Sadly I’m the slightly disappointing Star-Lord, not the awesome Ant-Man) This weekend I attended my first ever Comic Con. Thinking that the main event in San Diego might be a little much for a convention virgin, I and a group … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Movies
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Tagged Alan Cumming, Anime, Batman, Comic Books, Comic Con, Cosplay, Fandom, Film, Mass Effect, Movies, Spider-Man, Superhero Movie, Video Games, Warhammer
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Indulge me if you will to have a bit of a rant. Walt Disney Studios is flying higher perhaps than ever before, owning as it does the box office bulkheads Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar. Needless to say Disney’s acquisition of … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Comment
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Tagged Animation, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Disney, Film, Harry Potter, John Carter, Live Action, Lucasfilm, Maleficent, Marvel, Movies, Pinocchio, Pixar, Remake, Sleeping Beauty, Star Wars, The Avengers, The Lone Ranger, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, The Sword in the Stone, Tomorrowland, Tron: Legacy
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I’d have never guessed that the Marvel movie of 2015 I preferred was the apparent gamble that is ANT-MAN rather than the seemingly sure thing that was AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON. It just goes to show how bang-on Yoda was … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Abby Ryder Fortson, Ant-Man, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Christopher Nolan, Corey Stoll, David Dastmalchian, Edgar Wright, Evangeline Lilly, Film, Interstellar, Iron Man, Iron Man 3, Jonathan Nolan, Marvel, Michael Douglas, Michael Peña, Movies, Paul Rudd, Peyton Reed, Superhero Movie, T.I, The Empire Strikes Back
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As well as being both unabashedly filthy and a proud and dignified representation of real humanity, OBVIOUS CHILD boasts the simple (but criminally rare in storytelling) pleasure of seeing a strong female protagonist making a difficult decision and being allowed … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Alex Lacy, Comedy, David Cross, Drama, Film, Gillian Robespierre, Jenny Slate, Movies, Obvious Child, Polly Draper, Richard Kind, Rom-com
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AMY had me glassy eyed both at its beginning and end. Such is the power and the tragedy inherent in exploring the life of an astoundingly talented artist whose time was cut so cruelly short, especially when we see the … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Amy, Amy Winehouse, Asif Kapadia, Blake Fielder-Civil, Dido, Documentary, Film, Mitch Winehouse, Movies, My Daughter Amy, Senna, Tony Bennett
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The internet is alive at the moment with talk of the first full BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE trailer that made its debut in the legendary Hall H of Comic Con yesterday. It’s got all the fireworks, striking heroic … Continue reading →
Posted in Film
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Tagged Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Ben Affleck, Blockbuster, Comic Con, Film, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Holly Hunter, Jeremy Irons, Jesse Eisenberg, Man of Steel, Michael Shannon, Movies, Suicide Squad, Superhero Movie
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Arnie is back as the Terminator with a resounding clunk. While TERMINATOR GENISYS isn’t quite the mirthless Hunter-Killer crash TERMINATOR SALVATION was, it hasn’t earned the right to be mentioned in the same breath as any of the first three … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Action, Alan Taylor, Anton Yelchin, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Blockbuster, Emilia Clarke, Film, Hans Zimmer, Jai Courtney, James Cameron, Jason Clarke, John Williams, Linda Hamilton, Lorne Balfe, Michael Biehn, Movies, Paramount Pictures, Sci-fi, Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Terminator Genisys, Terminator Salvation, The Terminator
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One thing’s for sure – Andy and Lana Wachowski will never make a dull film. Even their misfires – and JUPITER ASCENDING is certainly one of those – are fascinating. Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), the daughter of a Russian immigrant, … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Channing Tatum, Cinderella, Cloud Atlas, Douglas Adams, Dune, Eddie Redmayne, Film, Jupiter Ascending, Mila Kunis, Movies, Ralph Fiennes, Sci-fi, Sean Bean, Speed Racer, Terry Gilliam, The Matrix, The Wachowskis
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MORTDECAI may well be not only the worst film Johnny Depp has ever starred in, but also the most painful performance of his career as well. A farce set in the art world’s underbelly in an ambiguous decade, we follow … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Comedy, David Koepp, Ewan McGregor, Farce, Fast Show, Film, Gwyneth Paltrow, Indiana Jones, Johnny Depp, Mortdecai, Movies, Paul Bettany, Paul Whitehouse
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Who needs bells-and-whistles action scenes when you can make the simple sight of someone drumming for another’s approval this intense? I don’t particularly feel that any of the final list of potential Best Picture Oscar winners really deserved to be … Continue reading →
Posted in Film, Film Review
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Tagged Black Comedy, Buddy Rich, Damien Chazelle, Drama, Film, Full Metal Jacket, JK Simmons, Melissa Benoist, Miles Teller, Movies, Mr Turner, Nightcrawler, Oscars, The Academy, The Social Network, Whiplash
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SSP Thinks Film 
We Need to Talk About Disney
Indulge me if you will to have a bit of a rant. Walt Disney Studios is flying higher perhaps than ever before, owning as it does the box office bulkheads Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar. Needless to say Disney’s acquisition of … Continue reading →