Category Archives: Review in Brief
Review in Brief: Coda (2021)
I wasn’t going to cry during CODA, but then they deployed the Joni Mitchell. Ruby (Emilia Jones) is the teenage Child of Deaf Adults, acting as her family’s interpreter on their fishing boat and in their local community. But when … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans (2021)
The TALES OF ARCADIA have been told. Over five years the intertwined animated series TROLLHUNTERS, 3BELOW and WIZARDS built to this finale, deciding the fate not only of the colourful residents of Arcadia Oaks, California, but the world. We’ve time-travelled, … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Shiva Baby (2020)
It’s going to be a hotly contested battle between SHIVA BABY and RARE BEASTS for the most uncomfortably awkward comedy released in 2021. Interestingly both are by female first-time feature directors and both show confidence in abundance and a unique … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Riders of Justice (2020)
From its fable-like opening to its really rather schmaltzy Christmas closing moments and all the sudden acts of violence in-between, Anders Thomas Jensen’s RIDERS OF JUSTICE consistently delivers the unexpected. Markus (Mads Mikkelsen) returns home from military deployment to look … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
Harlem, 1969 and something special was happening in the same months as Woodstock and the Moon Landing. The Harlem Cultural Festival brought to the stage such acts as a 19-year-old Stevie Wonder, BB King Gladys Knight and Nina Simone and … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Free Guy (2021)
FREE GUY is more evidence that the better video game movies aren’t direct IP adaptations but about gaming itself. You’ll get a lot more out of it if you’re a gamer, if you know the conventions, mechanics and player behaviour … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two (2021)
THE LONG HALLOWEEN, PART TWO definitely lands. Like Part One it’s been somewhat streamlined and stripped back from Jeph Loeb’s imposing comic but does the complex characters justice and keeps you riveted and on your toes throughout. After months out … Continue reading
Review in Brief: The Sparks Brothers (2021)
You’re a lot more likely to fall in love with the very alternative musical duo Sparks after watching Edgar Wright’s comprehensive, affectionate rock doc THE SPARKS BROTHERS. Wright interviews famous fans (often having fun with the captions in the process), … Continue reading
Review in Brief: The Suicide Squad (2021)
The best and the worst thing about THE SUICIDE SQUAD is that writer-director James Gunn was given complete creative freedom by Warner Bros. On the one hand you have fun character interplay and dues given to compelling, previously Z-List comic … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Werewolves Within (2021)
WEREWOLVES WITHIN is an absolute treat for horror-comedy fans, and cements Josh Ruben as a new master of meta scares. Not many horrors would open with a Mr Rogers quote, but it works creepily, atonally well. Believe it or not … Continue reading
SSP Thinks Film 