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Category Archives: Film
Review in Brief: Vice (2018)
Reminder: a compelling protagonist doesn’t have to likeable, or good, they just have to be interesting. Dick Chaney was, and remains, an evil bastard, but he and his rise to power behind the throne is fascinating nonetheless. Adam McKay approaches … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Adam McKay, Amy Adams, Biopic, Christian Bale, Dark Comedy, Steve Carrell, The Big Short, Vice
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60s Review: Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
When author Terry Pratchett wrote about his time working as a publicist for a nuclear plant, he described how he came to realise that there’s no funnier phrase than “two completely independent failsafe systems”. The extent to which everything goes … Continue reading
Posted in Classic Film, Film, Film Review
Tagged Black Comedy, Classic Film, Dr Strangelove, George C Scott, Peter Sellers, Satire, Stanley Kubrick, Sterling Hayden, Terry Pratchett, Tracy Reed
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Chernobyl: Audience Adulation vs Critical Consenus
According to the IMDb, HBO/Sky’s miniseries CHERNOBYL is now the most critically acclaimed TV show of all time. It’s in all the trailers now: “9.6/10”. This does not matter. I’m not one of those “who cares what the critics think?” … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review, Television
Tagged Chernobyl, HBO, Historical Drama, IMDb, Jared Harris, Paul Ritter, Sky, TV
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Review in Brief: Green Book (2018)
I can’t say GREEN BOOK is a bad film, it’s too competent. But it’s a very ordinary Best Picture winner. To its credit, the realities of being a touring black musician of any calibre during this period are not ignored. … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Drama, Green Book, Mahershala Ali, Oscars, Viggo Mortensen
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Review: Toy Story 4 (2019)
How many really good fourth movies are there? After STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME and, depending on your 80s tolerance, ROCKY IV, I’m drawing a blank. TOY STORY 4 did not need to be a thing, and yet it … Continue reading
Review in Brief: See You Yesterday (2019)
SEE YOU YESTERDAY is a minor-key delight. Riffing a lot on BACK TO THE FUTIRE II but with punchy social commentary, the film has a special guest star in an early scene, and his appearance would have been enough, but … Continue reading
Review: X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019)
I’ve already forgotten most of APOCALYPSE, though I do for some reason remember Michael Fassbender floating in the air, looking bored and not saying anything for half an hour. I also recall the apparent finality of the ending, with the … Continue reading
Review: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
Remember how for the opening flashback of X-MEN: THE LAST STAND they smoothed out Patrick Stewart’s face to an alarming degree to make him look 25 years younger but just gave Ian McKellen some hair dye and a hat? Maybe … Continue reading
Review: Rocketman (2019)
ROCKETMAN is the second musical I’ve really loved this year. Whereas the first, WILD ROSE kept its cowboy-booted feet firmly on the ground, the story of the man formally known as Reg Dwight’s formative years and breakthrough floats off into … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Amadeus, Biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, Bryce Dallas Howard, Dexter Fletcher, Elton John, Jamie Bell, Matthew Illesley, Musical, Rocketman, Taron Egerton, Wild Rose
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