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About SSP
Sam Sewell-Peterson
Writer and film fanatic fond of black comedies, sci-fi, animation and films about dysfunctional families.
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Fresh Thoughts on Film
Archived Thoughts on Film
Tag Archives: Cate Blanchett
Review in Brief: Tár (2022)
I don’t know if you’ve heard, but TÁR is a bit good. An often uncomfortably close character study of a complicated genius, we follow conductor Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett) hailed as the greatest of her generation as she goes through … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review, Review in Brief
Tagged Cate Blanchett, Drama, Noémie Merlant, Oscars, Psychological Horror, Tár, Todd Field
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Review in Brief: Nightmare Alley (2021)
Following his Oscar win for THE SHAPE OF WATER, Guillermo del Toro could have done anything; Hollywood was his. He eventually decided on NIGHTMARE ALLEY, mounting a twisty and epic in scope noir-psychological-thriller based on an obscure novel from the … Continue reading
Review: Mowgli (2018)
Giving a wolf Peter Mullen’s face and all the other creatures of the jungle distinctive deformities doesn’t make your JUNGLE BOOK adaptation interesting. The mo-capped actors in MOWGLI don’t exactly have to stretch themselves; Bale can always fall back on … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Andy Serkis, Benedict Cumberbatch, Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Disney, Mowgli, Peter Mullen, The Jungle Book
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Review: Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Some of you may remember THOR: THE DARK WORLD wasn’t that good. It wasn’t that bad either, but between storytelling falling over itself to cram in more of a certain God of Mischief after the fact and the worst villain … Continue reading
15 Years On: The Fellowship of the Ring
There are three film franchises that have impacted me above all others. First, there came STAR WARS, which kept me happy throughout my first decade (on VHS – sadly I’m too young to have seen the original trilogy on the … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Feature, Film Review
Tagged Alice in Wonderland, Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood, Fantasy, Film, Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Howard Shore, Ian Holm, Ian McKellan, Liv Tyler, Movies, Narnia, Peter Jackson, Sean Astin, Snow White and the Huntsman, Star Wars, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, Viggo Mortensen, Weta Workshop
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Review: Carol (2015)
When the awards come for CAROL, and come they will, it’ll be impossible (and unfair) to split Blanchett and Mara. One cannot exist without the other – the reason both actors work so well on screen how skillfully they play … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Carol, Carter Burwell, Cate Blanchett, Drama, Film, Movies, Oscars, Patricia Highsmith, Phyllis Nagy, Romance, Rooney Mara, The Price of Salt, Todd Haynes
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Review: Room (2015)
It’s been a long time since a film affected me to quite this extent. ROOM got to me on a primal level, it cut into my soul and left me a blubbering wreck coming out of the cinema. It isn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Brie Larson, Cate Blanchett, Drama, Emma Donoghue, Film, Frank, Jacob Tremblay, Lenny Abrahamson, Movies, Room, Sean Bridgers, Stephen Rennicks
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Looking Back and Looking Forward: 2015
It’s that time of year, where every critic professional and amateur alike publishes some sort of Best of the Year list. This time last year, I thought 2014 was a mixed bag. 2015 may have been even more so. There … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Feature
Tagged Adam Driver, Alan Bennett, Alex Garland, Alex Jennings, Alicia Vikander, Aloha, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Benicio del Toro, Bill Condon, Bradley Cooper, Bridge of Spies, Cameron Crowe, Carol, Cate Blanchett, Cop Car, Daisy Ridley, Denis Villeneuve, Domhnall Gleeson, Elizabeth Olsen, Emily Blunt, Emma Stone, Ex Machina, Fantastic Four, Film, Focus, George Miller, Harrison Ford, Ian McKellen, James Cameron, JJ Abrams, Josh Trank, Joss Whedon, Kevin Bacon, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Mad Max: Fury Road, Maggie Smith, Margot Robbie, Mark Rylance, Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, Mortdecai, Movies, Mr. Holmes, Oscar Isaac, Paul Bettany, Rooney Mara, Sicario, Spectre, Star Wars Episode VII, Terminator Genesis, The Force Awakens, The Lady in the Van, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Tom Hanks, Turbo Kid, Will Smith
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Review: Cinderella (2015)
Did you really have to put the talking mice in it again, Disney? Rodents shouldn’t have facial expressions! I’ve never really had that much affection for Walt’s 1950 animated “classic” – I always found it a bit simpering and wet. … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Ben Chaplin, Cate Blanchett, Cinderella, Derek Jacobi, Disney, Eloise Webb, Fantasy, Film, Hayley Atwell, Helena Bonham Carter, Holliday Grainger, Kenneth Branagh, Lily James, Maleficent, Movies, Patrick Doyle, Richard Madden, Romance, Sandy Powell, Sophie McShera
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Review: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
It’s at an end. Peter Jackson has left Middle-Earth behind. For real this time. Probably. THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES gives the lengthiest chapter in Jackson’s career so far an appropriately grand ending, but wisely he doesn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Aiden Turner, Benedict Cumberbatch, Billy Connolly, Blockbuster, Cate Blanchett, Evangeline Lilly, Fantasy, Film, Graham McTavish, Hugo Weaving, Ian McKellen, Ken Stott, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Martin Freeman, Mikael Persbrandt, Monty Python, Movies, Oliver!, Orlando Bloom, Peter Jackson, Richard Armitage, Ryan Gage, Stephen Fry, Stephen Hunter, Sylvester McCoy, The Hobbit, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, The Two Towers, Tolkien, Weta Workshop
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