A RAINY DAY IN NEW YORK
A new Woody Allen film, especially during the seventies, the eighties and the nineties was always an eagerly awaited event. Lately he has sadly fallen out of favour with the public due to his private life but personally, I always find his films exciting and look forward to his latest projects with anticipation.
This charming tale follows college students Gatsby (Timothee Chalamet) and Ashleigh (Elle Fanning), a couple very much in love on their way to New York for a romantic weekend. She is thrilled to meet auteur film director Roland Pollard (Liev Schreiber) for a school paper interview, while Gatsby proud to show off his favourite New York places arranges special lunches and drinks in order to entertain his out of town girlfriend. Inevitably things fail to go according to plan especially now that the rain begins to fall…
Allen’s witty and unpredictable script shines while his strong cast that includes Selena Gomez Jude Law, Rebecca Hall and Chery Jones as Gatsby’s mother relish their smart dialogue. Chalamet is perfect incarnating Allen’s alter ego, while Fanning is suitably fresh and innocent especially in the delectable scene with famous actor Francisco Vega (Diego Luna) which pays tribute to Fellini’s NIGHTS OF CABIRIA.
A little gem that certainly delivers perfectly complimented by Vittorio Storaro’s stunning cinematography! (On Demand)
THE HIGH NOTE
Nisha Ganatra’s last film was the delightful funny biting satire LATE NIGHT with Emma Thompson. She now turns her attention to the LA music scene but not with as much success. She tells the story of Maggie (Dakota Johnson), the hard working personal assistant to the legendary singer Grace Davis (Tracee Ellis Ross), whose career is now in decline. Maggie has aspirations of becoming a music producer and with a plan to resurrect Grace’s career…
Johnson and Ross work well together and share an expert knowledge when it comes to fame as both are children of famous parents. Dakota is the daughter of Melanie Griffith and Tracee of Diana Ross; both deliver effortlessly classy performances but they need a better script than this which lacks conflict and tension. (On Demand from Universal)
THE LAST FULL MEASURE
Writer/director Todd Robinson tells a passionate true story that intercuts between the Vietnam War and 34 years later when a group of veterans talk about the heroic actions of Airman William H. Pisenburger (Jeremy Irvine), who sacrificed his life in order to save others. The flashback sequences are told with clarity even though the young actors hardly bear any resemblance to the elite cast, including Peter Fonda in his last role, that play them in their later years.
The slow pacing in the contemporary scenes and the sentimental music threaten to sink the project yet a powerful story worth witnessing. (On Digital Platforms)
ECHO IN THE CANYON
This enjoyable documentary follows Jakob Dylan, son of Bob, as he visits Lauren Canyon in L.A, in order to celebrate the music scene from the sixties. An inspirational place and time where iconic bands like The Byrds, The Beach Boys and The Mamas and Papas started to create their classic tunes that will live forever.
Dylan gathers valuable information from Ringo Starr, Michelle Phillips and Eric Clapton amongst other musicians who share their memories of these glorious times. Re-live the sixties! (iTunes)
TO THE STARS
A touching, unpredictable film from Martha Stevens, who sets the action in a small and deeply conservative town in Oklahoma. The time is 1960 and THE MAGINIFICENT SEVEN is the main attraction at the cinema. The arrival of free spirited Maggie (Liana Liberato) causes a stir especially when she befriends Iris (Kara Hayward), a lonely, uncomfortable teenager bullied by her schoolmates…
Stephens creates the period most persuasively and elicits tremendous performances from her cast. A familiar setting but told with originality and great sensitivity! (iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Sky, Virgin)
THE SPECIALISTS
Sergio Corbucci’s bright and colourful 1969 spaghetti western is set in Blackstone USA but is filmed entirely in Italy and the dialogue is in French. Johnny Hallyday, the French rock and roll singer, plays Hud, a notorious gunslinger who arrives in Blackstone following his brother’s lynching for wrongfully accused of robbing a bank…
This neglected western from the sixties is pure escapism with nasty villains and a broody, moody hero in Hallyday, whose strong presence defines perfectly the period. (Blu-ray from Eureka Entertainment)
Also out this week:
THE UNCERTAIN KINGDOM: This terrific selection of highly original and inventive short films were commissioned in reaction to Brexit. 20 films divided into 2 Volumes: All films deserve a mention but the highlights from Volume 1 include: Ellen Evans’ hard hitting documentary MOTHERLAND focuses on British Jamaicans forced back to their “home country” by the government. Sophie King’s bizarre SWAN features Mark Addy as a patriotic family man determined to face the challenge of becoming a swan. Rebecca Lloyd Evans’s experimental documentary GRIT/OYSTER examines female sexuality through the eyes of three women. The standout from Volume 2 is Jason Wingart’s terrific PAVEMENT – a moving tale of a homeless man sinking into the pavement outside a Manchester bank. Guy Jenskin’s wonderfully eccentric DEATH MEETS LISOLETTE tells the story of a young girl who discovers the Grim Reaper locked in a barn and finally David Proud’s witty VERISIMILITUDE focuses on a disabled actress hired for a pretentious film in order to coach a pompous actor how to play disable. (On Demand from Verve)
SCREENED OUT: This is a family affair for Jon Hyatt’s intelligent documentary, which examines the increasing addiction to smartphones and social media. Hyatt interviews experts, teenagers as well as his wife and children, who eagerly offer their opinion on the subject. Hyatt’s film is watchable and well-constructed even though we have already seen this kind of analysis in similar projects. (iTunes, Amazon, Google, Sky Store & Rakuten)
MS SLAVIC 7: Sofia Bohdamowicz tells a semi-autobiographical story of a young woman who discovers letters in a Harvard library archive which her great grandmother wrote to a Polish poet. Nothing much happens – the protagonist walks aimlessly about almost in slow motion and letters are read. File under pretentious (MUBI)
George Savvides
