Film Reviews

FILM OF THE WEEK

STILLWATER

Tom McCarthy directed two of my favourite films THE STATION AGENT and THE VISITOR before he reached Oscar glory with SPOTLIGHT. Now he tells the story of Bill Baker (Matt Damon), an unemployed oil rig roughneck from Oklahoma who travels to the South of France to see his imprisoned daughter Allison (Abigail Breslin). She is serving a long sentence in Marseille for the murder of her lover Lina and when he first visits, she asks him to deliver a letter to her lawyer with a new lead that may prove her innocence. But when the lawyer claims that there is nothing more that she could do for the case then Bill decides to take matters into his own hands…
It is good to see Damon roughing himself up playing against type and shares a superb chemistry with Breslin as his estranged daughter. Breslin has come a long way since her LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE days and delivers a deeply rooted performance. It is also good to Camille Cottin, the star of TV’s CALL MY AGENT, in a juicy role as Virginie, a single mother who helps Bill find his bearings in a foreign land. But it is Lilou Siauvaud that almost steals the show as her nine-year-old daughter
The film is compelling but unfortunately the final sequences are ultimately anticlimactic losing some credibility.

ZOLA

Janicza Bravo’s remarkable film is based on tweets by A’ziah-Monae “Zola” King which follow the adventures of Zola (Taylour Paige), a Detroit waitress whose life takes an unexpected turn when one of her customers Stefani (Riley Keough) lures her into a crazy weekend in Florida…
It is fresh and unpredictable which works a treat thanks to Bravo’s unconventional direction. The leading ladies deliver compelling performances – newcomer Paige is amazing as the eponymous heroine and so is Keough as the svelte pole dancer with a strong taste for adventure.

THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER

This attractive film is adapted from Jojo Moyes’ novel which takes place in the French Riviera of the sixties as well as London of the present day. Stirling (Shailene Woodley) is a free-spirited woman living an elegant but loveless life with her husband Laurence (Joe Alwyn) until she meets foreign correspondent Anthony (Callum Turner) in France. Meanwhile in modern day London Ellie (Felicity Jones) discovers the love letters from the past…
It is an engaging, romantic film with strong production values but sadly it loses its impact towards the end.

BEASTS CLAWING AT STRAWS

An enjoyable, stylish, dark comedy from Korea by first time director Yong Hoon-Kim, whose cleverly plotted crime thriller boasts a vast variety of multi layered characters. They only thing they have in common is that they are all hiding deep secrets from each other. One man finds a bag full of money in a locker while another in being threatened by a group of violent loan sharks…
I could easily see this being remade by Hollywood!

NOW, VOYAGER

This 1942 Bette Davis classic is the centrepiece of a major retrospective of her work at the National Film Theatre. She plays Charlotte Vale, an emotionally fragile young woman, who gets a new lease of life following psychiatric treatment at a Vermont hospital. She manages to escape from the clutches of her domineering mother (Gladys Cooper) and falls for Jerry Durrance (Paul Henreid), a married man whom she meets on a cruise…
Davis is magnificent and her transformation from a timid young woman to a confident white swan is astonishing!

MOONBOUND

Ali Samhadi Ahadi’s imaginative animation feature is based on a German popular children’s book, which tells the story of Pete, a young boy who begins an extraordinary journey to the moon to save his little sister from the evil Moon Man…
It is colourful and unpredictable with many delightful characters including June bug Mr Zoomzeman and the Sandman who join little Pete for the rescue operation. Suitable for younger children!

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BOY IN THE WORLD: This terrific documentary arrives direct from its London premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. It examines the life of Bjorn Andresen, the beautiful teenage boy who fifty years ago was selected by Luchino Visconti to play Dirk Bogarde’s object of desire in DEATH OF VENICE. Andresen’s angelic face became synonymous with beauty across the globe but sadly his personal life as an adult was not a happy one. Essential viewing!

EL FATHER PLAYS HIMSELF: A documentary about the making of a film from a young director, who decides to cast his own father to play himself. The filming is in the Amazonian jungle and his father who has never acted before is totally uncontrollable especially when he is under the influence which is most of the time. Fascinating stuff!

THE SPARKS BROTHERS: Edgar Wright’s illuminating documentary about the life and career of THE SPARKS BROTHERS – Ron and Russell Mael and their remarkable band SPARKS- has reignited my fascination and interest for their work. I fondly remember watching them perform their eccentric act on Top of the Pops during the seventies and it is amazing to see that they have reinvented themselves on numerous occasions and are still going strong. One of the best music documentaries in a long time!

SUPERDEEP: This Russian sci-fi horror follows the story of a group of scientists assigned to go 7 miles deep below the surface and solve the mystery behind a series of sounds that resemble screams and moans of humans…It is an ambitious project, but the poor revoicing and uninspired dialogue prevents us from getting involved. (SHUDDER)

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