All User Reviews

I thought that there was something quite evocative about this short animation. It's his birthday, and a young Korean lad is playing in the wreckage of an aircraft that has crashed into a nearby house. With his father away fighting in the war, his son is dreaming of joining him. Enjoying his own shadow war games, imagining he is shooting the enemy as they approach his position. Then he heads home and discovers a parcel on their veranda. It’s fairly clear to us what the contents mean, but does “Manuk” appreciate their significance? This is quite a potent feature that illustrates something of a l…

Maybe it did take God seven days to make the world, but in these seven days Daniel Greaves manages to squeeze in seven things that most irritate us in that world. Just why do we have these timer light switches that always plunge us into darkness long before we reach our destination? Or why, after you’ve hung around for half an hour too embarrassed to use it, does the pub toilet condom machine never work? I liked this day by day animated series of things that nark us, or even turn us into monsters - ok, perhaps not so much on day 3 - and I found it quite easy to associate with many of these sce…

As romances go, they don’t come a lot less orthodox than this one. “Alex” (Denis Lavant) is a vagrant who finds a berth of a night on the Pont Neuf over the Seine that has been closed for renovation. He survives on a diet of drugs and alcohol and has no real friends beyond his dealer on the bridge. One night he discovers a woman sleeping in his spot. Neither man knows quite how she got there, but “Hans” (Klaus-Michael Grüber) vows to send her packing next morning. When that time comes, however, “Alex” discovers that “Michèle” (Juliet Binoche) is not only an artist, but that she has sketched hi…

When detective “Raven” (Chris Pratt) wakes up, he’s shocked to find himself strapped to a chair and somewhat hungover. All he has for company is the rather assertive image of “Judge Maddox” (Rebecca Ferguson) on a screen before him telling him that he has been arraigned on a charge of murdering his wife (Annabelle Wallis) and is now subject to the automated “Mercy” justice system. This involves AI evaluating multiple sources of information and working out the probability that he committed the crime. His rate is up around the 97% mark and so it is looking like he is toast. Of course he denies t…

There are a lot of possible takeaways from "Barren Land". In my opinion, this film's core message is that the most valuable things in life are friendship and love. Greed and unfulfilled ambition mean little by comparison but may exact a high price from those blinded by them. Without hopefully giving too much away, we see this play out in the interplay between three close friends, on the right and wrong side of the law and criminality. There's an honesty about their personal relationship. It's very informal, warm and open. Circumstances challenge that dynamic, but ultimately it …

“Stitch Head” is the first-born of mad scientist “Erasmus” as he searches to find the secret of life. Over time, the scientist has switched his ingredients up from wool and stitches and experimented on just about everything from dogs to sharks, but his latest “Creature” makes “Stitch” realise that he is little more than an assistant to his creator, and that he is actually quite a lonely fellow. Meantime, in the village below their castle a circus comes to town and it’s ringmaster (think Jim Broadbent in “Moulin Rouge!” from 2001) hears tell of the monsters living high above. It’s down to “Stit…

Pretty fun dark comedy-horror that features two solid performances from Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien. Some decent enough gore and a whole a good way to spend two hours. Not sure I'll revisit even on home video but still entertaining, nevertheless. **3.5/5**…

"Rather silly" is my first and lasting reaction to "The Internship". It tediously recycles overused concepts to craft, if that's the right word, a predictable and oftentimes absurd, action espionage thriller. It's all about a group of super spy teens trying to escape the CIA, that created them. Worse still, the evil Russians are out to exterminate them, or are they? The action, such as it is, is reasonably well done, if implausible, and the acting is alright but not inspired. In summary, a very ordinary action spy thriller you have seen many, many times before in one form or anothe…

They say sex sells, and that’s certainly true for this film noir erotic thriller from Brazil in which passionate stirrings pervade virtually every aspect of the narrative. In this latest offering from writer-director Karim Aïnouz, the filmmaker tells a story largely cut from the same cloth as “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (1946, 1981) but with supercharged volumes of high-octane sexuality splashed all over it. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that other than the fact that this is about all the picture has to offer. Indeed, the primary storyline here is otherwise so thin that it’s pract…

I have no critiques. LIKE: I personally thought the pacing was good. I've seen some people saying this is very 'slow-burn'. I kind of agree, kind of disagree. If it is slow-burn, it certainly doesn't make it feel like it/ it handles the 'slow-burn' genre very well. There were twists and turns every episode. The cinematography was stunning - set design and camera angles felt just as eerie as the story and perfectly aided the explored themes of entrapment, existentialism and identity. Although the story is bizarre, there are many concepts and situations I'm sure most viewers can relate to. I …