Day to Day Viewing (avid movie watcher and reviewer)
I'll watch almost anything and have seen thousands of movies. Some I watch now are new to me, others are repeat viewings. These are in the order I see them, from the time this list was created. I'll add daily, like a journal, warts and all, in no order of merit, just to show the variety there is out there to be enjoyed and briefly what I thought of them.
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- DirectorElem KlimovStarsAleksey KravchenkoOlga MironovaLiubomiras LauceviciusAfter finding an old rifle, a young boy joins the Soviet resistance movement against ruthless German forces and experiences the horrors of World War II.The most powerful & visually intense image of war I've ever experienced. A sensory overload that I'll never forget. Russian film set in Belarus during WW2
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsBette DavisHerbert MarshallJames StephensonThe wife of a rubber plantation administrator shoots a man to death and claims it was self-defense, but a letter written in her own hand may prove her undoing.Bette Davis in a ripe old melodrama, set on a Malayan rubber plantation, where she murders a man. She thinks that she ought to get away with it but a letter surfaces that puts her credibility into doubt. They don't make them like this any more!
- DirectorAlison PeeblesStarsLindsay DuncanKevin McKiddPaula SageAn ambitious Scottish journalist is torn between a high-profile career and caring for his younger sister who has Downs Syndrome.Rather dour life drama from 2003 set in Scotland, but does include a good cast, including Eddie Marsden, Shirley Henderson and Kevin McKidd. A journalist, who is itching to follow up a story in Switzerland about a euthanasia clinic is hindered by his mother diagnosed with ovarian cancer and his Downs Syndrome sister, who his mother looks after. It has its moments though!
- DirectorJulien TempleStarsKeith AllenMichael GambonSteve JonesLondon: The Modern Babylon is legendary director Julien Temple's epic time-traveling voyage to the heart of his hometown.Ace documentary maker Julien Temple's affectionate ode to London and its multiculturalism, timed to coincide with the 2012 Olympics. Premiered on BBC2
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsJeremy IrvineEmily WatsonDavid ThewlisA young farm boy enlists to serve in World War I after his beloved horse is sold to the cavalry. His hopeful journey takes him out of England and onto the front lines as the war rages on.Missed this at the cinema, bought the DVD, love Spielberg. Bit too Disneyfied, corny in parts but there's no denying the power, either of the story or of the director's unapologetic emotional manipulation. Either moan and avoid or enjoy it, as I did!
- DirectorJohn CromwellStarsIrene DunneRex HarrisonLinda DarnellIn 1862, a young Englishwoman becomes royal tutor in Siam and befriends the King.Sumptuous black & white original of the evergreen but charmingly naive story. American Irene Dunne is spot-on as the English schoolmistress but Rex Harrison as the Siamese King is horribly miscast and just looks and sounds awful. Rarely shown on TV, though.
- DirectorSemih KaplanogluStarsBora AltasErdal BesikçiogluTülin ÖzenThe quiet life of a boy and his family is endangered when his father does not return home from his work collecting honey in the forest.Simple & meditative story set in the current day mountains of Turkey, of a travelling honey-collector and his ten year old son. Incredible photography and heightened use of natural sounds make this rather different, crawling pace allows the viewer to almost become part of their organic way of life.
- DirectorMichael AptedStarsRichard PryorRachel TicotinRubén BladesCon man Kevin Lennihan, framed in a jewel smuggling, tries for an insanity plea, and is sent to a hospital for review, where he is confused for a doctor and takes over the hospital when a major storm hits.Richard Pryor is seldom funny in this - it's the dreadfully unfunny material that lets both him and us down. Even worse is where he tries to get sentimental AND romantic - I almost needed hospital treatment myself!
- DirectorBenoît JacquotStarsDaniel AuteuilMarianne DenicourtJeanne BalibarA man prepares himself to be transferred to a detention center and rest home where he will relive one more time the highlights of his youth.Subscribing to French movie channel Cinemoi means I want to get my money's worth and and watch everything. This rather dry and straightforward drama about the infamous lewd libertine starring the usually very good Daniel Auteille is worthy but dull - certainly compared to the much more entertaining Quills.
- DirectorRaymond De FelittaStarsAndy GarciaJulianna MarguliesSteven StraitPrison guard Vince tells Molly from acting class, that one inmate is his 24 y.o. love child. Vince takes him home to stay with his family - straight A son with fat girl fetish, college dropout/stripper daughter and cute wife.Interesting and warm-hearted little indie movie, involving a family. Starring an unusually candid and vulnerable Andy Garcia, set in and around present-day The Bronx. Could almost be an adult version of the Simpsons, except he's a prison guard with a penchant for acting Marlon Brando, badly!
- DirectorAsghar FarhadiStarsPayman MaadiLeila HatamiSareh BayatA married couple are faced with a difficult decision - to improve the life of their child by moving to another country or to stay in Iran and look after a deteriorating parent who has Alzheimer's disease.I'd eagerly anticipated this Iranian Oscar winner for best world movie. Once into it, it becomes an ever increasingly gripping tale of everyday domesticity, except this is Tehran, there's an 80 year old Alzheimer's sufferer who's peed himself and needs changing and the female home help refuses to...sounds like a comedy, but this is definitely not. Tragic, intuitive and very believable and where religion and social circumstance turn this into almost a Shakespearian masterpiece.
- DirectorMike BarkerStarsPierce BrosnanMaria BelloGerard ButlerA perfect family's dynamic is ruined by a kidnapper's brutally efficient plot.Starring Pierce Brosnan, this flashy ransom movie has him being rather surly and mean rather too much. It does sort itself out though, with an ending that is both unseen and believable - rare these days.
- DirectorMario ZampiStarsTerry-ThomasGeorge ColeBrenda de BanzieIn this spoof on crime films, four would-be criminals manage to botch every job they plan. When they try to rob wealthy Billy Gordon (Terry-Thomas) they fail again. But the gang decides to kidnap his daughter.Part of the Terry-Thomas dvd collection, this has a whole load of Brit actors who went on to star in those (mostly) awful Carry On's. This is both smarter and far less peurile!
- DirectorUrsula MeierStarsIsabelle HuppertOlivier GourmetAdélaïde LerouxLife for an isolated rural family is upended when a major highway next to their property, constructed 10 years before but apparently abandoned, is finally opened.One of the best and most original movies I've ever seen.. Isabelle Huppard plays the mother of a happy but dysfunctional French family who live right bang on an unused autoroute. Then, one night, the road-rollers move in as it is resurfaced. Now open to heavy traffic and during a heatwave, the family (try to) carry on as before. Equally funny, tragic and environmentally very astute, this is an unusual, brave and superb movie.
- DirectorChristian DuguayStarsWesley SnipesDonald SutherlandMaury ChaykinUN's secretary general uses covert operations to help diplomacy along. Shaw's called back 6 months after one such operation. He witnesses the murder of Chinese UN ambassador at UN, NYC, chases the assassin and ends up a suspect.Overly flashy and chaotically directed crime/mob thriller, involving Triads, apparently. With Wesley Snipes, who's actually good. Plot has more holes in it than an old string vest and one gets to just not caring for anybody, or anything, except perhaps a premature ending!
- DirectorArthur HillerStarsGene WilderRichard PryorJill ClayburghOn a long-distance train trip, a man finds romance but also finds himself in danger of being killed, or at least pushed off the train.The best and worse of '70s Hollywood, personified. About a big, very long train, it's a mixture of Bond, Hitchcock and pure American 'biggism' and Gene Wilder partnering a very funny Richard Pryor.
- DirectorRob CurryTim PlesterStarsBilly BraggMyAnna BuringChris LeslieAs quintessentially homegrown as a game of cricket or a plate of fish-and-chips, Morris dancing is one of Englands most ancient roots traditions. And yet to your average man on the street, its seen as little more than a national joke. And a bad national joke at that. Something to ridicule. Something to be embarrassed about. Things have always been a little different for actor and filmmaker Tim Plester. Tim hails from a family of Morris dancers, and was raised in the quiet North Oxfordshire village of Adderbury; a community with a proud and fertile dancing history stretching back through the centuries. The tinkling of the shin-bells is part of his heritage. Part of his legacy. Part of his very folklore. And yet, despite the connections, Tim doesn't dance. Never has A heartfelt docu-ballad in praise of birthplace, bloodline and rural brotherhood, WAY OF THE MORRIS follows Tim on a deeply personal journey from the barleyfields of his childhood to the killing fields of The Somme, as he traces the poignant link between the spirited folk revival of the mid-1970s and the true story of the young Adderbury Morris side so decimated by the carnage of the First World War. Featuring contributions from singer/songwriter Billy Bragg and Fairport Conventions Chris Leslie, and utilizing treasured home-movie footage and rare village archive, what emerges is a timely and evocative exploration of the origins and impulses behind the Morris, and an attempt to understand its curious place within enchanted Britannia's ongoing story.Documentary oddity that was on Sky Arts. Enlightening and surprisingly well-made little film about these most maligned traditional dancers and how they not only keep up tradition but help maintain the organic link between our pagan past with current village life.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsLeon NiemczykJolanta UmeckaZygmunt MalanowiczA couple pick up a hitchhiker on the way to their yacht. The husband invites the young man to come along for their day's sailing. As the voyage progresses, the antagonism between the two men grows. A violent confrontation is inevitable.Roman Polanski's striking debut, made in his native Poland. Imagine a claustrophobic, gritty black & white version of the much later Hollywood Dead Calm, add some jazz and a running theme about a flick-knife.
- DirectorJean CocteauRené ClémentStarsJean MaraisJosette DayMila ParélyA beautiful young woman takes her father's place as the prisoner of a mysterious beast, who wishes to marry her.One of the most beautiful and quite scary of all fairytales, this sounds so much better with its native title - Belle et La Bete. Jean Cocteau's exquisitely imaginative sets and poetic light touch make this 1946 French version an equal to, if radically different alternative to Disney's animated Classic.
- DirectorCharles CrichtonStarsAlastair SimFrederick PiperHarry FowlerA gang of street boys foil a master crook who sends commands for robberies by cunningly altering a comic strip's wording each week, unknown to writer and printer. The first of the Ealing comedies.Apparently, Ealing's first comedy, the stars of which are mostly a gaggle of young kids who play around and in London's bombed-out just post-war East-end. A tall-tale about their favourite comic missing a page and so a race against time - and crooks! - to fill in the missing story. Highlights are Alistair Sim, as the reclusive creator of the comic and the often evocative on-location filming.
- DirectorJean RenoirStarsJean GabinDita ParloPierre FresnayDuring WWI, two French soldiers are captured and imprisoned in a German P.O.W. camp. Several escape attempts follow until they are eventually sent to a seemingly inescapable fortress.This classic anti-war French film from Jean Renoir is still seen as pertinent and influential. Not my favourite movie but it is often funny and is rather like Colditz crossed with Carry On, but all the WW1 guards are nice...
- DirectorAlain ResnaisStarsEmmanuelle RivaEiji OkadaStella DassasA French actress filming an anti-war film in Hiroshima has an affair with a married Japanese architect as they share their differing perspectives on war.Alain Resnais' directorial debut is a graphically intense but ultimately beautiful and sensual contrast between horrific aftermath with architectural new beginnings and an impassioned love affair. Literally blew me away when I first saw it; still grips.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsWinston ChaoMay ChinAh-Lei GuaTo satisfy his nagging parents, a gay landlord and a female tenant agree to a marriage of convenience, but his parents arrive to visit and things get out of hand.Taiwanese maestro director Ang Lee with his first feature made in the U.S is a clever, witty and poignant observation of cross culture and sexuality. A gay Taiwanese man living with his partner New York gets a visit from his old-fashioned parents, for, yes, his straight wedding!
- DirectorVittorio De SicaFederico FelliniMario MonicelliStarsAnita EkbergSophia LorenRomy SchneiderInspired by Boccaccio's novellas, each episode focuses on sex, love and seduction in Italy in the 1960s, an era of economic growth and major cultural changes.Portmanteau of four films that typify love and lust at a certain time in Italy, according to the big directors of the day. Bit hit and miss, with Fellini's the most entertaining.
- DirectorStephen KayStarsSylvester StalloneRachael Leigh CookMiranda RichardsonA Las Vegas mob enforcer travels back to his hometown to investigate his brother's mysterious death.The original remains one of Britain's best crime thrillers, so a remake with Stallone must be worth seeing? No, is the short answer!
- DirectorAng LeeStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiTang WeiJoan ChenDuring World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.Ang Lee's follow up to Brokeback Mountain - an erotically charged and intense drama set in wartime Shanghai. Probably one of my least favourite of Lee film's, it has a sour tone, but is, as you'd expect, is beautifully put together.
- DirectorJohn IrvinStarsColm MeaneyBernard HillShaun EvansIn 1965, Jimmy McMahon and his group of Liverpudlians plot to win the annual céilí music competition in Ireland.Nostalgic 1960's set Irish ceilidh music drama, where two brothers re-unite after 20 years at a Festival in rural Ireland. Andrea Corr is dreadful but as the two brothers, Colm Meaney and Bernard Hill are great, as is the music.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsAlastair SimArthur YoungOlga LindoA wealthy family is visited by a police inspector, who questions the family about the suicide of a young working-class woman.Alistair Sim is supremely masterful in this definitive version of the famous play by J B Priestley set in 1912. This BFI restoration is crisp and clean, too!
- DirectorRachid BoucharebStarsBrenda BlethynSotigui KouyatéSami BouajilaTwo strangers come to discover the fate of their respective children in the 2005 terrorist attacks on London.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsRobert PowellGeorgina HaleLee MontagueComposer Gustav Mahler's (Robert Powell) life, told in a series of flashbacks as he and his wife (Georgina Hale) discuss their failing marriage during a train journey.Ken Russell's more subtle examination, compared to many of his films, of the Austrian composer, suitably played by a scholarly and sensitive Robert Powell.
- DirectorHoward HughesEdmund GouldingJames WhaleStarsBen LyonJames HallJean HarlowBrothers Monte and Ray leave Oxford to join the Royal Flying Corps. Ray loves Helen; Helen enjoys an affair with Monte; before they leave on their mission over Germany they find her in still another man's arms.Howard Hughes' bankrupting personal mission that culminates in the biggest peace-time private fighter-plane airforce in the world and some of the most breathtaking dog-fight scenes ever committed to film. A must see, even just for its historical value.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsRichard BarthelmessDavid MannersJohnny Mack BrownWorld War I veterans roam Paris, drinking and admiring a woman they recently met.
- DirectorSam GarbarskiStarsMarianne FaithfullPredrag 'Miki' ManojlovicKevin BishopMiddle-aged Maggie must find a way to get enough money for her grandson's lifesaving medical treatment and lift the dwindling hopes of her only son Tom and his wife Sarah. Desperation leads the respectable widow to work in a sex club.Marianne Faithful is the grandmother who, naively gets to work in a Soho sex joint, when she desperately needs quick cash to pay for her grandson's life-saving operation in Australia. At times embarrassing and awkward and not always entirely plausible, this odd scenario ultimately works surprisingly well, just about keeping its credibility, as does its lead.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsDilip KumarVyjayanthimalaJohnny WalkerA young man takes shelter in a mansion when a landslide blocks his route to the railway station. Then, he finds the mansion familiar and soon learns about the story of his previous birth.Brooding and heated Indian melodrama, the epitome of early Bollywood. It's one that is very accessible to western audiences, with the sort of cinematic urgency and melodrama of say, Hitchcock's Rebecca. A surprise delight.
- DirectorJean-Pierre DardenneLuc DardenneStarsÉmilie DequenneFabrizio RongioneAnne YernauxYoung and impulsive Rosetta lives with her alcoholic mother and, moved by despair, she will do anything to maintain a job.A young Belgian woman, who has to look after her chronically sick alcoholic mother, tries in desperation to keep a job - any job. Emille Dequine puts heart and soul into her very physical performance - the camera sometimes finds it hard to keep up with her, not the usual other way around. Bittersweet, at times uncomfortable and ultimately rather unsatisfying social drama.
- DirectorUli EdelStarsJennifer Jason LeighStephen LangBurt YoungSet in Brooklyn during the 1950s against a backdrop of union corruption and violence. A prostitute falls in love with one of her customers. Also a disturbed man discovers that he is homosexual.A very hard-hitting novel gets a whack round the head, as we do. Sort of heated Tennessee Williams pot-boiler feel to it, turned up to a hardcore white- heat level. Interesting and entertaining but often difficult to watch but ultimately, rewarding.
- DirectorBimal RoyStarsDilip KumarSuchitra SenVyjayanthimalaThe scion of a wealthy landowner family turns to alcohol and self-pity and slowly self-destructs after class differences force him to break off his relationship with his childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorJean-Pierre MelvilleStarsAlain DelonFrançois PérierNathalie DelonAfter professional hitman Jef Costello is seen by witnesses his efforts to provide himself an alibi drive him further into a corner.A supremely accomplished 'modern' film-noir, stylishly shot in cool blues and greys. Alain Delon is the ultimate in supercool assassin; chiselled good looks that put Paul Newman down a peg or two and a detailed, completely engrossing story make this one of the French greats.
- DirectorCole S. McKayStarsJaz MartinHennely JimenezAnnaMaria DemaraAn amateur racer gets involved in illegal street racing after the death of his brother.Incredibly inept factually, this low budget straight to DVD petrolhead movie has pointless and boring story and frankly stupid characters. The odd street race are the only redeeming features, though there's no way any of these cars could even hope of ever getting 170, let alone 200mph!
- DirectorJacques TourneurStarsJoel McCreaVera MilesLloyd BridgesIn 1874, after noticing the total lawlessness in Wichita, Wyatt Earp reluctantly accepts the Marshal's job and runs into the worst local troublemakers.
- DirectorMike LeighStarsSally HawkinsAlexis ZegermanSamuel RoukinA look at a few chapters in the life of Poppy, a cheery, colorful, North London schoolteacher whose optimism tends to exasperate those around her.Mike Leigh's tale of the irritatingly always happy Poppy, played by Sally Hawkins is counterbalanced by Eddie Marsden, her driving instructor, who finds her even more irksome than we do. Sounds like a comedy, which it definitely isn't, especially when he blows his top and endangers them both, when she, again, wears unsuitable footwear. A lesser Leigh, one that can be ignored, frankly - it lacks his wry insight and just two or three characters in one his scripts just aren't enough to give satisfactory balance.
- DirectorEthan CoenJoel CoenStarsTom HanksMarlon WayansIrma P. HallAn eccentric, if not charming Southern professor and his crew pose as a classical ensemble in order to rob a casino, all under the nose of his unsuspecting but sharp old landlady.Look at this Coen bros as being a different film to the classic Ealing and don't compare and it then stands up much better. Deep southern humour is very different to that of the East End and at least the brothers know this. Tom Hanks though, doesn't quite have the authority of character to indelibly stamp his mark on it. Wrongly cast, maybe? But the movie is better than you may be lead to believe.
- DirectorFrançois TruffautStarsJacqueline BissetJean-Pierre LéaudFrançois TruffautA committed film director struggles to complete his movie while coping with a myriad of crises, personal and professional, among the cast and crew.Described by some as the French equivalent to Fellini's 8 and a half. It cleverly combines the sort of making a drama about shooting an actual film that the industry so loves, as 'they' are so in love with their craft. Francois Truffaut includes moody actresses, production difficulties and kittens that won't drink milk on cue. Subtle, knowing humour, but overall doesn't live up to its reputation, being rather underwhelming as a whole.
- DirectorLindsay AndersonStarsMalcolm McDowellRalph RichardsonRachel RobertsAn ambitious coffee salesman has a series of improbable and ironic adventures that seem designed to challenge his naive idealism.One of my all-time favourites, that I can watch at any time, despite its near 3 hour length. Odd sketch-like strands of story somehow merge into a baffling and brilliant stand against capitalism and everything nasty and modern. Malcolm McDowell is brilliant throughout, plus a whole cast of Brit who's who doing what you wouldn't expect them to. Particularly memorable for Alan Price's music and a sultry early performance by the groupie cum daughter of a millionaire tycoon, Helen Mirren. A treat.
- DirectorJames WhaleStarsClaude RainsGloria StuartWilliam HarriganA scientist finds a way of becoming invisible, but in doing so, he becomes murderously insane.For a film so old, this has special effects that are both clever and convincing. We never see the bandaged Claude Raines speak, only his voice or his invisibility remain with us. It's a fine, lesser known story from the genius of H G Wells. The original and best.
- DirectorJean-Stéphane SauvaireStarsChristophe MinieDaisy Victoria VandyJoseph DuoA cast of unknown performers are used in this drama about child soldiers fighting a war in the West African Country Liberia.Unfortunately, I just couldn't watch this world cinema film that centres around boys who are guerilla gun-toting killers. However worthy the film might be or what messages it contains, some things are beyond and I have my right to switch off, so I did.
- DirectorDario ArgentoStarsJames FranciscusKarl MaldenCatherine SpaakTwo journalists try to solve a series of murders connected to a pharmaceutical company's secret experiments, becoming targets of the killer themselves.
- DirectorKing VidorStarsAudrey HepburnHenry FondaMel FerrerNapoleon's tumultuous relations with Russia, including his disastrous 1812 invasion, serve as the backdrop for the tangled personal lives of two aristocratic families.Hollywood's take on Tolstoy's classic epic. In a lesser film, the mix of Henry Fonda, Audrey Hepburn and the superb cinematography of Jack Cardiff would be enough. Somehow it fails to match the peerless material and ultimately lacks something.
- DirectorBertrand TavernierStarsTommy Lee JonesJohn GoodmanPeter SarsgaardA detective in post-Katrina New Orleans has a series of surreal encounters with a troop of ghostly Confederate soldiers while investigating serial killings of local prostitutes, a 1965 lynching, and corrupt local businessmen.
- DirectorMichael CorrenteStarsDustin HoffmanDennis FranzSean NelsonLong-repressed feelings of bitterness and betrayal explode when three inner-city losers plot the robbery of a valuable coin in a seedy second-hand junk shop.David Mamet's play is adapted by him into this three character exchange set in a run-down, dusty New York junk shop. Locationally quite static, Dustin Hoffman, Dennis Franz and Sean Nelson are the very different guys who slowly fall-out over the coin in the title. Talky and intense, though not for everyone.
- DirectorFred NibloCharles BrabinChristy CabanneStarsRamon NovarroFrancis X. BushmanMay McAvoyA Jewish prince seeks to find his family and revenge himself upon his childhood friend who had him wrongly imprisoned.The impressive, equally ambitious (for its day) original 'Tale of the Christ'. Now beautifully tinted along with its extra 'colour sequence' this Silent now has a new stereo Carl Davis score. The chariot race is also impressive but we don't get Charlton Heston. Definitely worth checking out, especially if you're getting too familiar with the usual version.
- DirectorBéla TarrStarsMiklós Székely B.Vali KerekesGyula PauerA lonely barfly falls in love with a married bar singer.Bela Tarr's monochrome apocalytpic film-noir is visual misery, but incredibly poetic, with nods to Tarkovksy.
- DirectorAdam KaneStarsJames Van Der BeekWendy CrewsonJohn HeardWhile unveiling a series of international conspiracies, an FBI agent is embroiled in a set of political intrigues.Disappointing conspiracy thriller, supposedly based on actual events. Routine treatment amount to no more than elongated TV episode with bland actors.
- DirectorJon HurwitzHayden SchlossbergStarsJohn ChoKal PennNeil Patrick HarrisAfter being mistaken for terrorists and thrown into Guantánamo Bay, stoners Harold and Kumar escape and return to the U.S., where they proceed to flee across the country with federal agents in hot pursuit.Funnier than it should be, as it's crude, un-PC and often immoral, with toilet humour, lots of nudity and the last American President....A guilty pleasure.
- 1971– 2h 21mTV-G8.1 (34)TV EpisodeDirectorJon SmallStarsBilly JoelTony BennettGarth BrooksThe last performance by anyone at this iconic Long Island stadium. Paul McCartney flew in specially. Programme had lots of info about Joel, Long Island and baseball. Shown on Sky Arts.
- DirectorSylvain ChometStarsJean-Claude DondaEilidh RankinDuncan MacNeilA French illusionist finds himself out of work and travels to Scotland, where he meets a young woman. Their ensuing adventure changes both their lives forever.The late, great Jacques Tahti himself wrote this charmingly animated fable and the creator of Belleville Rendez-vous has relocated it to vaudeville London and then to a rose-tinted Edinburgh. The stage musician in question is an obvious, affectionate parody of Tahti. A lot quieter and less quirky than Belleville it does have some eccentric flourishes and characters, though unfortunately these alone cannot raise the whole to the greatness its credentials have set.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraMinoru ChiakiAn aging Japanese industrialist becomes so fearful of nuclear war that it begins to take a toll on his life and family.Part of the BFI Kurosawa Classic Collection, this has ageing Toshiro Mifune, who's taken to court by his family, to rule him mentally unfit, as his constant, profound fear of nuclear annihilation has lead him to attempt to sell the foundry they all rely on and relocate them all to a farm in Brazil. Kurosawa masterfully blends topical cold-war paranoia into a touching, interesting drama, that has touches of director Ozu to it.
- DirectorWallace WorsleyStarsLon ChaneyPatsy Ruth MillerNorman KerryIn 15th-century Paris, the brother of the archdeacon plots with the gypsy king to foment a peasant revolt. Meanwhile, a freakish hunchback falls in love with a gypsy dancer.Creaky old Silent of the familiar story has a memorable and spirited performance from Lon Chaney as Quasimodo and Patsy Ruth Miller is suitably beguiling and lovely as his Esmeralda. I still prefer the quintessential 1939 Charles Laughton movie - on every level, but this still watchable.
- DirectorRobert HamerHal E. ChesterCyril FrankelStarsIan CarmichaelTerry-ThomasAlastair SimA young man finds a very special school. It teaches him how to take advantage of people. He begins to put the lessons into operation.One of the best Brit comedies of the '60s, made by the central casting of dastardly rogues Terry-Thomas & Ian Carmichael. Throw in the equally scurrilous Alistair Sim as the mastermind beyond the whole scam and you get a delicious, heady mix.
- DirectorPaul GrossStarsPaul GrossMichael GreyeyesJames KotThe lives of a troubled veteran, his nurse girlfriend and a naive boy intersect first in Alberta and then in Belgium during the bloody World War I battle of Passchendaele.Disappointing WW1 drama that amateurishly mixes cloying romance with characters we can't root for and ends up as a dog's dinner that is ultimately more of an insult to all who fell there rather than the memorial we know it should be.
- DirectorWilliam MarshallRobert FloreyStarsErrol FlynnMicheline PresleVincent PriceA sea captain becomes involved with a servant girl in early New Orleans. She sees him as a way to gain access into wealthy households.Hoary old nonsense starring a young Vincent Price and an old Errol Flynn. Their age difference is marked, specially as they're supposed to be love rivals! Story something about something naval set in the early 19th century. Very forgettable - and not very good.
- DirectorAnatole LitvakStarsBarbara StanwyckBurt LancasterAnn RichardsWhile on the telephone, an invalid woman overhears what she thinks is a murder plot and attempts to prevent it.Barbara Stanwyck is the invalid, stuck in bed, her husband on a date with a younger woman, her nurse given the night off, when she gets a crossed line on the phone. A murder is planned by the voices on the other end. Whose? Not hers, surely? Still effective film-noir thriller, nicely retro now that we're in the digital/satellite age, not crossed lines and telephone exchanges.
- DirectorMahamat-Saleh HarounStarsYoussouf DjaoroDiouc KomaEmile Abossolo M'boPresent-day Chad. Adam, fifty-five, a former swimming champion, is pool attendant at a smart N'Djamena hotel. When the hotel gets taken over by new Chinese owners, he is forced to give up his job to his son Abdel. Terribly resentful, he feels socially humiliated. The country is in the throes of a civil war. Rebel forces are attacking the government. The authorities demand that the population contribute to the "war effort", giving money or volunteers old enough to fight off the assailants. The District Chief constantly harasses Adam for his contribution. But Adam is penniless; he only has his son....
- DirectorPhilippe MoraStarsDennis HopperJack ThompsonDavid GulpililThe true story of Irish outlaw Daniel Morgan, who is wanted, dead or alive, in Australia during the 1850s.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsRichard AttenboroughJudy GeesonJohn HurtWhat happened to the women at 10 Rillington Place? The story of British serial killer John Christie, who committed most or all of his crimes in the titular terraced house, and the miscarriage of justice involving Timothy Evans.Before the infamous Fred & Rose West, 10 Rillington Place was the home and final resting place for those unfortunate enough to cross paths with its landlord. Richard Attenborough has probably never been better as the complex and evil bitter man who entraps his victims through his disguise as a medically discharged doctor. John Hurt is quite superb too, as the illiterate Welsh lodger, who moves in with his wife.
- DirectorSteve KlovesStarsJeff BridgesMichelle PfeifferBeau BridgesThe lives of two struggling musicians, who happen to be brothers, inevitably change when they team up with a beautiful, up-and-coming singer.Perfectly schmaltzy, yet classy. What better sight is there than Michelle Pfeiffer, skin-tight clad in a red dress, draped over a gleaming grand piano, singing sultry jazz? It's an adult story that has no final easy answers but is accessible and enjoyable throughout, with real-life brothers Jeff and Beau Bridges. A smattering of humour, lack of crude gags and finally, Dave Grusin's Oscar-nominated jazz score all raise it to a minor, modern classic.
- DirectorJohn SchlesingerStarsJulie ChristieDirk BogardeLaurence HarveyBeautiful but amoral model Diana Scott sleeps her way to the top of the London fashion scene at the height of the Swinging Sixties.
- DirectorFrank OzStarsRobert De NiroEdward NortonMarlon BrandoAn aging thief hopes to retire and live off his ill-gotten wealth with his lover when a young kid convinces him into doing one last heist that comes with a large payout.
- DirectorNoel ArchambaultDavid DouglasRoman KroitorStarsMick JaggerKeith RichardsCharlie WattsA filming of the 1990 Rolling Stones "Steel Wheels" concert that traveled Europe. This was filmed in the IMAX process, which allows the film to be projected in a size ten times the size of a regular 35mm projected image.
- DirectorMike LeighStarsJim BroadbentRuth SheenLesley ManvilleA look at four seasons in the lives of a happily married couple and their relationships with their family and friends.
- DirectorPenelope SpheerisStarsMike MyersDana CarveyRob LoweTwo slacker friends try to promote their public-access cable show.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsGlenn FordIngrid ThulinCharles BoyerIn Argentina, one daughter of patriarch Madariaga is married to a Frenchman while the other is married to a German thus leading to a crisis when Nazi Germany occupies France and some Madariaga family members fight on opposite sides.
- DirectorMarcel CarnéStarsJean GabinMichel SimonMichèle MorganA military deserter finds love and trouble (and a small dog) in a foggy, French port city.
- DirectorPhillip NoyceStarsMichael CaineBrendan FraserDo Thi Hai YenAn old British reporter vies with a young U.S. doctor for the affections of a beautiful Vietnamese woman.
- DirectorFederico FelliniStarsDonald SutherlandTina AumontCicely BrowneGiacomo Casanova uses his sexuality to find his place in life amid eccentric and strange characters.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsKarolina GruszkaKrzysztof MajchrzakGrace ZabriskieAs an actress begins to adopt the persona of her character in a film, her world becomes nightmarish and surreal.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsRobert MitchumTrevor HowardJohn MillsSet in the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising, a married woman in a small Irish village has an affair with a troubled British officer.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsCharles LaughtonJohn MillsBrenda de BanzieWidower Henry Hobson refuses to let his three daughters get married because he doesn't want to pay settlements, so they'll just have to outsmart him.
- DirectorMichael ThornhillStarsPaul CouzensEva DickinsonCarl SteverBankstown, NSW, Australia, 1970s. Kevin and his mate Bob spend their time drinking and cruising around the western suburbs of Sydney in Kevin's yellow FJ Holden, looking for girls. One day Kevin meets Anne. Anne works in a large shopping center. Anne and Kevin spend some time together until one day Kevin gets drunk and tries to make love to Anne with Bob watching. Anne throws them out of her house. When Anne later refuses to be pacified, Kevin becomes aggressive and causes a scene at a party. The police are called. Kevin escapes but later returns home to find the police waiting there for him.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsKeith CarradineKaren BlackRonee BlakleyOver the course of a few hectic days, numerous interrelated people prepare for a political convention.
- DirectorDavid GleesonStarsEriq EbouaneyGerard McSorleyJames FrainAn African immigrant bank security guard turns the tables on Dublin's nastiest criminals when they force him to be the "inside man" on a bank robbery
- DirectorPil-sung YimStarsCheon Jeong-myeongEun Won-jaeShim Eun-kyungAfter meeting a mysterious girl on an dark stretch of road, a young salesman is invited to a beautiful house with bizarre secrets and no way to escape.Creepy Korean slant on classic Fairy Story that's not for kids. Premiered on Film4
- DirectorBurt KennedyStarsBuddy EbsenKeir DulleaLois NettletonElderly Will Lane arranges marriage of wild son of dead friend to tame him.Rumbustious B western, with unknown cast but is spirited and quite likeable.
- DirectorAnh Hung TranStarsKen'ichi MatsuyamaRinko KikuchiKiko MizuharaToru recalls his life in the 1960s, when his friend Kizuki killed himself and he grew close to Naoko, Kizuki's girlfriend, and another woman, the outgoing, lively Midori.Slow, often poignant and beautiful movie that maybe has lost something in translation from book to screen. I enjoyed it, though.
- DirectorTakashi MiikeStarsKoji YakushoTakayuki YamadaYûsuke IseyaA group of assassins come together for a suicide mission to kill an evil lord.Apparently, a better remake of a 1960's film that follows the familiar theme of Seven Samurai, collaborating in feudal Japan to overthrow an evil and tyrannical warlord. Gripping, gritty and well-made.
- DirectorAki KaurismäkiStarsJanne HyytiäinenMaria JärvenhelmiMaria HeiskanenIn Helsinki, a lonely night watchman is caught up in a series of misadventures with a femme fatale and a crooked businessman.Nicely odd Finnish film-noir, set in Helsinki. OK, night security guard Janne Hyytianen isn't quite a contemporary Bogart, nor does his name slip off the tongue so readily, but this is, cool, languid and strangely enticing.
- DirectorGeorge NolfiStarsMatt DamonEmily BluntLisa ThoresonThe affair between a politician and a contemporary dancer is affected by mysterious forces keeping the lovers apart.The natural chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt is sweet and believable and raise this one above other time warped 'fate' movies, as do the New York settings.
- DirectorJane CampionStarsNicole KidmanJohn MalkovichBarbara HersheyAn American girl inherits a fortune and falls into a misguided relationship with a gentleman confidence artist whose true nature, including a barbed and covetous disposition, turns her life into a nightmare.Jane Campion's rather dull and plodding 2.5 hours of Henry James' novel. Nicole Kidman, John Malkovich, Barbara Hershey and Richard E Grant all are very convincing and authentic and the story is interesting enough, but one definitely more for ardent period buffs than your average modern CGI enthusiast. I'm somewhere in the middle!
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsRobert RedfordPeter BoyleMelvyn DouglasBill McKay is a candidate for the U.S. Senate from California. He has no hope of winning, so he is willing to tweak the establishment.Perfect casting for Robert Redford, as the blue-eyed congressman, on his long, uphill journey in US politics. Looks dated now but still interesting; certainly well written and directed. Solid, sensible entertainment.
- DirectorOliver StoneStarsSean PennJennifer LopezNick NolteA man heading to Vegas to pay off his gambling debt before the Russian mafia kills him is forced to stop in an Arizona town where everything that can go wrong does go wrong.Oliver Stone's hallucinogenic Texas-set crime thriller, with Jennifer Lopez and Sean Penn. Sort of desert road movie, but cranked up set of scenarios and characters make an interesting film from a fairly cliched plot. Ultimately too long and wearing; not Stone's best but certainly with his distinctive style, before he sold out to 'banal normality'.
- DirectorRobert RedfordStarsDonald SutherlandMary Tyler MooreJudd HirschThe accidental death of the older son of an affluent family deeply strains the relationships among the bitter mother, the good-natured father and the guilt-ridden younger son.Rather sombre but extremely well written and acted family drama, that starts dutifully on a subject that most of us wouldn't want to watch. Somehow, it draws us in and keeps us there, even if it looks dated now. Deals with personal loss, mental health and social stigma amongst middle-class America like no other film I know. Not a difficult to watch film either, being non-confrontational, nor sentimental, but a good balance all-round.
- DirectorStephen PoliakoffStarsRomola GaraiEddie RedmayneJuno TempleThe adopted daughter of a privileged British politician uncovers a family secret in the weeks leading up to World War II.A decent BBC film that made it into the cinema, from renowned TV dramatist Stephen Poliakoff. Named after the summer that preceded the outbreak of WWII and charts a titled family's journey from rustic idyll to the devious depravities of a country ill-prepared for another war with Germany, so soon after the 'war to end all wars'. A stellar cast of familiar Brits a bonus.
- DirectorM. Night ShyamalanStarsBruce WillisSamuel L. JacksonRobin WrightA man learns something extraordinary about himself after a devastating accident.M Night Shamalyan before he got all spooky and obtuse - and when he still had original ideas. Bruce Willis is his true self - that's a given but it's an unfamiliar Samuel L Jackson as a wheelchair bound collector of comics that's the interesting part. The story is familiar sort of supernatural that is Shamalyan's trademark, that's convincing enough, but this one has it via its interesting characters.
- DirectorFlorian Henckel von DonnersmarckStarsJohnny DeppAngelina JoliePaul BettanyRevolves around Frank, an American tourist visiting Italy to mend a broken heart. Elise is an extraordinary woman who deliberately crosses his path.I gave this 2/10 first time round, now it's 4. There won't be a third time, but for most this shouldn't even ever be a second. Or a first...
- DirectorChris MillerStarsAntonio BanderasSalma HayekZach GalifianakisAn outlaw cat, his childhood egg-friend, and a seductive thief kitty set out in search for the eggs of the fabled Golden Goose to clear his name, restore his lost honor, and regain the trust of his mother and town.I actually loved most of this - a natural expansion for Antonio Banderas' voiced Cat in the Shrek movies. Title is misleading; this is no animated Pantomine, but has a clever script, inc a brilliant link to Fight Club which helps adults. Salma Hayek is perfect (no feline orientated play on words there) as his love interest. Great action scenes, decent enough animation plus knowing mockery of Mexican films and Spanish culture bring this up to something well worth watching. Not quite up there with the best but a light, pleasant surprise.
- DirectorSydney PollackStarsDustin HoffmanJessica LangeTeri GarrMichael Dorsey, an unsuccessful actor, disguises himself as a woman in order to get a role on a trashy hospital soap.Feels dated today, in both concept and on-screen. Undoubtedly said a lot at the time, exactly (and only) twenty years ago - probably one of the most significant films of the early 80's. Remains a fine acting vehicle for Dustin Hoffman, too and well worth watching for this alone.
- DirectorBrian GilbertStarsStephen FryJude LawVanessa RedgraveThe turmoil in poet/playwright Oscar Wilde's life after he discovers his homosexuality.Though you could quibble that Stephen Fry isn't Irish and perhaps not considered a leading actor, he is perfect here. As are his fellow leads; Jude Law the epitome of the young, smug and spoilt lover of Wilde's and a superb early performance by the then unknown Michael Sheen. I, for one, can't see how this film could be bettered.
- DirectorUberto PasoliniStarsDharmapriya DiasGihan De ChickeraDharshan DharmarajA group of sad slum residents, living on the limits of society under immense pressure, find an invitation to a handball tournament in Bavaria.This 'Cool Runnings' for the Sri Lankan handball team was disappointing. Poorly made, esp for a modern Germanic funded film, but it still had its humour and quirks. It is subtitled and may suit those in a more receptive mood for comedy than I was in.
- DirectorGary SinyorStarsDavid ArtusKevin FurlongNicholas SelbySpoofs Merchant-Ivory films: Aunt Agnes (Prunella Scales) tries to force Emily (Georgina Cates) to marry boring Cedric Trilling (Robert Portal) by taking her to Italy and India in hopes will forget about handsome George (Sean Pertwee).One of the very few films mocking the period drama genre - and does it superbly and often, hilariously. Suitably OTT acting mocks even more, either in gesticulated gesture or stony-faced deadpan in the face of ironic adversity. Good Brit cast. Loved it.
- DirectorTed KotcheffStarsGregory PeckDesi Arnaz Jr.Jack WardenAfter a bank robbery, runaway Scottish outlaw Arch Deans and his young half breed Kiowa partner Billy Two Hats develop a father-son relationship but Sheriff Henry Gifford is determined to capture or kill them.Interestingly titled, Sam Peckinpah type of gritty western that has an ageing Gregory Peck as a thick-accented and bearded Scot. Billy 'Two Hats' is a young half Indian and the two become fugitives and unlikely friends after a bungled bank robbery. The usually kindly Jack Warden is a violent and racist sheriff who relentlessly tracks them down. Unusual in its casting but generally good and watchable. Filmed in Israel.