Film Reviews by JD

Coltrane is always good value, Thompson and Wilson should make this a gas, but it didn't do it for me. I found it a bit slow and inconsequencial. The plot is slow, the photography indifferent, the whole thing lacks interest. Don't get me wrong, it is not bad, the characters are great and brilliantly played, the interactions are interesting, but I couldn't sustain motivation and didn't watch disc 2.

Harpo's dreadful acting used to bother me, the badly dubbed musical interludes still do, but Groucho's panache has got to warm the soul on the coldest day. It is incredibly corny but I smiled because it was.

A lot of top 10 lists seem to be appearing in magazines. This was in one. It is an old film with picture and sound quality of the era. The dialogue is fast and furious with numerous cunning plots devised in an instant by the character of Cary Grant. This film I would imagine would have a market in the 60 - 80 year old bracket, for whom it may be a masterpiece. Not quite for me however.

Exploring the emotions surrounding the news of a short life expectancy, this is sensitively but humorously crafted by two mature actors. Sometimes a bit limp but generally an interesting idea well explored.

There are few films which portray the 70s so well (Life on Mars springs to mind). I recalled so many of the details of these Olympics and was amazed that it made so many things make sense. Why for example Mark Spitz won 7 gold medals then disappeared. It shows the Germans in a very poor light. If they were hoping to put the spectre of the Jewish genocide behind them, their actions during this episode failed miserably. Was the total cock up, blunder or design? The faked hijacking and release of the Black September group makes blunder unlikely.

There have been several holocaust films each with a different message this was the most intensely horrifying and emotional by far. Extremely violent. Some of the acting was a bit thin (not Lipman's nor Finlay's finest) but utterly exhausting.

I remember this psychological experiment and was part of the reason for requesting the DVD. The actual result is shocking enough without having to exaggerate so wildly. It is very gripping and all the actors are remarkably good (the Germans have a glut of good actors I wish they spoke English). Very good to the point that it was decided to invent a bit more. This time should have been spent on analysis of the realisation of the vulnerability of the human mind.

A gem. This has recently been appearing in must see and top 10 lists and absolutely deserves this recognition. It is light hearted, mad, but most importantly different. Outstanding and totally memorable.

Irons and Whitaker are brilliant. The plot is great plenty of twists and a good balance of tension with gentleness. Not outstanding but recommended as a good all-rounder.

A swashbuckling full on action drama. The frequent references to the Natural History of the Gallapagos were a bit confusing. In fact most of the plot was a bit soft. Outstanding acting all round but most surprisingly from the younger cast.

It doesn't sound like a promising plot but believe me this is brilliant. Brilliant acting and unusually moving musical sections. The pace is slow but this is integral for the beautiful movement of the film.

Easily Steve Martin's best film (Man with 2 brains second). I've seen it twice. There are millions of throw away lines and images which are completely brilliant.

The pace is very slow the photography simple and with very little dialogue it is strangely memorable and moving. Its unusualness is its main recommendation.

The beauty of this film is the characterisations. Some are quite bazaar but utterly convincing. The gentle interactions and reactions. The problem is that the plot rambles on never really in any way gripping and pulling the senses.

About a year ago Barry Norman had his top 100 films published in a paper. I watched as many as I could bear and eventually gave up. They were all like this. Desperately dated very slow and soporific. I don't mind an elegant film but it has to keep going.