Film Reviews by CD

I really enjoyed this vintage film. A stellar cast and a very positive film in its strong anti racist message, extremely impressive for the late 1960s and very relevant now.  The way that racism is covered from many different angles in a very human way makes this a thought provoking film, but it is also a very enjoyable film for the locale and the quality of acting.

I very much enjoyed this film in spite of the mixed reviews. The cast and acting are strong with two excellent lead characters, and I liked the Spanish setting.  It’s not a pure horror film but it is quite unnerving at times and is a lot more sophisticated that most recent examples in the genre.  It is fairly short and the tension is better for it. Recommended if you like a bit of subtlety.

I was attracted to seeing Kevin Bacon in a new role.  Unfortunately the plot is not sufficient to create any real suspense or tension, in spite of the efforts of the cast.  You know that the film is going an unadventurous route when Kevin keeps having nightmares.  It could have done with a lot more real manifestations and perhaps a few more sinister external characters than the man in the grocery store.  

Definitely one of the most interesting music documentaries of the late 1960s and early 1970s I have seen.  All the great LA bands, good footage, fascinating anecdotes and superb music excerpts and photos.  Bonus of seeing their lifestyles in Laurel Canyon. Highly recommended!

This is a difficult and unsettling film showing the destructive impact of abuse as a child on the main character’s life.  It is hard to see where it is going for the first 30 mins and the flashbacks only become meaningful later in the film.  There is little on the trading floors, a bit more about wild lifestyles - but the strength of the film is in the quality of the acting leads, the father-mother-son relationships,  and the way the film shows the impact of the abuse on the main character’s behaviour as an adult. 

This film is very different from “Get Out” but is impressive and enjoyable.  The cast and acting are great and there is a decent twist to it.  There is also some clever humour - I particularly enjoyed the use of a discordant version of Henry Mancini’s Lujon in the soundtrack towards the end of the film.  The film can be enjoyed at several levels and for me really sparked off after about 20 mins.

I quite enjoyed this film and would rate it between a 3 and 4 star.  The dialogue is a bit awkward but forgivable given the assumed intention to recreate some of the more formal speech patterns in the 19th century.  The acting is generally good and the scenery is a definite positive.  The plot is the main weakness and the action sequences seem rather thrown together, but this is compensated by the second half of the film where the pace slows a bit and the personalities are brought out more.  It is a bit frustrating that the lead characters never really question the wrong they are doing under the cover of war.  Definitely worth a watch, especially if you enjoyed the director’s Jane Austen work by way of comparison.

In its own way, this film is impressive and hard hitting.  The lead actor Betty Gilpin is very good and the tempo is kept at a high level.  It is all rather gory but there is some dark humour as well.  Well worth a watch but don’t expect a sophisticated plot!

I was a bit disappointed given the calibre and credentials of the actors and director.  I was also expecting a lot from the 1970s soundtrack but the music seemed to detract at times from the action.  It is all very gory and the baddies are certainly unpleasant, but the lead characters are not very likeable either and the conclusion is not very satisfying.  I prefer other Steve McQueen movies but this is still worth a watch.

This is a tough film to watch but is well worth it for the quality of the acting and the sensitive handling of the break up of a family.  The way that the background to the sexual tensions comes out is remarkably well handled.  The scenes in the prison when the lead character visits his Mother are very moving.  All in all, a high class movie.

This film has some real positives: the two lead actors and the chemistry between them, the mix of characters that drift in and out of the scenes, the soundtrack, some of the script. However, I found the overall film frustrating to watch, as there is a lack of continuity and flow, and the gambling scenes seem fairly mundane. A number of the scenes seem to introduce unnecessary violence that leads nowhere and means nothing to the plot. Overall worth a watch but prepare to be tempted to use the fast forward at times.

I expected quite a lot from this film, but was a little disappointed.  The actors and the script are very good, and there is plenty of light humour, but it ambles along rather slowly.  The typhoon does nothing to change the tempo and the film moves to a rather flat and unresolved conclusion.  On the plus side it is great to see a bit more of day to day family life in Japan.  The theme track may appeal to some as well.

This film is well worth a watch if you like an offbeat police movie with a time traveller type twist.  The acting is solid and the scenes towards the end build to a decent climax with some interesting scenarios on how changes in the future could change a past crime.  The context, plot and dialogue are otherwise quite limited despite the worthy efforts of the main characters to inject realism and impact.

This is a totally absorbing film entirely justifying the great reviews it seems to get from most critics. The portrayal of the singlemindedness, courage and frailties of the active resistance members and the moral dilemmas and risks they face day-to-day is well told. The acting is great and there are some good quite unexpected action sequences. The locations and weather are grim and a lot of the filming is in twilight or at night. The film really asks the audience what they would do - go on with life as normal, or take the dangerous path of resistance and potential betrayal.

This is a real triumph of capturing what must be a fast disappearing world in Macedonia and the Balkans. Ironically The challenge to Hatidze and her bees is less modernism than the movement of a large and rather chaotic family and their cattle who take up residence nearby. The treatment by the film of the family is compassionate, but steadily Hatidze's life with her bees is eroded, although there is hope of a return to normality by the end. The film is quite raw and unsentimental at times, but brings out the humanity of all those involved. The relationship between Hatidze and her ageing mother is beatifully told. It must have been tricky to get the bees to follow the script, but generally they seem to behave quite well!