Film Reviews by PV

This is superb drama - rare for the BBC but then this was 2008,. Now the only decent drama on BBC is bought in from private production companies (Vienna Blood, Peaky Blinders, The Night Manager etc). Most is lazy easy drama for the largely female middle-aged audience (Call the Midwife anyone?)

This would have been 5 stars BUT it sags badly at the end. That last episode (no spoilers) was maybe not necessary, if the penultimate episode were tweaked. THAT is precisely what they did in the US remake THE NIGHT OF (2016), also good with a snappier ending. They cut the flab and it works better.

However, the first 4 episodes are brilliant. Ben Wishaw is brilliant in everything he does and other actors do well too. The late Pete Postlethwaite is superb in one of his last performances; not sure about David Harewood who always seems to play...David Harewood. Michael K Williams in the US version was so much better. Nice to see Southend again as well.

I would say the plot is not realistic. Again maybe the US version is more believable. But hey, it's drama! It can do that if written well, as this is.

Watching series 2 soon but do not expect it to be as good as series 1.

Anyway 4 stars. Decent British crime drama, for once.

The reason films like this in recent years seem radical and new to US audiences is that they had NO kitchen sink drama over there as the UK had from the 50s on - we had our social realist films then and after (like KES), showing real poor people failing at life. Shane Meadows continues that tradition.

I must say I am not always a fan, and never sure re improvised acting of real people BUT it is all part of the whole. The point is we in Britain are well used to it; the Americans are not as most movies there portray rich people NOT the underclass. So this film is useful for that.

The problem is that this convoluted movie (which is 30 minutes too long at last) cannot decide if it is that or some bedroom farce or BOOGIE NIGHTS so often it's a bit of a mess. No doubt Americans find it hilarious. I yawned a lot.

Great lead actor BUT I have a problem with why we have so much male full-frontal nudity (even though fake) and yet when a woman he has slept with gets out of bed she has her underpants on! Now THAT is sexism.

3 stars. Better than The Florida Project which I gave 2.

I was not sure what to expect of this and it does indeed fall part-way between a European film and a Hollywood movie.

Constantly shifting sands of suspicion keep the drama tense - and I was never sure what would happen next. Some parts were a genuine surprise.

The focus on Denmark is interesting. Watch LAND OF MINE to see another Danish WWII-set drama.

4 stars

This started as a BBC Radio 2 radio drama by Rachel Joyce, a long-time radio drama writer. Her agent encouraged her to turn it into a novel, which she did - and it became a best-seller, mostly amongst female readers, I suspect.

Like many radio dramas, it ticks a lot of boxes, creating unlikely characters to mirror others etc. The usual parachuted in BAME characters in what are almost all-white parts of England too (probably not in the novel). The usual manblaming - no spoilers.

However, what most people will not realise is how unoriginal this is. First and Last, a 1989 TV drama starring Joss Ackland, is the same idea - a man sets off on foot to walk the length of England, meeting quirky characters along the way. No cancer theme in that, true, but basically the same. I wish TV would repeat it as it was as both sad and funny, but NOT slushy and overly sentimental as this film is.

I particularly disliked the spiritual/mystical/faith element though some may like that. I found many characters unbelievable. No spoilers but just to say a qualified doctor is well able to work as a doctor in the UK NHS, direct or for agencies, with adequate English... I did not believe in many of the characters, though the two main actors do their best with a script dripping with lardy schmaltz.

The first half works best, the second half irritates and I just could not believe any of it. SO 3 stars for the first half; 2 stars for the second, 2.5 overall rounded up.

Just to add, THIS is a description of FIRST AND LAST (1989 TV drama): "Rather than relax in retirement, British senior citizen Alan Holly (Joss Ackland) embarks on a journey in which he will walk the entire length of England, from Land's End in southwestern Cornwall to John o'Groats in northern Scotland. While his wife, Audrey (Pat Heywood), finds his undertaking bewildering, she supports him nonetheless. As Alan makes his way from south to north, he meets a wide range of English people and has many moments of quiet reflection."

The first half of this film is brilliant! No spoilers, but I loved the first twist and did not see it coming (like the others).

It then becomes more horror movie than psychological thriller.

Still, it's a great film along the lines of 'Misery' or 'The Butterfly Room' (2012).

I loved the main characters - all women - especially than older woman. There have been a LOT of female-dominated films since metoo and most have been atrocious and total flops too. This is not one of them.

4 stars

I enjoyed this - especially the first half.

It then gets rather OTT and convoluted. Plots is not seriously believable but it is entertaining enough.

I saw the twist coming a mile off from an early plant in the story.

Based on a novel that got decent reviews; the novelist wrote the screenplay. Some nifty snappy dialogue.

I'd recommend DIRTY PRETTY THINGS more, however, which covers similar ground.

I LOVED the subversive Christmas film RARE EXPORTS by the same writer director - 5 stars for that.

This however is DREADFUL - a sub-Tarantino grand guignol gorefest as tedious as the awful over-rated Inglorios Basterds or whatever nonsense fake spelling the over-rated Quentin used.

Divided into chapters - always a bad sign,. Pretentious nonsense. Watch THE WINTER WAR for a Finnish film instead or WILD MEN which is fun.

Cartoon character violence from a main character who should be in a comic book - I did not believe a single word or scene, the whole thing is absurd. like SUperman, but way more boring.

I almost want to give this 1 start, but 1.5 rounded up.

this is a US remake of the 2007 UK crime TV drama CRIMINAL JUSTICE starring the great Ben Wishaw. Peter Moffat and producer jane Tranter went to the USA so this happened.. I have not watched CRIMINAL JUSTICE but will, and compare.

In general, this is overlong - could have been 4 episodes. It rambles esp in later episodes. The initial episode is great and the next, esp the first contact with police and the cell, the shock of the suspect, the sudden horror of a night spinning out of control.

The Muslim family is portrayed as SO angelic it's a wonder they did not sprout wings - I disliked that 2 dimensional portrayal (watch FOUR LIONS to see how many are in the UK). FYI the USA does not have many Pakistani Muslim immigrants compared to the Uk and most in USA are middle class and educated; most who came to the UK came from villages and are often lower socio-economic class village farmers so not educated or in professional jobs, A real difference.

And it is not good, i do not like Riz Ahmed much as an actor - the same doe-eyed act, puppy dog eyes all innocence - the upper class regular Asian features no doubt help his acting career, He is from a very posh privately-educated background, dad a shipping broker, grandad a SHAH so royal. Hardly council estate material or disadvantaged at all.

Michael K Williams here aged 50 is brilliant - he was dead at 54 from a drugs overdone, heroin and fentanyl (the latter the opioid that has killed 100,000 in the USA incl Prince of course).

Shocking of course these US prison scenes, I had no idea there were dorms in US prisons like this. The story itself is fairly unlikely.

Not sure if I like or dislike the shambling lawyer, all very Columbo scruff but reminds me of OCD TV detective Monk too. The tiresome illness theme is probably supposed to be a metaphor of a sick society and sick criminal justice system but....

4 stars JUST. A flawed drama that could have been better and shorter.

Ok so the HAUNTING and seance trope has been done MANY times, brilliantly in classics like NIGHT OF THE DEMON (it's in the trees, it's coming, Kate...) or even THE OMEN, but it's always nice to watch a really effective and efficient new attempt.

So timely, bang on the zietgiest, filmed in 2020, entirely consisting of zoom screens - in a very girly Friday night boozy lockdown zoom meeting online. Utterly believable.

Yes it's all hokum, all stuff and nonsense, BUT what horror film is not?

Slick and efficient at less than an hour running times - please take note self-indulgent Hollywood directors of 3 hours borefest yawnsome movies (the average movie length is 2 hoyurs 20 minutes there days; always used to be 90 minutes, which is THE OMEN length).

Do not think about it TOO much, just watch and feel - it is creepy and full of jumps and scares. VERy wisely the director chose not to show too much of the - you know whats.

All about facial expression and tension, expectation.

I loved it actually, Best horror film I have watched for ages. 4.5 stars rounded up.

I enjoyed this - and anything with the WONDERFUL Ben Wishaw in is worth watching! Also Kit Connor, rising boy star.

A rather odd British-Austrian coproduction. A weird intrusive soundtrack. A bit arty but still a 3 act story even though the last act drags a bit.

reminds me of the great British pandemic zombie movie THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS or even the 1976 Dr Who classic THE SEEDS OF DOOM with man-eating plants with Tom Baker as the doctor and Sarah Jane. And of course DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS and many zombie movies, The Blob too etc.

I liked it, though realising its limitations.. A bit silly but hey, so is all scifi and most Hollywood movies.

And I liked the flower design too. Could have done without the therapist though and the smug Cherie-Blair-like woman mother character who lives in a £3 million house working as a basic scientist, YEAH RIGHT. That annoyed me about Paddington too (maybe wealth follows Ben Wishaw around eh? Paddington books are set in a standard suburban semi). Disliked the smug poshery of it all.

3.5 stars roundedup. I almost rounded it down BUT for Ben Wishaw, it gets rounded up.

I had no idea what to expert with this. I though it may be mumbly Shane Meadows territory or gangsta topboy tosh, neither of which I like or watch if I can help it.

But this is superb. Set in the 80s, which is fine with me and GREAT as there are no mobile phones to ruin plots too, the music is fab - ska and chart hits of then.

Mostly this is AUTHENTIC - you can believe the context and characters' lives. Clearly written - well - by people who have either lived ordinary working lives or who understand them well. I am so sick of privileged privately-educated TV writers/directors writing 'poverty-porn' into scripts, as if they were on safari to see the poor people. This ain;t that. It is REAL.

Yes, it can be a bit cartoon caper at times BUT have you seen TV drama lately? Or Hollywood movies? Yes, the plot esp last act may be less than believable BUT a plot needs 3 acts and plot points, jeopardy and momentum, so fine.

The main actor playing Steve was excellent making his debut. I expect to see more. Other actors excellent too.

4 stars.

I really enjoyed this film - it made me laugh and it was predictably (for me)tragic at times.

This is produced by brothers who churn out straight-to-DVD horror B-movies to supply a demand. If you want to see previews for others, there are 4 before the film starts on this DVD.

This is not quality. It is B-movie stuff or even C or D movie. The writing is on-the-nose and poor throughout, esp at the end (NO SPOILERS) which is utterly unbelievable AND confused, contradicts itself. Very talky too. BUT if that flab were cut, it'd be 50 minutes.

The plots is absurd when one works out that an SS NAzi death camp guard if 20 years old in 1945 would be 97 in 2022 when this film is presumable set. Gosh. Watch THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL instead or THE MUSIC BOX or any of many Nazi war criminal hunter films.

The acting is sometimes so wooden you could make a table with it. The main actress Lowri something has been in 2 other films by the same production team and the socalled HIGH FLIER FILMS - her looks got her these gigs no doubt.

No idea what Rula Lenska is doing in this. Nice big chequey and bills to pay no doubt. He acting and speeches are why this is not 1 star. It is true that 97% of SS got away never put on trial which is still shocking.

1.5 stars is generous, rounded up to 2.

I watched some of the first disc then could stand it no more. Based on a computer game and it shows - an awful quiet soundtrack always on in the background like a computer game - awful.

FAR better than this is the superb British film THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS (2016) which also features a fungus parasitic virus infecting people and turning them into zombies hungry for human flash, THAT IS GREAT. Paddy Considine and Glen Close in that too.

Also THE BAY is fun as is SHAUN OF THE DEAD. 28 DAYS LATER. THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN,. and the Stephen Soderburgh's CONTAGION (2011) which was influenced by SARS so is very like Covid in 2020. ALL great to watch. PONTYPOOL is a cheap Canadian B-movie. Other films play on the same theme.

This? No. Very B-movie, trashy, predictable, boring. Maybe one for the kids. Not for me.

This is classic stuff. A 1979 film that is all the better for it.

You KNOW it's gonna be great when the woke TV announcer before it shows reads a massive trigger warning before it for all the oversensitive prissy prim po-faced wokiedokie snowflakes out there. Warnings of sex, violence, drug-taking and YAWN the usual 'contains discriminatory language which may be offensive'. WE:LL YES but in 1964 when London was majority white British, working class white kids spoke like that! And those words were DESCRIPTIVE not racist in intention, which no woke puritan even mentions.

3 writers wrote it - NOT The Who. A good move. The story thus has structure, plot points, acts, momentum, a story.

WHAT A CAST! The weakest link is Sting who is TOO OLD at 28. Toyah does her usual JUBILEE lisping totty act.

Timothy Spall here too as a dim card-playing projectionist at the ad agency. MANY more class character actors. Ray Winstone listed as RAYMOND here -his lead role in SCUM of 1979 made his name, and the great SEXY BEAST and more followed. Gary Shail, Mark Wingett, all familiar faces from TV drama since the 80s. Also an uncredited John Altman later Nick Cotton, Dot's son, back on Eastenders back when it was good. Trevor Laird playes the Jamaican drug dealer black character.

The new music is not the Who's best BUT what redeems this is how the film uses music of 1964 incl the Who's own on a TV show Ready Steady Go (The BBC deleted and taped over most of their Top of the Pops shows, to save money, to pay for chauffeurs for the senior managers...).

The late great Michael Elphick perfectly cast as is the actress who plays his wife Kate Williams.

Yes, people did actually live like this and London was like this, majority white working class and unwoke. White privilege? My foot! Meanwhile, these days in Goldhawk Road...

Nostalgia for many. Sad too.

A GREAT British film.

Richard Burton (Jenkins) makes his debut here, aged 24/5 maybe looking older. Welsh actor Anthony James plays his adoptive brother.

This is known as Woman of Dolwyn in USA which ruins the alliteration!

OK so it is all sets and filmed in England and dated BUT also a decent story which is emotionally connecting, showing Wales in 1892. Full of singing working Welsh folk and romanticised Welsh village life. But hey ho...

A plot is woven into the flooding of a village to create a reservoir - something used often by Welsh nationalist re a village in north Wales drowned to make a reservoir to supply water to Liverpool. Capel Celyn was a rural community to the northwest of Bala in Gwynedd, Wales, in the Afon Tryweryn valley. The village and other parts of the valley were flooded in the Tryweryn flooding of 1965 to create a reservoir, Llyn Celyn, in order to supply Liverpool and Wirral with water for industry

BUT this has happened a lot in England too: Derwent was a village 'drowned' in 1944 when the Ladybower Reservoir in Derbyshire, England was created. The village of Ashopton, Derwent Woodlands church, and Derwent Hall were also 'drowned'.

SO anyway, this old creaky film with some scratchy sound and occasionally wobbly old celluloid, is starkly relevant still.

Odd to think the heights Burton reached before his death in 1983 aged 58, from drink. Maybe the less successful actors were luckier...

4 stars