Film Reviews by TE

Missing one star as this film is not quite up to the superb standard that Haneke has set with his last 5 films, but it is still a wickedly good tale brilliantly told.

It is something of a jigsaw film, with the various pieces coming closer and closer together as the narrative unfolds. Hanke eases through the gears towards a darkly comic finale, leaving us exactly where the main characters are: poised between tragedy and humane comedy.

Extraordinary film! Visually beautiful, at times quite stunning. This is courageous, transgressive film-making at its best.

It has many of the features of "slow cinema", but without the attention-sapping marathon length of some 'slow' films. Even so, don't expect much dialogue and be prepared for lingering takes.

A vein of steady, patient eroticism sustains the narrative, a theme that is enhanced by the humid heat of the Kuala Lumpur setting.

It leaves you wanting to see more of this director's work.

Warm-hearted tale of tradition versus modernity and the effects of that clash on a family.

There is plenty of humour and the film is carried along by a passionate performance from Anna Castillo. In some respects it is like a book with good chapters but which is not quite the sum of its parts. However, it is an upbeat, positive film well worth watching.

'Loveless' maintains Zvyagintsev's run of solid gold masterpieces.

Though visually captivating, this is not an easy film to engage with. The anger and the cynicism of the adult world are the dominant motifs, and the absence of care and love towards the child who disappears is truly chilling. The parents learn no lessons and the future for Russia is depicted in very bleak terms.

Zvyagintsev is clearly making some telling points about the state of his nation, but the concerns and the moral decay have universal implications. This is harsh truth-telling at its most riveting.

Highly entertaining slice of pop culture treats! The lurid colours and the slick set piece scenes make this an enjoyable experience for anyone with a sweet tooth for Japanese contemporary stylishness.

The camera just loves the two female protagonists and nearly every frame is a kitschy work of art, all complemented by an excellent J-pop soundtrack.

Sally Hawkins is the one redeeming feature of this disappointing mess of sentimentality and pulpy narrative.

I like Michael Shannon but he just phones it in here, playing the cardboard villain.

Worst of all, the brilliant Richard Jenkins is entirely wasted in what amounts to a fantasy caper movie with Disney sex scenes.

Oscars are becoming reliable indicators of what not to watch!

Absorbing story of a young blind singer who discovers that his origins are very different to the version he has grown up with.

We get a fascinating glimpse into Lebanese culture and some truly wonderful music.

The film shows how the terrible effects of war linger for decades after the actual fighting has ceased.

Another exquisitely judged family portrait by Koreeda. He has perfected the art of revealing without preaching and seems to be able to get inside a family's dynamics with effortless ease and the deftest of touches.

Each character is fully rounded and credible. Profound moments suddenly crop up amidst the apparent trivia, with humour and tart repartee to the fore.

This is life in microcosm, but presented with artistic perfection.

This film tells an intrinsically interesting story, but almost succeeds in making that story dull and trite.

The problem lies in the excessive use of flashbacks. What's wrong with telling a story straight and in chronological order? The flashbacks merely break up any sense of continuity.

The acting is fine, but the script is plodding and there is no examination of what made the relationship tick.

Best thing about it is the dance sequence when the couple first meet.

Sleek, flashy and empty. There is some smart dialogue but any momentum is killed stone dead by the clunky reliance on flashbacks.

It gives a peek into a horrible world of spoilt rich people with colossal egos who inhabit a hermetic world of super-exploitation.

Debra Granik brings originality to a familiar tale of drug abuse and the cycle of addiction.

The film is done in a semi-documentary style and is low key and unsensational. This overall feel is mainly sustained by a strong central performance by Vera Farmiga.

If anything the sheer mundane nature of the drug use and its impact on children is too well conveyed. There is a lack of dramatic energy and we are almost encouraged to shrug and say "so what?"

Granik's next film, Winter's Bone, is a modern classic full of that very dramatic energy.

Good, straightforward depiction of rampant sexism in Trump country (30+ years on from the original events things are returning to the bad old days).

The let down comes in the final court scenes. It's simply unbelievable that the main aggressor could break down so easily when taunted by the Woody Harrelson lawyer character. Otherwise it's a good story with its heart in the right place.

I agree with much of the other review on here, though I give it an extra star because I found the story itself absorbing.

The oppression experienced by trans women is portrayed in both broadbrush and nuanced terms, but Marina's face is little more than a changeless mask.

The flip from her being a cabaret torch singer to being a classical counter-tenor (the province of the 'castrati' in the past) is a little mystifying.

It's cold and snowy outside but inside the house it's all super-heated tension and bitterness.

This is a tale of elemental forces and symbolic parallels between wild nature and family strife. Mitchum and a very good cast give their all in the services of sheer melodrama.

It's an interesting artefact, but the final message is dated: women need to be dominated and men need to be macho.

No explanation is offered as to why everyone hates each other quite so much, but it's well worth a watch.

This is a superb film that repays second and third viewings. Ruben Ostlund is developing a fascinating line in examining the uncomfortable moral questions in contemporary life.

The overall narrative strips back our attitudes and values about shared public spaces, and within that structure are a series of smaller satires on modern urban life.

The extras include revealing interviews with Ostlund and the principal actors and are well worth watching. He certainly seems able to get brilliant performances from his cast.