Film Reviews by PT

If you're looking for action forget it, this is a character based drama, with most of the action taking place within the sumptuous house. Having said that, it is a fascinating film.

Reynolds Woodstock is a dressmaker, his trade learnt from his deceased mother, whom he constantly misses. He has no idea how to treat other women in his life though. Early on we get a glimpse of his behaviour towards women with his current lady friend, whom his toady sister ( brilliantly played by Lesley Manville) offers to give marching orders to, as she knows when her brother has had enough of his current fancy. This gives the impression that this abuse, in the form of mental abuse displayed by Reynolds is a regular occurrence.

He then meets a waitress whom he takes for his new lady companion, namely Alma, played by Vicky Krieps in an impressive role. Alma at first becomes another sycophantic lover, bending to all Reynolds ridicolous whims. Of course, this total obedience is not enough and Reynolds starts to grow tired of his latest conquest. Alma will have to change the game or follow the fate of his previous partners.

There is a hint of mental illness in Reynolds character, perhaps in the form of OCD. Daniel Day Lewis is superb as Reynolds, an arrogant, totally selfish, rude, in short, complete pig of a man.

This film is another wonderful collaboration between the highly talented director and actor. It does not quite reach the absolute classic heights of their first teaming up for the masterpiece ,There Will Be Blood, which I thought was Anderson's and Lewis's greatest work. Nonetheless, a fine film, which I will definitely watch again when it is released on DVD.

A fantastic sports bio with plenty of comedy thrown into the mix.

Loved the set up of the film, ie, the main players being interviewed and even the odd talking to camera during the film, it really worked. All the protagonists have their own views of the, let's call it the infamous incident, and it is left to the viewer to draw their own conclusions.

Robbie is outstanding and hypnotic as Harding, a self confessed red neck who has a hard time being excepted, into which came across as a prejudiced and elitist sport. Harding is used to having a hard time though, therefore, she doesn't take this prejudice against her without her say, and her say hits hard. Since childhood she's been dominated by a monster of a mother, superbly played by Alison Janney, winning an Oscar for her endeavours. Sebastian Stan does a great job as her first love, then husband and later called back into the fold for appearances, estranged ex husband. Unfortunately for Tonya the abuse she suffered with her mother continues in a vicious cycle with her husband, although she gives as good as she gets. Diane Rawlinson is wonderful as Tonya's lady like coach, who thoroughly deserves recognition too.

The skating sequences are phenomenal. I confess to having never been a figure skating fan, obviously I've seen it over the years but never really payed much attention. The reason I say this, because when Robbie as Harding skates in the first competition as an adult it really is something spectacular, and got my fullest attention, as did the rest of her competitive skating.

Thoroughly enjoyed this super film and having seen it at cinema, can't wait for DVD release date to enjoy again.

Bill Murray as the lovable lump Baloo. Idris Elba, a super baddie, in the form of Shere Khan. Christopher Walken as the megalomaniac King Louis. Ben Kingsley, the kindly disciplinarian and mentor to Mowgli, Bagheera. Scarlett Johansson, the evil Kaa, disguising her true intent with her dulcet tones. This is my synopsis of the wonderful personalities the main actors brought to their superb CGI characters.

Not forgetting Neel Sethi, who was great as the man cub Mowgli.

Really enjoyed it.

Katy Jarvis plays Mia, a rebellious, troubled and tough teenager, with dance aspirations. Underneath this hard exterior though are glimpses of a caring girl, who given a different environment and a mothers full love and attention, one could see Mia being a different person altogether.

Kierston Wareing is great as Mia's mother, more interested in partying and men than giving her daughters a proper upbringing. Rebecca Griffiths is great too, as Mia's younger sister Tyler, a future Mia in the making.

Last, but not least of the main protagonists is Michael Fassbender as Connor, Joanne's latest love interest. A man who appears to be kind and interested in the kids as well as just the mother, Fassbender gives a strong performance.

It is Katy Jarvis though who gives the outstanding performance here, unbelievably in her acting debut. Apparently she was spotted on a railway station by a talent scout working for the director. A fact that is more unbelievable is that before Fish Tank she had no acting credentials.

This is the first feature I have seen by this director and am more than very impressed with this phenomenal film. Will definitely be checking out more of Andrea Arnold's work.

This is the first film I have seen with Teresa Palmer and was in awe of her acting skills.

An anti social psychopathic teacher chats up an Australian photographer visiting Berlin. They make love in his apartment and the next day Andi goes to work. Clare has a lie in, then goes to let herself out, only to find she has been locked in. The film then focuses on the captive and her imprisoner in great detail.

Thoroughly enjoyed it, mainly down to Palmer.

I thought this film was profound and deeply moving. I have Christian faith, so it really hit all the right spots for me.

The heartbroken father, namely Mack, was really well played by Sam Worthington. He feels so depressed, guilty and heartbroken after the tragic loss of his daughter that he can see no light at the end of the tunnel. A miraculous invitation from God arrives, to spend the weekend with him. Could this offer the peace he yearns for?

Loved it.

Really enjoyed this movie. To start with it seems like a light hearted comedy, with the whacky, hippie like Charlize Theron offering the materialistic driven, workaholic business man Keanu Reeves help from the trappings of his life. This is offered in the form of forgetting work and moving in with her for a month, where she attempts to show him the beauty of the things in life that cost nothing.

Unexpectedly for me, the film then gets a lot deeper, where the two actors start putting in some serious, emotional, heart tugging acting, which was great and really moved me.

Great stuff.

Chuck Wepner went 15 rounds with Ali. Stallone who was at the fight was inspired to go home and write Rocky in three days, so the story goes. What is undisputable is the fact that this fight did give Stallone the creative idea for Rocky.

Liev Schreiber gives an outstanding performance as Chuck Wepner, a hard as nails, stop the punches with his face, pro fighter, who gets a shot at the heavyweight title of the world.

The brilliance of this film though is the portrayal of the total mess up of a man (euphemistically speaking) , which Chuck in his own words is. His downward spiral through drink , drugs and womanising is heart breaking, as he loses all the people who love him on his road to oblivion. Simultaneously though, there is something really loveable about this big tough guy, who seems a genuine man underneath it all.

Great performance from Naomi Watts as his love interest, with great chemistry between the two.

Fantastic boxing biopic.

Charlize Theron plays Josie Aims, a struggling single mother who takes a job in the mines, as it is well paid and she wants to provide for her family. Of course, many of the chauvinist male workers at the mine deem the jobs as male work and believe the women are taking men's jobs, and as such give the female workers a horrific time.

Josie has the guts to take on this super prejudiced industry.

Theron is superb as the very feminine, yet simultaneously gutsy employee. Battling not just the plant but her estranged parents and son also. A Stella performance which is genuinely moving and thoroughly deserving of Charlize Theron's first Oscar nomination.

Two married couples who are very best friends head for a vacation in Reno. Prior to the trip, Lonnie and Candy had a brief affair, unbeknown to their partners Roy and Darlene.

Great performances by the four leads make this an entertaining movie. Thornton is the one cheat, Lonnie, a selfish, tight fisted, car salesman, who ended up having the affair because of his problems with his wife. Theron is the other cheat, Candy, a fun loving girl, who wants to renew her vows in Vegas to erase her guilt for her infidelity. Swayze plays Don, Theron's partner, a bit of a dummy but with a heart of gold. Richardson is Darlene, Thorntons wife, unhappy in her relationship but unable to communicate her feelings.

The trip brings all these different personalities under the microscope.

A very enjoyable comedy.

I believe Ana Lily Amirpour has made another cult classic here, just like her first feature, A girl walks home alone at night. Although this offering is more mainstream, it is far from the norm. Again skateboards and another hallucination scene feature, as in her first film. The cinematography and framing of shots is what impressed me the most with this film. Exactly like A girl walks home alone at night, certain shots are just something extraordinary.

Suki Waterhouse, one of the bad batch, who are criminals and outcasts, is banished by society into the desert wilderness. Right from the off she has to fight for her life. Suki Waterhouse is excellent at playing Arlene, vulnerable but with a deep inner strength simultaneously.

Really enjoyed Keanu Reeve's role also, as a self styled Messiah like, dream maker .

Great stuff.

Three brothers run a bootlegging operation in the outback. Everything is hunky dory until the ultra creepy lawman Guy Pearce shows up wanting pay offs. Forrest the head honcho of the brothers won't play ball, unleashing the hellish sadism of the lawman Rakes.

Hardy is brilliant as the mumbling, laconic, hard as nails Forrest, who incidentally believes he is indestructible. Well supported by the young wanna be gangster Jack (LeBeof ) and the crazy, strong as an ox, moonshine swigging Howard (Clarke).

The glamour is provided in the shape of the beautiful Jessica Chastain as Maggie, who has the hots for Forrest. Gary Oldman is back playing a crazy, the gangster Floyd Banner, which he is undoubtedly great at.

If you like the gangster genre you should enjoy this film.

This film has the look and feel of being made for thousands as opposed to millions, whilst simultaneously and paradoxically, having superb cinematography. Shot in black and white, which really suits the film noir feel, it is truly a work of art from this gifted, visionary director.

A female vampire stalks the lonely streets of Bad City in downtown Iran. Apart from the usual vampire antics, it is also a love story.

The pure magic of the images, caught in glorious black and white are ingrained in my brain. I salute Ana Lily Amirpour and will be checking out her newest film with great excitement. So thankful I've seen this extraordinary film.

Gabrielle (Cottiard) dreams of an idealistic fairytale romance, nothing else will suffice. This passion first manifests itself in her infatuation with her tutor. She pens him an explicit letter about her love making wishes which she presents to him at a party. The married tutor rejects her advances, causing Gabrielle to push him into a table in front of her family. She then runs off into the woods in an hysterical , heartbroken mess.

Her family, respectable farmers, are worried about her mental health and irrational and crude behaviour. Her mother approaches one of their farm hands, namely Jose, who has an eye for Gabrielle, to ask if he'll make an honest woman of her. Against her wishes, but being that era, Gabrielle weds Jose. Although she tells him prior to the wedding that she will never love him.

Shortly into the marriage Gabrielle goes to a spa alone, for a cure for stones. Whilst there she meets a poorly soldier and her, the Princess has met her Prince charming mentality kicks back in greater than ever.

Marion Cottiard is hypnotic in a wonderful performance as Gabrielle, the depth of her love almost tangible. As is the depth of her long suffering husband's love. A beautifully shot and superbly acted film.

Anne Hathaway plays Gloria, a hopeless drunk but a good soul. Dumped by her boyfriend who can no longer tolerate her binges, she returns to her childhood town, where she meets up with a childhood friend, namely Oscar.

Oscar owns a bar and Gloria continues her all night benders.

Meanwhile in Seoul a gigantic monster terrorises the city. Gloria then discovers that she controls the monster.

Gloria's monster is then joined by a gargantuan robot, who is controlled by Oscar.

Obviously these actual monsters are metaphors for alcohol and the personalities of the two on a deeper level. Can Gloria defeat these monsters and get her life back under control.

I particularly liked the showdown, with Gloria resembling a lawman facing down the bad guy, complete with that walk down the street. A highly unusual film that I much enjoyed.