Film Reviews by GI

This is fast becoming my favourite Tarantino film. It's like a fine wine, it just gets better and better every time you taste it! Full of his great trademarks especially the camera angles which are endlessly entertaining this is also his most brilliantly plotted film and, of course, his only film that has an independent source namely Elmore Leonard's novel, Rum Punch. The plot is full of twists and turns and the entire structure of the film remains original and entertaining even after several viewings. And what fantastic performances from an innovative cast; Pam Grier nails it as the titular Jackie, clever, manipulative and devious but you can't help root for her; Samuel L. Jackson, fun yet evil in his best role for QT; Robert DeNiro, who is casual until he shows his true colours as Louis. Then the great Robert Forster, given a fresh break in being cast here and getting an Academy nomination to boot. Rounding out the impeccable entourage are Michael Keaton, Bridget Fonda and Chris Tucker. Jackie is a air hostesss who sidelines by smuggling illegal cash into the US for Ordell (Jackson), a paranoid gangster who will casually murder any of his crew if they get caught to prevent them doing a deal with the authorities to nail him. When Jackie gets busted she knows what Orell will do but she proves cleverer than either he or the police realise. This is one of those crime thrillers, full of dark humour, that made Tarantino such a refreshing filmmaker and I wish he's get back to films like this. This is a modern masterpiece and a film to really relish time and time again.

This tightly written and directed film has gained an unfair reputation. It's a highly entertaining action thriller with a great mystery at the centre of the narrative, a wonderfully conceived central character and a plot that rattles along at a great pace. Tom Cruise may not fit the description of the character as portrayed in the potboiler book series but who cares. He's a mean and moody Jack Reacher, he fits the role as the anonymous drifter who takes interest in events where he chooses whereas the literary Reacher stands out like a sore thumb. In any case this is an arbitrary argument. The film can be judged on it's own merits. The story is a fairly straight forward thriller narrative. Five random people are gunned down by an apparently random sniper and the police quickly identify the suspect from masses of evidence found at the scene. He's a disaffected former soldier with mental health issues. The DA thinks he has a cast iron case until former Army investigator Reacher shows up to muddy the waters. There's the great cast; Rosamund Pike as a lawyer whose relationship with Reacher almost bubbles over into romance or at least sex but is neatly restrained and carried brilliantly by the two actors. Then there's Richard Jenkins, David Oleweyo, Robert Duvall and finally Werner Herzog who brings a Bondian baddie to the story, a first class piece of casting. Admittedly there's flaws, as usual Jai Courtney as a heavy is one dimensional and there's a few plot holes but overall this is a superb thriller, a great central car chase, some brutal violence and plot twists to keep the viewer interested. If you dismissed this the first time then give it another chance. Great fun.

This is the quintessential comedy caper movie and a fantastic British film to boot. Michael Caine is the cockney criminal who plans a gold heist in Turin stealing '$4million through a traffic jam'. Caine is Charlie, a cockney criminal fresh out of jail who adopts a plan by an old friend, murdered by the mafia, to carry out the audacious heist. He needs the financial support of Bridger (Noël Coward), a Queen loving crime boss who is in jail where he's treated as royalty. The gang are all lovable rogues and none of them have counted on the local mafia trying to stop them as well as the police. The film is a cult favourite and rightly so, full of quotable lines including one used by Caine impersonators ever since, and with a car chase involving three Mini Coopers. There's a host of British character actors who will be recognisable from TV throughout the late 60s and 70s as well as famous comedian Benny Hill and Noël Coward who was very ill at the time the film was made. With it's famous ending this is exciting and very, very funny and definitely a film to enjoy time and time again. Forget the 2003 remake it's awful but make sure this one is in your collection.

A psychological horror that is tense, eerie and a really simple premise but which works fantastically. The style is clearly that of 70s and 80s horror and you can especially see the influence of John Carpenter's films; Halloween (1978) being the obvious one. The intricacy of the plot with its twists and unexplained bits and pieces makes it so interesting and the allegory to teenage angst, emotional problems and the fear of sex and disease are obvious but cleverly done. The story follows Jay, a nineteen year old with a new boyfriend. When they casually have sex he then reveals that he has passed on a curse to her and that she will now be relentlessly pursued by an entity that takes different human forms but is walking towards her wherever she goes. It will kill her if it catches up but she can pass the curse on by having sex with someone else. Unfortunately getting rid of it isn't as easy as that! This is edge of your seat stuff and all without being gratuitous or overly shocking. It certainly is one of the most original and fascinating horror films of recent times.

This is a thoroughly engrossing drama set on one very busy night in a plush restaurant. The use of the one shot take doesn't feel at all like a gimmick and doesn't distract from the great performances and the clever way little character traits are revealed as the night spirals towards it's calamitous end. Stephen Graham stars as Andy, the head chef, whose life is falling apart and his late arrival at work signals the stress that he and his team are already under. As the evening begins the cacophony from the rogues gallery of customers unleashes the drama. We have the bullying man on Table 7, the group of drunken men wanting food that is 'off menu' and a couple who highlight that one of them has a nut allergy. To top it all the arrival of the passive aggressive celebrity chef, Alastair (Jason Flemyng) who has a famous food critic with him puts Andy and his team under extra pressure and he and Alastair have deeper issues as will be revealed. I just didn't know if I'd enjoy this especially as the one take film has often felt too contrived to me and detracts from the narrative but in this situation it worked seamlessly. It's a first rate drama that draws you in totally making for a very enjoyable film.

This is a chilling claustrophobic and psychological thriller and whilst the title suggests a monster scenario this is more in the vein of a post-apocalyptic drama. Joel Edgerton plays Paul, who with his family have isolated themselves in their forest home to protect against some unspecified plague that is raging outside. They venture out only in the daytime and are very wary of strangers. When they allow Will, Kim and their young son in the scene is set for a tense story of anxiety, betrayal and danger. What's great about this film is there are no plot twists or simple explanations the viewer is left to contemplate the bleak scenario as it plays out. It's a film that shows what it may really be like in the case of some event such as this. This is fiercely watchable and engrossing and a film I highly recommend if you've never seen it.

Remakes are generally considered to be inferior to the original especially when the original is a critically renowned classic but Philip Kaufman's reinterpretation of the 1956 film is a brilliant update making a memorable exception. This increases the horror elements and emphasises its science fiction roots and it's a great suspense film too building the tension slowly (maybe a little too slow for some) and resulting in a paranoia thriller adding some fantastic social commentary along the way. Essentially the story remains the same although the action is moved away from the small-town America setting in the 1956 film to San Francisco where Department of Health scientist Elizabeth (Brooke Adams) begins to notice behavioural changes in her boyfriend. She confides her fears that he is an imposter to her boss, Matthew who is in love with her. In fact the simmering love between them is neatly interwoven into the plot, which deepens as it becomes clear that people are changing into some other lifeforms. There's some interesting special effects and the film is quite unsettling. Jeff Goldblum, Leonard Nimoy and Veronica Cartwright support and keen eyed viewers may spot Robert Duvall in a very small cameo and it's a neat piece of film trivia to catch Kevin McCarthy, the star from the original film, and Don Siegel, the original's director, pop up in a homage to it. This is certainly a film to seek out and try if you've never seen it.

A hokey comedy sci-fi (ish!!) that is nowhere near as funny as the cast seem to think it is. I guess this is one of those films that you'll either get and love or, like me, come away thinking what the hell was that? So a film to watch late at night after a few drinks and then forget all about it. However I am a fan of Kristen Wiig, a talented comedy performer and writer, but this film seems to be a hotchpotch of sketches stuck together to try and make some sort of story and ultimately it comes a cross like a kids film for adults. Annie Mumolo and Wiig play the titular middle aged ladies, who live in a small mid western town and who gossip all day, when they lose their jobs in a furniture store they make a momentous decision and go on holiday for the first time ever to a Florida beach resort. Their arrival coincides with the plan of a Bond type villain also played by Wiig, to kill everyone in the town over some past insult of other. Star falls for the baddies henchmen, Edgar (Jamie Dornan) and they have adventures etc etc. There's some musical numbers, a talking crab, a mermaid and all sorts of other stuff goes on that, as I said, isn't as funny as the cast all seem to think it is. This wasn't for me and I felt it was just silly even though I desperately tried to find the meaning of it all. Unfortunately I couldn't so its lost on me as to what this is meant to be.

This adaptation of Len Deighton's successful spy novel came as the Bond franchise was really gaining momentum. Whereas Bond is suave, classy and enjoys the finer things in life Harry Palmer is a cynical, sarcastic and unmotivated agent who is being blackmailed to do the job. Michael Caine in his first leading role plays Palmer to perfection, with small nuances of expression and speech that highlight his disdain for the work, his bosses and that he is only in it for himself. In this regard The Ipcress File is a wonderful addition to the spy/espionage genre and a slightly anti-Bond stylisation. Set in the grimy streets of London it's a tale of blackmail, deceit and treachery as Palmer tries to locate a kidnapped scientist and unearths a double agent in the process. It's a great, unflashy story and shows off Caine for the great actor he is and star he was to become. Very stylish too with its editing and use of close ups and deep focus. There were two sequels to this film but neither live up to this first one. A film to rediscover and check out if you've never seen it as it's one of the best spy films.

Typical comedy caper film from Guy Ritchie but it offers none of his earlier originality and plays like a restrained Michael Bay film. Jason Statham is the nominal lead and does most of the Bournesque fighting but it's Aubrey Plaza and Hugh Grant that lift the film into a more entertaining one than it otherwise would have been. Statham is super agent Orson Fortune, the top operative of a private company that the UK Government (in the guise of Eddie Marsan) hires to do their dirty work. His team includes cynical computer expert Sarah (Plaza) and they are tasked with recovering a gizmo (the films MacGuffin, a very dangerous AI thingamajig) from the bad guys in a deal controlled by sleazy arms dealer Simmonds (Grant, doing a similar thing he did in The Gentlemen). To get to Simmonds they need his favourite movie star, Danny (Josh Hartnett) This cues a lot of 007 style globe trotting, shooting, fighting etc etc and it's all very stereotypical and predictable. It passes the time, has its moments but its average stuff.

Director Paul Verhoeven, not unknown for his excesses, has tried to categorise this as historical drama mostly because it is allegedly based on a true story (this being his chief defence for allegations of blasphemy) but it's really a quite shallow sexploitation film wrapped up in a sort of friendly version of The Devils (1971). This was bound to rattle some nerves in religious fundamentalists who view such nonsense far too seriously so putting aside all the pretensions what are we left with? In short a story about a 16th Century nun who fakes miracles (or does she??) including the stigmata and in doing so ousts the Abbess (Charlotte Rampling) and gets the top job allowing her to have a lusty relationship with a novice. As you'd expect with Verhoeven there's some audacious sex, some bloody violence and horrible plagued infested corpses but it's a hollow film, lacking any gravitas and at times you want to laugh out loud. Unconvincing and nowhere near his great films whether they be his Dutch or American based ones.

A follow up film to the popular 2007 Black Water this is another Aussie film where five twenty somethings go on an Ella advised adventure and get stalked by a big creature, in this case a crocodile. Like The Reef (2010) there's a host of films of this type often the creature being a shark or alligator of as here a crocodile. This film doesn't offer anything new indeed it's stereotypical in almost every way. The five characters are what you'd expect and you can work out fairly easily the order in which they'll be picked off. Led by alpha male Eric (Luke Mitchell - a Chris Hemsworth lookalike) they go caving in the jungle, stupidly not telling anyone else where they are going and go underground just as a big storm comes along....Der!! The cave gets flooded, they get trapped and a big croc is in there too and very hungry. There may even be more than one croc, its all a little unclear and there's the usual glimpses here and there before someone gets grabbed. It's quite a tame film with little shocks or scares and it can't decide when to end so drags itself on for further slices of croc attacks. Overall it's exactly what it says on the tin, rather average, indeed a bit dull at times and even the relationship drama thrown in for good measure seems ridiculous.

This is a culturally significant American science fiction/horror film which tapped into the American paranoia of the 1950s threat of communism bought about by the Cold War and the McCarthy witch-hunts at home. There was a cycle of such films which dealt with the fear of atomic war or the Soviet threat to the world and this is one of the most famous and renowned of them. Don Siegel directs a fast paced and tense thriller where a small town doctor discovers that the townspeople are slowly being replaced by replicas of themselves which emerge from giant seed pods. A masterpiece of the scifi genre and a film that deserves rediscovery, check it out if you haven't seen it.

For a Hollywood horror film this is remarkably good. A vampire film that tells the story from the monsters' perspective as opposed to the usual narrative of the monster hunter's viewpoint. This has the gothic trademarks and a period drama feel yet still updates the sub-genre by shedding some of the more daft tropes such as fear of garlic, wooden stakes etc. Tom Cruise was a surprising (and much derided) piece of casting as the vampire Lestat who, in seeking for a companion, 'turns' the grieving Louis in 18th Century New Orléans. Cruise is actually extremely good in the role and nails it completely, his action hero credentials are put aside here and he plays Lestat as the nasty, selfish and murderously cynical vampire to perfection. Brad Pitt as Louis is also good although he reportedly hated the experience of the role. However the narrative adds the child vampire Claudia played by a young Kirsten Dunst and she is the most scary and original, a monster permanently trapped in a child's body. The story is told in one flashback as Louis tells his life story to a naive writer in modern day USA. This is an extremely interesting and enjoyable modern day horror film that neatly harks back to the traditional monster films of yesteryear but updates it for a modern audience. It has all the great aspects you want from dark, sexual tension, bloody murder and monstrous characters. A film that is far better than often remembered and worth checking out if you've never seen it.

There's a certain charm to this French romance with a little romcom farce in the mix. It's all a bit too light in atmosphere to hold any sense of a serious film work but the central performance by Anaïs Demoustier keeps it all together. She plays Anais of the title, a giddingly carefree young woman who lives life without a sense of any commitment and isn't afraid to say so. She borders on narcissism but her sheer joy in everything without any idea of responsibility holds this at bay until she has a dalliance with an older man and then finds herself obsessing over his long term partner, Emilie (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) and pursues her to a symposium she is attending. Romance blossoms until her partner shows up to threaten things. There's a sort of cerebral eroticism at play here and it all jostles along at a pleasant and delightful pace. As I said it lacks that dose of seriousness but it's perfectly enjoyable to watch.