Film Reviews by GI

America's cinematic New Wave that began in the 1970s is never more obvious than in the presentation of the classic crime thriller. A more gritty realism was evident in the mid to late 60s in films like Bullitt (1968) for example and this realism developed especially with the depiction of violence especially. Director William Friedkin took the genre one step further with The French Connection, making a European arthouse style police procedural thriller, almost looking and feeling like a documentary and loosely based on real events and showing the squalid and seedy side of police work. There are no police heroes here, indeed quite the contrary. Set in New York (with a sideline in France) this follows two narcotics detectives as they stumble upon a drug trafficking case that, for one of them, becomes an obsession. The police here are depicted with their cynicism, general racism, casual oppressive use of violence and as deeply flawed in character and personality. Gene Hackman plays Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle, a dedicated but unpleasant cop and Roy Scheider is Buddy, his partner. Doyle's whole life is around his work and his reluctance to go home sees them inadvertently come across Sal (Tony Lo Bianco) and discover by hours of tedious surveillance his arrangement to buy a large consignment of heroin from Charnier (Fernando Rey), a suave French businessman and clever criminal. The film set new boundaries in its open depiction of drug use and the the use of violence by the police. It's a gripping story that shows the routines of police surveillance with a tough and realistic chase sequence in the centre of the film. This film effectively changed the face of crime cinema and opened the door for such films as Dirty Harry (1971) and Serpico (1973) to follow. It's one of the great American films of the 70s, with it's sinister music soundtrack, enigmatic final ending and gutsy action. A modern masterpiece of cinema.

Based on the Disney theme park ride this has the obvious similarities to the Pirates Of The Caribbean series and most glaringly to the The Mummy (1999) too, as well as Indiana Jones copycat moments and ideas. It follows the usual children action type mode for the most part but soon drifts into an aimless and rather dull film that lacks any originality. The characters are clichéd and don't really work and forgive me but Dwayne Johnson maybe all muscles and action but please no romance and especially not with an English rose like Emily Blunt. So basically this is in 1916 and Lily (Blunt), a plucky adventurer and her hapless brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall - annoying to the extreme here) head to the Amazon to find a legendary tree that has magical healing powers. They team up with roguish yet good hearted Frank (Johnson), a river boat 'skipper' who doubts said tree exists but takes their money in any event and off they set. The tree is also coveted by an evil German prince (Jesse Plemons) and some ghostly conquistadors led by Aguirre (Edgar Ramírez). There's animals and sword fighting and ancient booby traps etc etc and even a U-Boat! The biggest travesty is the homages to The African Queen (1951), which is sacrilege! Anyway, overall if you're six years old you'll probably love this (if your parents let you watch it - its certificated as 12 in the UK) but for the rest of us it's pants.

A reboot, remake, part of the series? Who knows? This is another in the cycle of the vengeful ghost films that have never surpassed the Japanese original. The trouble here is, whilst there's lots of gore, maggoty corpses and nasty ghosts emerging from the shadows, none of it feels particularly scary. Andrea Riseborough tries her best in the lead role but ultimately this offers nothing but the expected bathtub death that seems to be a franchise trademark and an interesting timeline structure. The story starts in Tokyo, perhaps more as a homage to the original, and then zips quickly to the US where a decomposed body is found in a car and Detective Muldoon (Riseborough) investigates. She finds there are links to a house where a woman killed her family and then herself and which Muldoon's partner has issues. These events are all caused by a vengeful, curse ridden ghost that attacks anyone who enters the house. As said the events never amount to much that's scary other than the discovery of corpses in various states or decomposition or with horrible injuries, and it just goes for cattle prod jump scares and why oh why does everyone have such dim houselights!! A bit of a disappointment really and certainly not a film that will appeal to any other than fans of horror.

Seriously cool action thriller, and very reminiscent of Reservoir Dogs (1992), from director Ben Wheatley. Set in a deserted Boston warehouse in the 1970s a four man IRA group, led by Chris (Cillian Murphy) have arranged, through intermediary Justine (Brie Larson), to meet gun runner, Vern (Sharlto Copley) and his team to buy assault rifles. The deal is overseen by Ord (Armie Hammer) but things go awry when one of the IRA guys has had a beef with one of Vern's gang the previous evening and soon things spiral out of control. Darkly humorous, pacy and violent this is brilliantly edited into one very long and hugely entertaining shoot out. There's double crosses and plot twists and a very funny script. Everyone is obviously having great fun in what is a bloody, gripping and downright great film. There's a topnotch soundtrack and the support cast are all on great form including Jack Reynor, Sam Riley, Michael Smiley and Noah Taylor. It's very Tarantinoesque in style and is one of those action films that is not meant to be taken seriously but one to just sit back and have a rollicking good time.

This remains a delight even after loads of viewings and perhaps surprisingly too as it's really a very English comedy of manners, that quintessential British sub-genre as it neatly taps into the social awkwardness that in this case includes the thorny topic of sex and even love. Writer Richard Curtis has that gift of capturing the very essence of these moments that give rise to hilarious situations even when tragedy is involved. This is exemplified in the death scene where the central character, Charles (Hugh Grant) starts by chuckling at the plight of his friend who he doesn't immediately realise is having a heart attack. The clever structure of the film mirrors the skill of a writer such as John Cleese who has made a career of highlighting English social reticence and in the hands of director Mike Newell the comedy is kept grounded rather than drifting into farce. The structure is of course around the titular four weddings, themselves shown as a ridiculous, mostly class divided ceremony, and the extremely moving funeral section. Class is a key theme here and it has to be remembered that the main characters hail from a strata of British society that can best be described as privileged, it's only the funeral that takes place in the industrial, and poorer, north east of England. Overall though this is a romantic comedy that is focused on what finding your one true love entails as Charles ponders how those who marry have managed to be so sure they've discovered 'the one'. This certainly made Grant a star and brought forward many now well established actors including Kristen Scott Thomas, James Fleet, John Hannah, Simon Callow and Andie MacDowell, who often gets a bad press over her role here but I think she captures the beauty and contrast that the story strives for. This is a modern romcom that has remained a firm favourite for many and it deserves repeated viewings as there are delights to discover on each viewing.

One of the greatest of American films and the first in what has since become known as director John Ford's 'Cavalry Trilogy', although the later two films are narratively unconnected although there are similar themes at play. Anyone unfamiliar with this film may be surprised that it's not a film that sits that comfortably in the western genre despite its setting and story. It reads as more of an American historical drama and is quite light on action considering it's concerned with the Indian wars of the 1870s. Ford was more interested in depicting the ordinary, often mundane life in a remote army outpost with its class divisions, role of women, dances and military procedures. Into this mix he adds character relationships particularly between the men and adds his trademark doses of roustabout comedy, drunkenness and Irish heritage along with traditional songs. The story also culminates in Ford's well known vision of legend built around more unsavoury truths and here the story is loosely influenced in particular by the myth of Custer and the Battle of The Little Big Horn. Henry Fonda, who takes second billing but is the main character, is Colonel Thursday, the embittered commander of the titular fort, a posting he deems beneath him. He's a martinet (although at one point he specifically denies this) and is soon in conflict with the more experienced of his officers in particular Captain York (John Wayne). The Apache's are causing trouble in the area but whilst this is the focus of the military men the narrative also spends much of its time with the wives and women relations of the soldiers epitomised by Thursday's daughter played by Shirley Temple. There's a delightful romance story developed between her character and a young officer (John Agar) who is also the son of the Fort's Sergeant-Major (Ward Bond) much to the consternation of the Colonel. Ultimately Thursday leads a foolhardy mission against the Apache resulting in the massacre of his men (interestingly Wayne's character is pushed out of the action in order to survive and promote the false heroism story that follows). The film can be read in a variety of ways not least in Thursday's motives for leading his command on a suicidal charge against advice. Could it be he sacrifices his men for posthumous glory or is he just incompetent? There are conversations earlier suggesting he had been, during the civil war, a highly regarded soldier albeit one who relished such glory. These aspects are what makes this and many of Ford's films such masterpieces. His storytelling abilities and the poetic use of camera (often static) and his taking an uncanny advantage of everything that happened on set especially weather marks him as the genius he is now rightly considered. Fort Apache is a landmark film and one that cinephiles should explore in depth, a masterpiece of the art form.

A routine shark stalking film that offers nothing new. It's really the same ol' narrative of stranded, beautiful people being hunted by aggressive great white sharks (there's a couple on the prowl here), you'll guess which characters (five in this case) will get eaten first and who will end up surviving. A young couple run a small, financially struggling, seaplane tourist company, are hired by a rich couple to go to a remote atoll for the day. The plane is attacked by a shark!!! It sinks and they are on a life raft as the sharks circle..... endlessly!!! Even the first sequel to Jaws was better than this, indeed there are some similarities to Jaws 2 (1978), but really not since the original and brilliant Jaws (1975) has this type of film excelled. You have to go in a different direction if shark attack stories are going to compete and compare well, Deep Blue Sea (1999) or even The Shallows (2016) for example. Don't get me wrong Great White has it's moments but they are nothing new and a little disappointing when they do come although the aerial shots are good. A mediocre film that isn't really worth the effort.

A classic science fiction film and ahead of its time, indeed it's one of the first major films in the genre made when such films were rarely given a budget big enough to produce the effects. In glorious colour and filmed in 'Cinemascope' this was a box office hit and viewed today it remains a tense, exciting and very entertaining film. You can see the clear influence this had on the TV series' Star Trek and Lost In Space. A spaceship commanded by Adams (Leslie Nielsen in his first major film role) arrives at the distant planet of Altair IV to check on the scientific expedition that arrived there many years before. They find only two remaining survivors, the mysterious Dr Morbius (Walter Pidgeon) and his beautiful daughter (Anne Francis). Morbius has managed to build an advanced robot he calls Robby which fascinates Adams and his crew. But when the crew are attacked by a strange force Adams suspects that Morbius is behind it especially as he has discovered an ancient extinct alien technology. The effects, some courtesy of the Walt Disney studio, are quite impressive especially the cavernous interior of the alien city. Whilst the film is firmly rooted in the style and sexual politics of the 1950s it does portray a potential future of space exploration which has been similarly visualised in may subsequent films. It's a great film and if you are a fan of science fiction its a must see film sit holds a key place in cinema history.

Greyhound is a traditionally styled war drama about one small US Navy destroyer as it takes up escort duties to a merchant convoy during the Battle of The Atlantic in 1942. Tom Hanks, who also wrote the screenplay, is the relatively inexperienced and religiously devout Captain who is tested throughout the cat and mouse drama as the Greyhound hunts for the attacking U Boats who in turn attempt to sink it. There are some genuinely tense moments and the film expertly conveys the claustrophobic world of the ships bridge where split second decisions are made to avoid torpedoes and to make the correct manoeuvres. Hanks plays the role as a flawed man trying his best and he's seen making mistakes as the battle rages. There are also some small intimate moments that are dealt with in a subtle way to show that such moments occur in the extremes of battle but the film is clever enough not to overly dwell on them spoiling the nature of the action. This is really a good old fashioned war yarn with Hanks in a role that he seems made for ably assisted by Stephen Graham as his second in command. Enjoyable film, well directed and very entertaining.

Here's another Nicolas Cage film that deserves to be forgotten immediately. It's not helped by a slack script that drifts all over the place with a story as daft as a brush. Here Cage is an ex marine and Vietnam War veteran who hires a young handyman, Buddy (Luke Benward) to mend his fence (we get to see how the fence became broken, a scene which shows Cage's character to be one of his usual manic/deranged ones). Buddy, all muscles, youth and wavy hair, is instantly the sexual target of the femme fatale, Fancy (KaDee Strickland), the sultry wife. Cage gets more crazy, then a hurricane begins forcing Buddy to spend the night. This leads to a bizarre chain of events that all makes little sense but Cage gets to do those famous high kicks he loves so much. Kelsey Grammar plays a local detective and nothing happens that isn't a total disappointment at every turn. A poor film, don't bother.

A gentle, unassuming and very British comedy, a sweet story about the relationship between a teenage heavy metal fan and his lonely and devoted mum. Basically a coming-of-age film that doesn't concern itself with sexual awakening as is normal in such stories but about that somewhat stressful relationship between parent and child when the latter is endlessly frustrated by life. Monica Dolan plays Sue, a divorced librarian living in suburbia with Daniel (Earl Cave), her moody son. He's crushingly disappointed when a planned summer holiday with his father in Florida is cancelled at the last minute and he realises he has to spend it with his mum at home. He roams the endlessly tidy streets of suburbia, bored and dreaming of being the singer in a metal band, whilst his mum, ever protective and caring, carries on. There's a period where she gets a chance at romance but that doesn't go well. There's the influence here of similar American films but here we get a delightful comedy that doesn't trap itself in romance or sex or friendship clichés but reveals a realistic view of the most enduring of relationships. By the end its obvious its a happy story and has a nice feel good vibe about it and the two leads are exceptional.

A B movie style action thriller set in a dystopian near future where rising crime has resulted in the walling up of the worst districts of Paris. In one a crime lord rules with ruthlessness but a young man, Leïto (David Belle) is trying to protect his apartment block from the criminals. As a result he gets framed, sent to prison and his sister is made the sex slave of the bad guy. When a nuclear bomb is stolen and set to detonate in the district the authorities send in a tough cop, Damien (Cyril Raffaelli) and Leïto to find and defuse it but its all a double cross. You can actually forget the plot because its irrelevant as this is all about gutsy fights and plenty of 'parkour' chase scenes through the derelict buildings. It's an entertaining slice of hokum all done with panache and neatly short enough to enjoy and move on.

Adapted from the novel by Robert Harris this is a routine war drama set at Bletchley Park the now famous centre of British code breaking. Unlike The Imitation Game (2014) this is not a story that attempts to tell a history, the story is a work of fiction with the odd very loose reference to real people. The story here is that the Germans have sneakily changed their codes and Tom (Dougray Scott), a maths genius who broke their codes before, is hastily summonsed back to Bletchley. He isn't well thought of by the top brass as he had an emotional meltdown over his obsessive love for Claire (Saffron Burrows), who has since disappeared. Along with her roommate, Hester (Kate Winslet) he sets out to find her as he believes she may have been spying. This leads to lots of emotional chases and daft plot twists in a mediocre espionage story that fails to really get going. Good support cast that includes Tom Hollander and Jeremy Northam amongst others but they don't make up for an average and silly story.

The surprising international success of Fistful Of Dollars (1964) gave director Sergio Leone the increased budget which here in his second western meant bigger sets, longer running time and a second star. Clint Eastwood returned after seeing how good the first film turned out and Lee Van Cleef was rescued from obscurity to take second billing (his career effectively being reignited). Although often considered a sequel to A Fistful... this is actually an entirely different film and only Eastwood's costume is the same (indeed there was a court case in Italy that stated this was not a sequel). Here he plays Monco, a ruthless bounty hunter who decides to hunt down the most wanted outlaw in the territory, El Indio (Gian Maria Volontè). But he discovers another bounty hunter is also after him. This is Colonel Mortimer (Van Cleef) who has a more moral reason for doing so than just money. They join forces to face down the outlaw and his gang of cutthroats. Leone dabbles here with the established western genre effectively subverting it with a style that incorporates opera, religious iconography, an element of 60s 'cool', and a vision of the west that denigrates it almost to an alien vista of sun drenched, lawless violence where only money is respected. He takes, for example the standard gunfight, the iconic genre duel, and injects it with a poetic symmetry and exploits the viewer's expectations (he went on to perfect this later in his next film). With the addition of Ennio Morricone's superb score with its jangling electric guitars, whips cracking, gunshots and operatic organs and vocals this is a film that cemented the genre onto a new path. Interestingly Eastwood is almost pushed aside here as the narrative centres around Mortimer and El Indio whose history is the focus of the story and Leone pushed boundaries with the inclusion of cannabis and rape. These were not to be found in anything made in the USA at this time and certainly not in the genre they considered was their mythical domain. Flawed as it is this remains a wonderful film today, beautifully shot and taking a tired style and genre into new exciting directions.

A good ol' action adventure survival film that benefits from Robert Aldrich's clever subversive and quirky traits. Considering when this was made and contrary to Hollywood standard there are no women or children here to sentimentalise the narrative (the only woman in the film is a mirage) and the cast are all great character actors who play against type, for example George Kennedy and Dan Duryea, normally screen heavies, are surprisingly lightweight and pleasant. Some are killed off early and main star, James Stewart, plays a deeply flawed character who struggles with his self esteem and displays a psychological instability that was often seen in his 1950s westerns. Here he's the pilot of a small oil company owned cargo plane travelling across the Sahara desert with an assortment of oil workers, a couple of soldiers and others. A sudden sand storm causes them to crash land in the desert with little chance of survival until one of them, Dorfmann (Hardy Kruger), claims he knows how they can make a serviceable aircraft from the wreckage. With a terrific narrative twist towards the end this is a watchable, entertaining and riveting film that focuses as much on the characters as they struggle with dealing with the dire situation (they as much build the ramshackle aeroplane to keep busy than hope it will fly them safety). Whilst it appears to be one of Aldrich's most mainstream of films it's actually a much more neurotic and suspenseful one that warrants a detailed textual analysis. It's certainly a great film and a definite one to seek out if you've never seen it.