Film Reviews by GI

Hammer Films third in its Dracula series yet the second to star Christopher Lee as the titular Count (the second film Brides of Dracula made in 1960 didn't feature Dracula himself). It's a typical Hammer horror release renowned for it's blood and cleavages all of which are in abundance here although apparently the British censor insisted on cuts. Tame by todays standards and very studio set bound although this has some outside scenes. Whilst essentially a gothic tale it's a quite bright and colourful film and Dracula runs about with his swirling black and red cape. The camera turns away from anything too gory or salacious making the whole thing almost funny. Lee, a great actor, has little to do, he doesn't appear for at least 45 minutes and has no lines apart from the odd hiss and his eventual demise is anti climactic. It's strictly B movie stuff and all very dated but the Hammer horror film cycle is of interest if only from a film history perspective and this film features Peter Cushing in a prologue and a solid British cast including Andrew Keir and Barbara Shelley.

A well paced action thriller with a good solid story and very entertaining. Angelina Jolie, in a surprising casting choice, plays angry Montana firefighter Hannah, she is a specialist in fighting forest wildfires. She has some PTSD from an incident that is shown in flashback a couple of times. On duty in a watch tower deep in the forest her comms are knocked out by a lightening storm and she finds a young boy, Connor (Finn Little) wandering alone. He's actually fleeing two ruthless hitmen (Aiden Gillen & Nicholas Hoult) so Hannah has to help him and a huge wildfire is coming down on them at the same time. There's some flaws in the plot but these can be excused because it's a bit of a thrill ride and Gillen and Hoult are superb as the cold ruthless killers, whenever they're on screen there's an intensity as they calculate their plans for murder which they carry out with cold efficiency. Jolie does her part well and carries off the tough firefighter part well. Assisted by Jon Bernthal as a local cop this is a gutsy thriller that is well worth your time.

Based on the character from the long running British comic series 2000AD this is a violent action thriller set in a dystopian future where the world is a vast desert and people live in gigantic cities overrun with crime. The law is represented by the 'Judges', tough police officers who have the power to act as judge, jury and executioner. After arresting a murder suspect the uncompromising Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) and his trainee, Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) become trapped inside a massive skyscraper run by the criminal warlord Ma-Ma (Len Headey) who is desperate to to get her man back before he talks and reveals her drug manufacturing operation. This cues plenty of shooting! It's certainly exciting stuff and originally released as a 3D film it has the telltale scenes designed to heighten that experience but viewed today it is still a highly entertaining and bloody action fest that really rocks. Clearly influenced by Blade Runner (1982) Robocop (1987) and Death Race 2000 (1975) it paints a picture of a neo-facist future where state violence is the order of the day to suppress uncontrolled crime and life is little valued. Urban is great in the role, all mood and serious grimaces and he's clearly doing a solid Clint Eastwood Dirty Harry impression. The film doesn't offer much in the way of visuals of this future as the narrative is mostly confined to inside the skyscraper where the very bloody battle takes place but it doesn't really matter because this is a shoot em up on a grand scale with gut wrenching slow motion violence. It's a real treat actually and I'm surprised there's not been a sequel. Interestingly this was written and edited by Alex Garland and rumoured to have been mostly directed by him although Pete Travis is credited.

Presented as a dark, gothic love story this adaptation is probably the most faithful to Bram Stoker's celebrated novel although it does deviate from the book in many ways including the prologue which links the fictional Count with the historical figure of Vlad The Impaler. This is however a seductive, almost ravishing, tale of lost love that drives a warrior to renounce the God he serves to live beyond the grave constantly in search of redemption but increasingly becoming a monster. Director Francis Ford Coppola shuns the use of special effects (other in one instance) to use 'old style' in camera effects that give the film a sense of nostalgia for cinema itself. He concentrates on the power of obsessive love as the focus for the characters, it being so powerful that it pushes them into the realm of darkness. Gary Oldman is inspired here as Dracula, changing from old to young, man to monster and has all the best lines, his support cast are interesting to say the least with Anthony Hopkins on top form playing the slightly manic Van Helsing, assisted by Winona Ryder, Sadie Frost, Richard E. Grant and Keanu Reeves. Much has been made of Reeves casting yet his performance isn't that bad, slightly wooden though it is due to the forced English accent, and there were probably better choices available for the role but it doesn't detract from the sheer beauty of the film. The usual 'Hammer' type tropes of the vampire movie are either dispensed with here or utilised in a refreshing way. Overall this is a sexually charged, mystical retelling of a familiar cinematic story and a version that stands as one of the best. Worth checking out again if you were not convinced previously.

This sequel to the previous years Dr Who & The Daleks benefits from the bigger budget with better sets, more outside location filming, a bigger cast and some pretty good model work and effects. Peter Cushing returns as the bumbling inventor of the TARDIS time machine joined this time by Bernard Cribbins and Jill Curzon as Roy Castle and Jennie Linden from the earlier film were unavailable. Police Constable Tom (Cribbins) unable to stop a burglary stumbles into the TARDIS thinking it to be a police box and finds himself whisked off to London in the year 2150 by the Doctor, his niece (Curzon) and granddaughter (Roberta Tovey). There they find the Daleks have invaded and the plucky time travellers join the rebellion. For a children's matinée film this is entertaining, if a little dated by today's standards, and is well worth modern Dr Who fans checking it out even though the two films aren't included in the Dr Who canon. There's lots of continuity errors and loads of rough edges, and the sci-fi sets are still a bit ropey, all flashing lights and bleeps but the model spaceship is great even if you can spot the wires! Andrew Keir supports as an angry rebel leader and there's a few famous British TV actors littered throughout the cast. The biggest laugh is that the Daleks have invaded the Earth and the reason lies in leafy Bedfordshire, unlucky for them because the plucky English are soon rallied to fight even if they need a scientist from 90 years earlier to tell them how.

Despite the excellent acting of the cast especially the two leads of Hugh Bonneville and Keeley Hawes this true story melodrama errs on the side of good taste and warm redemption almost trying to protect its audience rather than push the impact of grief after the death of a child. This is a fictionalised account of the marriage between author Roald Dahl and Hollywood actress Patricia Neal centred around the death of their daughter Olivia, who dies of a measles related condition. Dahl, here played with a tenderness and emotional power that the real Dahl lacked, descends into outer misery and drinking which threatens his career and marriage, whilst Neal, content to live in a rambling English country house, has to face a practical future. The film will have you believe that the tragedy pushed her to her Oscar winning role in Hud (1963) and Dahl to write his seminal book Charlie & The Chocolate Factory and I'm not sure this is accurate. For the film this is all fine if a little overly neat and sentimental. There are though some excellent scenes to enjoy, one with the late Geoffrey Palmer as Dahl's old headmaster (Palmer died before the film's release) and one where Neal meets her Hud costar Paul Newman (Sam Heughan) who refuses to engage in clichéd condolences. This is a watchable and at times interesting family drama but it doesn't really grasp the impact of a child death on unprepared parents.

Despite a lot of accolades director Robert Eggers latest violent revenge adventure is a bleak, enigmatic and morose film that failed to enthralled me. Set in the 10th century it's based on an ancient viking story which in turn is the tale Shakespeare used as the basis for Hamlet. Alexander Skarsgård plays Amleth who has a child witnesses the murder of his father, a king (Ethan Hawke), by his uncle (Claes Bang), who also carries off his mother (Nicole Kidman). Amleth manages to escape and vows revenge. He grows up into a pumped up warrior and eventually finds an opportunity for vengeance. As a sword & sorcery film it has elements of fantasy, plenty of gut wrenching violence and some sex but it takes itself so seriously that the film doesn't really entertain. Basically a quest narrative in which the flawed 'hero' gets to fall in love as well as kill a fair few enemies. There's an awful lot of growling and dancing around camp fires with mysticism and heavy accents that are sometimes difficult to understand. A brutal, nihilistic story that is too deep to really grab you with characters that are all mood and not ones to root for. Kidman is good and gets a couple of very good scenes, Willem Dafoe and Bjork cameo and Anya Taylor-Joy is the love interest. I preferred the more mythical The Green Knight (2021) than this.

This more or less reboot of the lacklustre Suicide Squad (2016) is effectively director James Gunn transferring his successful Guardians of the Galaxy format from MCU to DC. The DC Universe has always had the potential for more adult themed, darker stories rather than the family friendly Marvel heroes and here we have a superhero film that goes for gutsy violence, gore and adult laughs. The decision to tap into the villains has great potential and while the 2016 film played it too safe here Gunn lets go giving a very entertaining superhero film as a result. A new crew of misfits are put together by Viola Davis' chillingly manipulative security boss which is led by Bloodsport (Idris Elba), who is being blackmailed to participate. He's aided by the ever brilliant Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) who clearly loves this part and is just as superb as she was in two previous outings. There's plenty of banter and arguments as this team of egos has to infiltrate a South American island to destroy a giant alien. It doesn't always work but it boasts Sylvester Stallone as the voice of King Shark, an underused Peter Capaldi and a cameo from Taika Waititi. Good fun even for me who has grown a little tired of superhero films.

Based on the highly popular BBC Children's sci-fi series which at the time of this film's release had only been made in black & white so this technicolor film was therefore a big hit with it's fans. William Hartnell, the then TV Doctor, was disappointed not to be given the role for the film which went to Peter Cushing who was more well known for US audiences. As fans will know the later TV scripts for the series have the Doctor as a time travelling alien but in the original and first series and this film he's a sort of bumbling Edwardian inventor who has cobbled together his time machine, called TARDIS. On TV he's always referred to as just The Doctor but in this screen version he is actually called Dr Who, which does jar a little if you have been bought up watching the series. That aside here we have Roy Castle playing the hapless boyfriend Ian of the Doctor's granddaughter, Barbara (Jennie Linden). He's the comedy element of the film and whilst being given a tour of the TARDIS he trips on the controls sending them all, including younger granddaughter Susan (Roberta Tovey), off to a desolate planet where they have to help peaceful Ziggy Stardust lookalike humanoids deal with the evil metal encased Daleks. The budget was clearly small and the sets are all tissue paper and string and the story has holes galore but this is clearly designed for children with much of the action and horror elements toned down to please the censor. It's all good fun and worth seeking out if you're a fan of the newer TV incarnations of the Doctor. It's recently been restored for BluRay and 4k UHD so is available if you have fond memories and want a a little nostalgia for your early years remembering how much the Daleks were very scary at the time.

A good natured holiday romance/coming of age comedy drama set in a dreary Dorset Holiday Park. Nell Barlow plays angry, awkward and environmentally conscious teenager AJ, who's mum (Jo Hartley) still insists on calling her April or Ape for short. AJ has been forced to go on this holiday with her younger sister, bossy pregnant older sister and sister's easy going boyfriend. Grumpy and defiant AJ hates every moment until she sees attractive pool lifeguard Isla (Ella-Rae Smith) and they strike up a friendship. AJ's sexual awakening is threatened by the stupid boys that circle around Isla but the resulting romance is one that only happens in films and whilst it's doomed to last just for the short holiday it teaches AJ that it's family that really important in her life. As a story this is fairly routine and predictable in many ways, with clumsy experiments with sex and the somewhat clichéd angry teenager battle with determined parent but Barlow plays AJ with gusto and makes this a very humorous and watchable film.

Critics have described this modernised adaptation of Jane Austen's famous novel as 'misguided' but I simply found myself enjoying it more and more. I wonder sometimes if there's a slight snobbery applied whenever there's an attempt to take a hallowed text and do something different with it. Here, influenced no doubt by the TV series Bridgerton, the story is given a 'Fleabag' treatment and the language altered to provide a period romcom that made me laugh and feel moved throughout. The main reason is the excellent performance by Dakota Johnson, an actor who is consistently proving to be one of the finest around today, her asides to the camera, her sly nods and glances at the viewer and the passion with which she brings the emotional pain of her character makes this film. She plays Ann Elliot, a lovelorn woman, who was persuaded to turn down a proposal from Wentworth (Cosmo Jarvis), a penniless sailor years before. She is hopelessly in love still so when he shows up, now wealthy and respectable, she is torn between her feelings and social restrictions especially as her family have fallen on hard times due to her selfish father (Richard E. Grant). There's plenty of laughs and Mia McKenna-Bruce as her narcissistic sister Mary is hilarious and also the film is romantic and moving. Don't listen to naysayers this is a treat.

Director Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece satirical comedy about the horrors of nuclear war. Painfully funny mostly because of the hilarious three performances by Peter Sellers who plays an ubër polite RAF officer, the frustrated yet hapless US President and the titular Dr Strangelove, the President's scientific advisor with a dark nazi past. If you watch carefully you'll notice other cast members suppressing their laughter in some of Seller's scenes. The film makes fun of the Cold War and the nuclear arms race positing that mistakes could happen and yet everyone will jump around trying to deny such mistakes. Here an insane US Airforce General (Sterling Hayden), obsessed with protecting his vital bodily fluids from communist influence, has his bombers sent to bomb the USSR. The President finds that he can't stop it and is advised to take advantage of the situation to proceed with the attack, a position pushed by the manic General Turgidson (George C. Scott) and the sinister Dr Strangelove. With a cracking support cast including Keenan Wynn, Slim Pickens (who gets a final iconic cinematic scene), James Earl Jones in his film debut and British actor Peter Bull as the Soviet Ambassador this is a film that never fails to give more and more. The laughs come thick and fast and often found in the smallest of details. It's endlessly quotable too with famous lines like "You can't fight in here, this is the war room". The magic here is that the film could just as well have been a serious one but the caricatures become believable and the conflict between the military and the politicians reminiscent of events that even resonate today. Overall this is one of the great film comedies. A wonderful film, clever, intelligent and uproariously funny. It's a must see.

After the big misfire that was Eternals (2021) Marvel return their, arguably, most favourite character in what is another fairly routine, overly long adventure that carries on from his previous adventure. Tom Holland returns as the masked superhero but has had his secret identity revealed to the world. This affects not only his life but that of his friends, girlfriend (Zendaya) and his beloved Aunt (Marisa Tomei). So he turns to Dr Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to weave a magic spell and get everyone to forget his real name. But this all goes wrong and blah blah blah it's all the same old stuff but then things liven up a tad. The spell opens up multiverses and all the villains from the previous films arrive as do other Spidermans ie Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. This cues some entertainment although the script is never sharp or witty enough to make this a real treat. The story isn't bad although we ultimately left with superhero punch ups as always. A shade better than the previous Spiderman outings but, and perhaps I'm getting too old and grumpy, it's all basically the same big, spectacular CGi nonsense.

Director Joanna Hogg once again defies expectations in this semi-autobiographical sequel to her 2019 film. Whereas I was entranced by the first film telling the story of young film school graduate Julie and her dysfunctional relationship with a destructive heroin addict I found this continuation of Julie's story to be too challenging. Essentially a story of grief with Julie, again played by Honor Swinton Byrne, trying to come to terms with the loss of her lover but attempting to separate the lies from the truth and rid herself of his dominant presence in her life. Hogg creates a clever and intricate character study especially of Julie and her parents, played brilliantly by Tilda Swinton and James Spencer Ashworth, but I found the film was too detached from what was actually happening in the narrative leaving me not really caring. The basis of the story centres around Julie making her graduation film and has changed the initial project to make a more intimate film that tries to deal with the issues in her own life. Her tutors are against this and the film making process becomes fraught with challenges. Julie succeeds, partially because she has wealthy parents to rely on, and partially due to her artistic seriousness. However this film left me a bit empty and whilst it has been applauded by critics it wasn't as fulfilling an experience.

So this is where it all began! And who knew then what this quite humble film would spawn. Based reasonably closely on the novel of the same name, which was chosen as it had a simple and filmable plot, this first 007 film is worthy or rediscovery. Not only will you easily spot the influence on Daniel Craig's interpretation of the character but you maybe surprised by how brutal Bond is in this. He kills in cold blood, he uses sex to control women and is open to torturing them for information. Because this is all presented somewhat tongue-in-cheek the film gets away with it. Considering the massive, lavish spectacles the Bond films have become renowned for this one may appear rather dated, and the restriction of budget and technical know how is evident in the use of back projection and a rather quick climax with the death of the chief villain a bit lacklustre. But overall this is an entertaining action adventure film where the suave and sophisticated British secret service agent is sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of an agent there and to see if there is a link to the disruption of American rocket launches. There are several links to the series that would follow, Bond's later close friend Felix Leiter is introduced here played by Jack Lord of Hawaii 5-O fame along with Moneypenny (Lois Maxwell) and M (Bernard Lee) of course. The action is at times bloody and the sex is raunchy for its time courtesy of Ursula Andress as the main 'Bond girl' and her famous walk out of the sea. It's a colourful, fast paced film and Sean Connery, despite his then relative newness, is clearly a movie star. It's not the best of the Bond's but it's definitely up there above quite a few that would follow.