Film Reviews by AER

It's an interesting film where you can't warm to the characters but not through any fault of the movie. The performances are uniformly excellent in this film about a Canvey Island family that centres around an anorexic woman struggling with drug addiction and her re-assimilation back into family life. The characters are brittle, unlikeable, and all too real in this slice of life that rarely gets shown with a straight face in cinema. It shows that anorexia is not just a teenage problem and it also shows the effects that such an affliction can have on your life. Tough to watch at times, it's only downside is that it juggles a few too many plot points to fully process the level of emotion coming through, and also some of the directorial flourishes are a bit unwelcome. It's a brave film and a unique one.

Well-acted, fast-moving and predictable, Ingrid Goes West capitalises on the cult appeal of Aubrey Plaza. It's a telling satire for our times where social media rules everything. This is a comedy about a young woman's obsession with an IG influencer to the extent that she moves to LA and infiltrates her life. Only we (the viewer) see how vapid and fake the influencer (played by Elisabeth Olsen) is. It's funny, and light offering moments of troubling drama. It's a sharp tack in with all the vapid Mean Girls clones.... Worth a one-off watch.

6 out of 10

It's a great shame that Christopher Smith, one of the UK's best and most original film directors, has delivered such an incoherent horror/ghost story. There is none of his usual flair, ability to shock, or imagination at play in The Banishing. It's just trundles about, wallowing in cliches, played-out jump scares, and tropes we've got tired of 20 years ago. Also this contains terminally bad child acting too, which wrecks the films authenticity from the start. Sadly, this is boring, slow, and difficult to follow (maybe because it is so repetitive) or it's just badly edited and written. A big shame as Creep, Severance, Black Death, and Triangle are all ace. The director halts one of the best runs by a British film director - please don't banish him though, this could be a blip!

2 out of 10 - dull, unscary, and unoriginal.

There is no better time to see Summer of Soul, it's a fantastic musical odyssey and document of a forgotten music festival that took place in Harlem, NY in 1969. What a year that was too! I think the DVD will be chocka with extras, I saw it at the cinema and it was a whistle-stop tour of the live performances interspersed with people that attended, the performers, and famous NY-based music enthusiasts. Directed by member of The Roots, Queslove, a renowned record collector and memorabilia fiend, he's perhaps the best qualified to put this material together in some semblance of order. It works as a good gateway to the black experience in 60s America, but if you are well-versed in the history already there's enough fresh material on show through the superb gig footage.

6 out of 10 - Inspiring and thank goodness it's been restored and shared at last!

Jessica Hausner's Hotel is a superb, chilling little film about a young woman, Irene (Franziska Weisz) who has just begun a new job at a hotel in the Austrian Alps. She has replaced a girl called Eva who went missing, and the police are still investigating the mystery. However, this perceptive woman begins to pick up on some peculiar vibes and odd occurrences seem to stalk her.

The atmospherics are subtle but there is a lot of suggestion that there could be a murderer or something supernatural at play. The film lets you decide, as right up until it's non-ending, it had me gripped. The ending felt like a cop-out though - this one is about the journey. Wonderful performances all round - especially from Weisz.

7 out of 10

Vincent Ward is a film director that relies heavily on startling visuals and editing to tell his stories. He is like New Zealand's Terry Gilliam in some respects. Sadly, his career has spluttered along and never quite caught fire. He worked on Alien 3 for ages before walking away (he had the idea of Monks on a wooden planet! Can you imagine?) Vigil was his second film after The Navigator and it's probably his smallest film in scale and it has some powerful sections. However, it begs a lot of questions of the viewer along the way, and it distracts from bonding with the potentially interesting characters. Much is shrouded in mystery and it may take one or two viewings to get under its skin. There are quite a few of these great films from 80s New Zealand that are worth a look like The Quiet Earth, Smash Palace, and Utu. Get involved.

6 out of 10

In The House is another clever time-passer from imaginative French director Francois Ozon. He never makes the same film twice and this one has a tight plot that paints itself into a corner by the time it ends. But sometimes its the journey rather than the destination that makes some films enjyable. The ending is an unconvincing rush job, like the scriptwriter ran out of options for his creation, and that's a shame because much of the actual story revolves around the construction of successful storytelling. It's never less than entertaining though but it has far less to say than it might think it does. Take it as a light farce and you'll find much to enjoy, like me.

6 out of 10

Out of the five Daniel Craig films, I'd rate this as third best after Casino Royale, and Skyfall. It has lots of good set-pieces, the action-packed chases in Italy (seen in the trailers for the last 2 years - nearly) and a snappy cameo from Ana De Armas as a scene-stealing special agent. Rami Malek's villain is interesting too (but not very complex) although his scheme for a world domination is cool this for this run around. My problem with No Time To Die was that it was a bit broad, the comedy doesn't work, and Bond's team (M, Q & Moneypenny) are left with little to do except quip / frown. The storytelling risks are not very good but well-played (I won't call them twists), and I think it was all a bit predictable if you think about how there's been much talk of making Bond more modern / less misogynistic / more human / relatable - bu then he's lost his uniqueness / his edge, so here we have a softer character that you might get mixed up with Dwayne Johnson's agent in Central Intelligence. haha.

The action delivered though, so I was impressed.

5 out of 10

The 60s element to Last Night in Soho are much better than the modern-day bits. The modern sections exist in a heightened film reality occupied by other big-budget British films like Bridget Jones (its recognisable as our world but it's a little bit too neat). The technical side to the film is mindblowing, seamless editing, choreography, blocking, and set design all add up to an immaculate looking film. Whilst this all counts, it needs a good story to land on, and this mystery will keep you guessing right up until the end. I was entertained and bewildered for much of the time; it's easy to follow with compelling characters. At times, some of the actors can't sell their characters to us - particularly newcomers Synnove Karlsen, and Michael Ajao who are saddled with stock-characters and bad lines - and I found this jarring. However, the lead actors were uniformly amazing and kept the intrigue levels high.

7 out of 10

This strange travelogue about a mysterious scholar, Robinson and an unnamed colleague narrated by Paul Scofield, was made in 1992 and released sometime at the cinema in 1993-94. It's a delight to revisit the London of the early 90s in all its faded glory. It's full of stunning imagery and bewitching curios about the cities history. Dramatically non-existent, it's still a wonderful way to spend 90 minutes. It serves as a time machine back to the details our memories never retain.

One of a trilogy - followed by Robinson in Space, and Robinson in Ruins.

8 out of 10

Denis Villeneuve has done it again - this is the Dune we've been waiting for. Well-acted, easier to follow than David Lynch's 1984 adaptation, and cast with a great set of actors. The look and feel of the film is spot on and part 2 should be made to complete this story. Dare I say it though, as good as the backdrop and acting was, I found it a bit dull, and the lack of characterisation (everyone is reduced to ciphers) a bit disappointing. So, the jury is still out until the second film comes out.

5 out of 10

Watch this for the sumptuous visuals. I've never seen a film that is structured by dream logic, yet Long Day's Journey Through Night is a such a beast. It's difficult to follow as the plot is light and disappears in a trice. I feel like the 2.15 hr movie is a very long trailer for the expertly edited and wonderful 2 minute trailer which makes about the same amount of sense. It's dazzling to look at - a gift for the eyes and the ears, but those looking for cohesive storylines may not give this the amount of effort it needs. Sadly, it defeated me, although I watched the whole thing. Even my house began to spin....

3 out of 10

Go into a viewing of Vivarium with as little prior knowledge as possible. I won't spoil the plot of this interesting and gripping existential horror film. Good performances boost the surreal and off-kilter elements to this very strange film that is an allegory for the perils of suburban lives and the aspirational drives and conventions placed upon most of us these days. It's also pretty chilling and rewarding for those with a soupcon of patience. This plays like a feature-length episode of Black Mirror or the Twilight Zone, and doesn't suffer from those comparisons. Imogen Poots, Jesse Eisenberg, and Jonathan Aris (in particular) as the three principles all embody their weird roles with perfection.

Wonderful - 8 out of 10

This is moviemaking with stencils and made according to strict blueprints - however, nobody went to see a GI Joe movie for originality, grit and realism. For me, Snake Eyes was all about the fight sequences which are short, varied, and fairly thrilling. It's OK to switch off when the characters are talking to one another as it never amounted to anything interesting. I enjoyed the scene at the docks where the lorry Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow are driving gets riddled with samurai swords in a fierce battle. It's fun but nothing special. It's very thin.

3 out of 10

Even though this could have done with some judicious editing, The Last Duel is a chilling tale of the kind we don't see so much anymore. It was refreshing to see an old fashioned film with knights, horses and battles featuring some great actors. The plot device of telling the same story from three different POV's could have worked if each strand was substantially different from the last and its an awkward fit for a pretty straight story. Less fussiness would've have given The Last Duel its much needed pace. Where the strengths lie are in the superb performances by Matt Damon (His best for ages), Ben Affleck, and Jodie Comer. The central duel does not disappoint and the ending is quite harrowing. It's a solid and entertaining film and worth checking out. Ben Affleck & Matt Damon co-wrote this alongside the sometime director of the Parks & Recreation series, Nicole Holocefener.

7 out of 10