Before it makes a bizarre misstep in its finale, Fall effectively mixes vertiginous Cliff-hanger-like ‘dangling over the edge’ thriller with a ‘young woman exorcising personal demons through physical ordeal’ drama reminiscent of the Reece Witherspoon film Wild and the Blake Lively film The Shallows. In the old ‘establish the emotional baggage’ sequence, our sensitive yet ballsy rock climbing heroine Becky (Grace
Read moreThe inevitable challenge for any film sequel is to live up to the expectations raised by the original. When that sequel arrives many years after the first film, so that the original has come to be seen as a minor classic or at least a childhood favourite, the sequel’s task is that much tougher. This is one of the problems
Read moreBodies, Bodies, Bodies is an occasionally clever but mostly annoying, collision of whodunit thriller and millennial culture making it a cacophony of catchphrases and social media references occasionally interspersed by killings. The film employs the familiar set up of a group of friends – in this case mostly loud, obnoxious, twenty-something rich kids – converging on a sprawling mansion for
Read moreThe sensitive, charming but still gritty Irish film, The Quiet Girl (which is spoken almost entirely in Irish Gaelic) will no doubt prove to be a favourite for some filmgoers this year. It shows that a tearjerker can still be a credible and genuinely affecting drama. In her first film role, 12- year-old Catherine Clinch stars as Cait, the neglected
Read moreThere have been numerous film adaptations of Italian author Carlo Collodi’s 1883 Pinocchio story but the most famous is the 1940 Disney animated film. That movie is apparently a favourite of a number of renowned directors including Steven Spielberg who used its ‘wish upon a star’ theme over the closing credits of Close Encounters and essentially remade it as AI:
Read moreDespite being directed by the revered George Miller, containing some inspired and quite startling moments and starring two of Hollywood’s most respected actors, Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba, the oddball romantic fantasy and storytelling tribute, 3,000 Years Of Longing doesn’t entirely work. The title sounds like a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel but George Miller and Augusta Gore wrote the film’s
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