Film Review: Red Army
It’s often said that sport and politics don’t mix but all too often they become uncomfortable bedfellows. Whether it be boycotting of Olympic Games or rebel tours to apartheid South Africa, money and politics are never far away. A country’s hopes and national pride are all too often staked on one of their sports teams. …
Incoming: Sicario
Sicario means hitman. In the lawless border area between U.S. and Mexico, an idealistic FBI agent (Emily Blunt) is enlisted by an elite government task force official (Josh Brolin) to aid in the escalating war against drugs. Led by an enigmatic consultant with a questionable past (Benicio Del Toro), the team sets out on a …
Film Review: Unbreakable: The Mark Pollock Story
It’s easy to get wrapped up in your own life and personal problems. From cooking quinoa to finding a good school for little John Snow Smith, the internet is full of first world problems. It’s only when we come face to face with someone who has strived so hard to overcome unimaginable difficulties that we …
Film Review: Zarafa
After (too many) years of overblown CGI, there thankfully seems to be growing trend towards hand-drawn animation. Of recent note are Ghibli’s beautiful The Tale of Princess Kaguya and Tomm Moore’s breathtaking Song of the Sea, which are two of the best films released this year. There’s a magic of human creation which simply cannot …
DVD Review: Dag Season 1
Shrinks have been popular on American TV for many years now, and in many ways Norwegian comedy series Dag feels very much like it could have been made in the US. However, in true Scandinavian tradition the humour is as dark as the protagonist’s moods. I’m not sure if Dag actually has any qualifications as …
Incoming: The Death and Resurrection Show
The Death and Resurrection Show is a feature length music documentary charting the turbulent, dramatic and often unbelievable journey of the British post-punk industrial legends Killing Joke. The film brings together three decades of archive footage with two decades of never before seen new documentary footage and unprecedented access to the members of Killing Joke, …
Film Review: By Our Selves
John Clare was a romantic-era nature poet and compulsive wanderer who wrote prolifically over a period of 70 years. His work was fuelled by a sense of looming madness which followed him throughout his life. Whilst many poets of the early 19th Century were considered gentlemen and dined at the highest tables, Clare came from …
Incoming: The Martian
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meagre supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way …
Film Review: 3 1/2 Minutes, 10 Bullets
On Friday 23 November 2012 Michael Dunn shot 10 bullets into a car parked next to his at a gas station in Florida. He claimed it was in self-defence as he feared for his life and that one of the four occupants, Jordan Davies, was threatening him and had a gun. Davies died from his …
Film Review: Convenience
The British Film Industry has historically had a strong reputation when it comes to comedy. From the Ealing Comedies to Monty Python, Richard Curtis and Edgar Wright, we’re internationally renowned for making people laugh. This is bolstered by the TV work of Chris Morris, Armando Iannucci, Steve Coogan and Stephen Fry. Unfortunately, this country also …