Living

What a curious little film, not sure how it got made but quite glad it did. It is a vehicle for Bill Nighy which got his Oscar nominated for Best Actor and it was a role seemingly written for him as a run of the mill 1950´s post-war council worker who gets an unexpected diagnosis and looks to ´live a little´.

Well acted costume drama which gives an interesting insight into a period of time about which little is written or made, just after a horrendous war and the austerity it brought, and just before the UK kicked off its shoes for the swinging sixties. A very peculiar moment in time brilliantly captured.

But probably not a film I´d want to watch again.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9051908/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_2

Living

What a curious little film, not sure how it got made but quite glad it did. It is a vehicle for Bill Nighy which got his Oscar nominated for Best Actor and it was a role seemingly written for him as a run of the mill 1950´s post-war council worker who gets an unexpected diagnosis and looks to ´live a little´.

Well acted costume drama which gives an interesting insight into a period of time about which little is written or made, just after a horrendous war and the austerity it brought, and just before the UK kicked off its shoes for the swinging sixties. A very peculiar moment in time brilliantly captured.

But probably not a film I´d want to watch again.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9051908/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_2

The Beasts (As Bestas)

I agonised long and hard over whether to watch this study into relationships in a small Galician (Spain) village where a couple of foreigners buy a house to look for the quiet life but antagonise the locals with tragic consequences. Filmed in Castillian, Gallego and French it is an observational piece and is based on a widely documented true story (Santoalla) with a documentary available on YouTube.

I agonised because it is a story based broadly on what my wife and I have done over the last 9 years, without antagonising the locals, in that we moved to a remote(ish) small village as the first non-Spanish to live here and have tried to become part of the local community.

From my perspective it is an uncomfortable watch as I can see so much of ourselves in the two French lead characters; renovating a house, trying something different in a closed community, but not wanting to cause ructions.

It is beautifully filmed, well acted, and so close to some versions of reality in rural Spain.

It´s dark, and on occasions overpowering. Give it a try.

It won 9 Goya´s (including best film) and was nominated for 8 others.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15006566/? ... _sr_srsg_0

The Beasts (As Bestas)

I agonised long and hard over whether to watch this study into relationships in a small Galician (Spain) village where a couple of foreigners buy a house to look for the quiet life but antagonise the locals with tragic consequences. Filmed in Castillian, Gallego and French it is an observational piece and is based on a widely documented true story (Santoalla) with a documentary available on YouTube.

I agonised because it is a story based broadly on what my wife and I have done over the last 9 years, without antagonising the locals, in that we moved to a remote(ish) small village as the first non-Spanish to live here and have tried to become part of the local community.

From my perspective it is an uncomfortable watch as I can see so much of ourselves in the two French lead characters; renovating a house, trying something different in a closed community, but not wanting to cause ructions.

It is beautifully filmed, well acted, and so close to some versions of reality in rural Spain.

It´s dark, and on occasions overpowering. Give it a try.

It won 9 Goya´s (including best film) and was nominated for 8 others.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15006566/? ... _sr_srsg_0

Luther: The Fallen Sun

Where to start with this!

I loved the BBC Luther series, dark, gritty, well written and brilliantly acted.

This is almost the antithesis, despite Idris Elba´s best efforts to make the best of a dreadful script and the full force of the BBC special effects department. To enjoy it you will need to suspend any rational thought or knowledge of the real world, forget some massive plot holes, ignore continuity errors, and try to forget that this was a cheeky ´test reel´ for Elba´s 007 aspirations.

There are some real howlers in here but the hill I would die on was a high class bar tender offering an 18 Year Old Glenmorangie or a Tullamore Dew as an alternative (the two are definitely not comparable in any way and no respectable barman would mention them in the same breath).

This spoils the memory of the true Luther, quite awful.

4/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3155298/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_3

Luther: The Fallen Sun

Where to start with this!

I loved the BBC Luther series, dark, gritty, well written and brilliantly acted.

This is almost the antithesis, despite Idris Elba´s best efforts to make the best of a dreadful script and the full force of the BBC special effects department. To enjoy it you will need to suspend any rational thought or knowledge of the real world, forget some massive plot holes, ignore continuity errors, and try to forget that this was a cheeky ´test reel´ for Elba´s 007 aspirations.

There are some real howlers in here but the hill I would die on was a high class bar tender offering an 18 Year Old Glenmorangie or a Tullamore Dew as an alternative (the two are definitely not comparable in any way and no respectable barman would mention them in the same breath).

This spoils the memory of the true Luther, quite awful.

4/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3155298/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_3

Champions

I went into this one knowing that it was a ´feelgood´film, but a feelgood film starring Woody Harrelson. I have loved Woody Harrelson through a whole host of hit and miss movies, Three Billboards, Triangle of Sadness (see earlier), Hunger games series, True Detective, No Country For Old Men, etc. But this was always going to be a gamble for the ace actor. A feelgood movie where he needed to avoid being too sickly, and unfortunately he didn´t pull it off.

A disgraced basketball coach ends up coaching a team of special needs kids and young adults in a vehicle for the Harrelson character to learn lessons and grow as a human. On paper it has potential but it is just a bit wide of the mark.

Don´t get me wrong, at no point did I consider turning it off, but it was all too predictable and formulaic. It´s not a great addition to Woody´s oeuvre and probably one which he´d rather wasn´t on his CV but it looks like he had a laugh making it, even if the laughs are a little few and far between for the viewer.

6/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15339570/? ... _champions

Champions

I went into this one knowing that it was a ´feelgood´film, but a feelgood film starring Woody Harrelson. I have loved Woody Harrelson through a whole host of hit and miss movies, Three Billboards, Triangle of Sadness (see earlier), Hunger games series, True Detective, No Country For Old Men, etc. But this was always going to be a gamble for the ace actor. A feelgood movie where he needed to avoid being too sickly, and unfortunately he didn´t pull it off.

A disgraced basketball coach ends up coaching a team of special needs kids and young adults in a vehicle for the Harrelson character to learn lessons and grow as a human. On paper it has potential but it is just a bit wide of the mark.

Don´t get me wrong, at no point did I consider turning it off, but it was all too predictable and formulaic. It´s not a great addition to Woody´s oeuvre and probably one which he´d rather wasn´t on his CV but it looks like he had a laugh making it, even if the laughs are a little few and far between for the viewer.

6/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15339570/? ... _champions

After Yang

I was recommended this by a friend, I´d not heard of it before his recommendation.

An under the radar (for me anyway), art house, low budget, delightful and thought provoking sci-fi revelation which has delightful cinematography, is brilliantly acted, and entertains the mind while moving at pedestrian pace on screen while sending your mind racing in many directions.

Set in the near future, a families Artificial Intelligence helper breaks down and attempts to repair it have unexpected consequences. The family experience grief and loss and try to seek some kind of closure.

Colin Farrell stars amongst a small cast in what is clearly a ´lockdown´ movie, but which doesn´t have most of the poor script and stilted scenes of what we have come to accept as a lockdown movie. Just enough Sci-fi to interest the geek in me but it´s less a story of the future and more a story of future relationships as well as being a study of loss and loyalty.

A delight if you want your mind to be stimulated.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8633464/?r ... r%2520yang

After Yang

I was recommended this by a friend, I´d not heard of it before his recommendation.

An under the radar (for me anyway), art house, low budget, delightful and thought provoking sci-fi revelation which has delightful cinematography, is brilliantly acted, and entertains the mind while moving at pedestrian pace on screen while sending your mind racing in many directions.

Set in the near future, a families Artificial Intelligence helper breaks down and attempts to repair it have unexpected consequences. The family experience grief and loss and try to seek some kind of closure.

Colin Farrell stars amongst a small cast in what is clearly a ´lockdown´ movie, but which doesn´t have most of the poor script and stilted scenes of what we have come to accept as a lockdown movie. Just enough Sci-fi to interest the geek in me but it´s less a story of the future and more a story of future relationships as well as being a study of loss and loyalty.

A delight if you want your mind to be stimulated.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8633464/?r ... r%2520yang

65

I think I´ve rated every Adam Driver movie that I´ve ever seen. He has a real presence, a mystery, and enigma and he usually impresses. I´ve rated them all until this. Although it is sci-fi, and really a genre in which he excels, this was lacklustre and unbelievable and while I watched it until the end it was a bit of an effort.

Set 65 million years in the past our main character gets marooned on earth while travelling between galaxies after an unexpected meteor shower. He has to try and get off a dinosaur infested planet in danger of impeding meteor impact (we all know what happened then).

It´s a lockdown film with limited cast and they really should have spent more time developing the idea and the script and it could have been so watchable. Good special effects if you can suspend your disbelief.

5/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12261776/? ... _nm_2_q_65

65

I think I´ve rated every Adam Driver movie that I´ve ever seen. He has a real presence, a mystery, and enigma and he usually impresses. I´ve rated them all until this. Although it is sci-fi, and really a genre in which he excels, this was lacklustre and unbelievable and while I watched it until the end it was a bit of an effort.

Set 65 million years in the past our main character gets marooned on earth while travelling between galaxies after an unexpected meteor shower. He has to try and get off a dinosaur infested planet in danger of impeding meteor impact (we all know what happened then).

It´s a lockdown film with limited cast and they really should have spent more time developing the idea and the script and it could have been so watchable. Good special effects if you can suspend your disbelief.

5/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12261776/? ... _nm_2_q_65

Renfield

Walking the tightrope between garbage a genius, Nicolas Cage camps it up to the max as Dracula in this gorefest comedy which brings the legend to modern day USA through the eyes of Dracula´s long suffering man servant Renfield.

Crazy fight sequences, including one hundred bizarre ways to die, are the main tenet of this shortish seemingly low budget encounter but what I liked most were the knowing nods to the long established lore of Dracula, most made in a terrific comedic manner.

It is absolutely kitsch, from the opening sequence to the final showdown, but I enjoyed the ride and great performances from the main actors; Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina and Ben Schwartz.

It´s never going to get a mention at the Oscars, but it´s a good wheeze.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11358390/? ... m_5_q_renf

Renfield

Walking the tightrope between garbage a genius, Nicolas Cage camps it up to the max as Dracula in this gorefest comedy which brings the legend to modern day USA through the eyes of Dracula´s long suffering man servant Renfield.

Crazy fight sequences, including one hundred bizarre ways to die, are the main tenet of this shortish seemingly low budget encounter but what I liked most were the knowing nods to the long established lore of Dracula, most made in a terrific comedic manner.

It is absolutely kitsch, from the opening sequence to the final showdown, but I enjoyed the ride and great performances from the main actors; Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina and Ben Schwartz.

It´s never going to get a mention at the Oscars, but it´s a good wheeze.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11358390/? ... m_5_q_renf

The Pope´s Exorcist

Horror is certainly not my genre but I was pulled in by the promise of Russell Crowe riding a Vespa and to be honest I enjoyed it, despite Hollywood´s current penchant for gratuitous gore.

The characters are well built the story holds together nicely and runs at some pace (a few glaring errors like Crowes figure riding over 2,000km on a Vespa between locations) with decent enough acting and some quite sinister moments which will have you reaching for the cushions.

Based on true stories (supposedly) or at least a true exorcist (a position of The Pope´s Exorcist which existed in the Vatican until very recent times) but totally incredible. If you can get past the opening scene then you should enjoy it.

The Exorcist for 2023?

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13375076/? ... %2520popes

The Pope´s Exorcist

Horror is certainly not my genre but I was pulled in by the promise of Russell Crowe riding a Vespa and to be honest I enjoyed it, despite Hollywood´s current penchant for gratuitous gore.

The characters are well built the story holds together nicely and runs at some pace (a few glaring errors like Crowes figure riding over 2,000km on a Vespa between locations) with decent enough acting and some quite sinister moments which will have you reaching for the cushions.

Based on true stories (supposedly) or at least a true exorcist (a position of The Pope´s Exorcist which existed in the Vatican until very recent times) but totally incredible. If you can get past the opening scene then you should enjoy it.

The Exorcist for 2023?

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13375076/? ... %2520popes

Dead Shot (Also known as Borderland)

I watched this because Mark Strong is rarely in a bad film, and despite this getting panned by the critics, it´s not a bad little low budget offering.

Set in IRA Ireland and then Britain of the 1970´s it follows a typical revenge format but is nicely acted, reasonably scripted, and pretty decently set dressed with plenty of great cars and music of the time to wonder at. There are a couple of nice twists, but none which will really shock you.

The main actors are all fully believable in their roles and while there is plenty of violence it is not on recent Hollywood levels.

An enjoyable and shortish film.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8019518/?r ... d%2520shot

Dead Shot (Also known as Borderland)

I watched this because Mark Strong is rarely in a bad film, and despite this getting panned by the critics, it´s not a bad little low budget offering.

Set in IRA Ireland and then Britain of the 1970´s it follows a typical revenge format but is nicely acted, reasonably scripted, and pretty decently set dressed with plenty of great cars and music of the time to wonder at. There are a couple of nice twists, but none which will really shock you.

The main actors are all fully believable in their roles and while there is plenty of violence it is not on recent Hollywood levels.

An enjoyable and shortish film.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8019518/?r ... d%2520shot

Air

The premise of a two hour film about how Nike secured their groundbreaking relationship with basketball superstar Michael Jordan doesn´t really inspire one to dedicate the time and would probably make you pass on by to something with a bit more promise. But throw Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman and Viola Davies into the pot and mix with a deliciously written script and attention to mid 1980´s detail and what you have is a delightful film which is filled with laughs.

Matt Damon plays the agent for Nike, who goes against the norm to put together a deal to entice Jordan away from the two leading brands at the time, Converse and Adidas, and make the seemingly impossible happen (hopefully not a spoiler).

It is beautifully acted with a funky eighties soundtrack and some of the best expletive rich dialogues that I can remember since ´Glengarry, Glen Ross´.

A delight.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16419074/? ... _nm_4_q_ai

Air

The premise of a two hour film about how Nike secured their groundbreaking relationship with basketball superstar Michael Jordan doesn´t really inspire one to dedicate the time and would probably make you pass on by to something with a bit more promise. But throw Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman and Viola Davies into the pot and mix with a deliciously written script and attention to mid 1980´s detail and what you have is a delightful film which is filled with laughs.

Matt Damon plays the agent for Nike, who goes against the norm to put together a deal to entice Jordan away from the two leading brands at the time, Converse and Adidas, and make the seemingly impossible happen (hopefully not a spoiler).

It is beautifully acted with a funky eighties soundtrack and some of the best expletive rich dialogues that I can remember since ´Glengarry, Glen Ross´.

A delight.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16419074/? ... _nm_4_q_ai

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves

A slightly overlong fantasy epic starring Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez which gives nothing new in terms of the genre but does deliver some nice moments and has a decent amount of comedy to show that it is played for laughs and not taking itself too seriously.

It´s about a petty thief's attempt to get back his daughter after getting caught and imprisoned in a medieval heist. The cinematography and CGI are great and there is a brilliant scene in a graveyard which while predictable, still raised an audible laugh.

Hugh Grant camps it up, in the way that only Hugh Grant can. It was nice enough but just felt a bit superficial. Run of the mill.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2906216/?r ... _q_dungeon

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves

A slightly overlong fantasy epic starring Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez which gives nothing new in terms of the genre but does deliver some nice moments and has a decent amount of comedy to show that it is played for laughs and not taking itself too seriously.

It´s about a petty thief's attempt to get back his daughter after getting caught and imprisoned in a medieval heist. The cinematography and CGI are great and there is a brilliant scene in a graveyard which while predictable, still raised an audible laugh.

Hugh Grant camps it up, in the way that only Hugh Grant can. It was nice enough but just felt a bit superficial. Run of the mill.

7/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2906216/?r ... _q_dungeon

Guy Richie´s The Covenant

Another shoot-em-up in the best Hollywood style with plenty of gore and a massive body count as you would probably expect from Guy Richie as he takes on an Afghanistan war and aftermath story.

A tale of an American sergeant (Jake Gyllenhaal) and his interpreter (Dar Salim) and their relationship both during operations and after. Follows a similar format to the fantastic ´The Killing Fields´ with a long set-up and a well delivered, pulling at the heartstrings, second act.

Gyllenhaal is rapidly becoming one of the best film actors and he is fantastic in this role, as is his co-actor and it would be difficult to decide who should have headline billing.

If you can see past the blood and gore then you will enjoy this, never a dull moment, full of twists and turns. Definitely worth watching.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4873118/?r ... es%2520the

Guy Richie´s The Covenant

Another shoot-em-up in the best Hollywood style with plenty of gore and a massive body count as you would probably expect from Guy Richie as he takes on an Afghanistan war and aftermath story.

A tale of an American sergeant (Jake Gyllenhaal) and his interpreter (Dar Salim) and their relationship both during operations and after. Follows a similar format to the fantastic ´The Killing Fields´ with a long set-up and a well delivered, pulling at the heartstrings, second act.

Gyllenhaal is rapidly becoming one of the best film actors and he is fantastic in this role, as is his co-actor and it would be difficult to decide who should have headline billing.

If you can see past the blood and gore then you will enjoy this, never a dull moment, full of twists and turns. Definitely worth watching.

8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4873118/?r ... es%2520the

Old Henry

I love a good western, and this is a good western. It had slipped under my radar and I was only alerted to it by a Facebook post which suggested that it was an undiscovered and unrecognised potential classic. That might push it a bit far but it kept me interested, was tense, brilliantly acted and a nice twist which I´d not seen coming (but then why should I have).

It had a lockdown feel, small cast, limited locations but wasn´t any the worse for it.

A farmsteader stumbles across an injured man and a satchel of cash and agrees to help him but there is a posse hot on his trail. A little formulaic but uncomfortable in it´s delivery.

8/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12731980/? ... %2520henry

Old Henry

I love a good western, and this is a good western. It had slipped under my radar and I was only alerted to it by a Facebook post which suggested that it was an undiscovered and unrecognised potential classic. That might push it a bit far but it kept me interested, was tense, brilliantly acted and a nice twist which I´d not seen coming (but then why should I have).

It had a lockdown feel, small cast, limited locations but wasn´t any the worse for it.

A farmsteader stumbles across an injured man and a satchel of cash and agrees to help him but there is a posse hot on his trail. A little formulaic but uncomfortable in it´s delivery.

8/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12731980/? ... %2520henry

Reality

I´ve started three films over recent days and not made it more than half an hour into them, so it was a refreshing change to give Reality a spin after a recommendation from another film watching friend. It is based on the true story of Reality Winner who was investigated for breaching her security clearance by supplying information about Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential elections to the media.

It is brilliantly filmed and portrays a very claustrophobic atmosphere which keeps you on the edge of your seat through its short eighty minutes duration. Mostly unknown actors are convincing in their roles, particularly Sydney Sweeney as the lead and the ´fly on the wall´style of presentation adds to the drama.

Well worth seeking out.

7/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24068064/? ... nm_3_q_rea

Reality

I´ve started three films over recent days and not made it more than half an hour into them, so it was a refreshing change to give Reality a spin after a recommendation from another film watching friend. It is based on the true story of Reality Winner who was investigated for breaching her security clearance by supplying information about Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential elections to the media.

It is brilliantly filmed and portrays a very claustrophobic atmosphere which keeps you on the edge of your seat through its short eighty minutes duration. Mostly unknown actors are convincing in their roles, particularly Sydney Sweeney as the lead and the ´fly on the wall´style of presentation adds to the drama.

Well worth seeking out.

7/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24068064/? ... nm_3_q_rea

Extraction II

The follow up to 2020 'Blockbuster´ Extraction for Netflix which takes up where the previous movie left off, including the miraculous recovery of the star Chris Hemsworth.

It's crash, bang, wallop and then a bit more crash, bang and indeed wallop. The assembled cast fire more bullets than the entire US Army managed in the Vietnam war while writing off more high end 4x4s and luxury limousines than you'd find in a Romanian people traffickers compound.

It is an entertaining way to pass the time, full of great set pieces, CGI eye candy, and a limited dialogue and storyline, the latter summed up easily by the movies one word title. Nothing great, Saturday night fodder after a takeaway without too much need to think about it. Probably best avoided until you've finished eating though.

6/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12263384/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Extraction II

The follow up to 2020 'Blockbuster´ Extraction for Netflix which takes up where the previous movie left off, including the miraculous recovery of the star Chris Hemsworth.

It's crash, bang, wallop and then a bit more crash, bang and indeed wallop. The assembled cast fire more bullets than the entire US Army managed in the Vietnam war while writing off more high end 4x4s and luxury limousines than you'd find in a Romanian people traffickers compound.

It is an entertaining way to pass the time, full of great set pieces, CGI eye candy, and a limited dialogue and storyline, the latter summed up easily by the movies one word title. Nothing great, Saturday night fodder after a takeaway without too much need to think about it. Probably best avoided until you've finished eating though.

6/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12263384/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1