Reviews

Please take my warning - this movie is a total waste of your time and money.

1. The plot is absurd - if such a thing were to happen Benjamin would have been a world wide celebrity with a completely different life.

2. Other than the basic plot telling how he grows younger, the story of Benjamin's life is absolute humdrum stuff - yawn yawn yawn. Nothing unusual happens him - one might as well be a fly on the wall in Joe Average home.

3. The articulation of the actors is Terrible. The link character, Daisy as an old woman, is so slurred in speech that only 1 word in ten is comprehensible.

4. Brad Pitt was totally flat and boring. If he wins an Oscar for that drivel the whole institution will stink.

5. The punch line of the film, 'Whatever age you are everyone can always achieve their dreams' is even greater rubbish than the film itself. It is a typical Hollywood piece of schmulch that makes any intelligent person puke.

I had to fight sleep all the way through this garbage - when really good films like Edenlake are ignored in the Oscars and this drivel picks up 13 nominations it proves that the whole show is rigged.

This is a truly outstanding film. Sharp but sensitive directing, fabulous photography and first rate acting propels Napola into main stream class. It's not really about the Hitler Youth, even though the makers have chosen to use the setting, but more about the essence of innate pacifism that seems to pervade some individuals more than others. And it delves into the logical power of that spirit to influence others and steer them away from the madness of brutality.

The unspoken love between the two central characters is beautifully interwoven with the central idea and we are left with a profound sense of sadness that our human race could ever allow the agony of war to occur.

This is a film you really must see - and followers of handsome young men will not be disappointed with the actors portraying our two heroes, Albrecht and Friederich.

The seedy world of Czech gay prostitution and porn is given an uncompromising pasting in this chilling account of a provincial school boy's experiences when drawn to the big city. Yes, it is completely over the top. Virtually every character he meets is either violent, nasty, selfish or simply insane. A pimp terrorizes his boys like a 20th. century Fagin sending them out to service clients whilst keeping every dollar for himself and beating up any dissenters. A porn film maker expects his models to ejaculate to order in ten seconds whilst directly overlooked by his brood of pre-teenage daughters carrying mugs of coffee. Clients brutalize their boys with savage sadism and unspeakable perversion. These things may happen in isolated incidents but the broad mass of prostitution and porn is not quite as black as the film makes out. It is a cartoon image of filth that shocks the viewer into serious thought and conflicting emotions. It is absolutely brilliant.

This is a film that excels in so many dimensions. It has superb acting, a wonderful screenplay, sublime photography and a truly splendid message. It is nothing short of excellent. Although Spencer Tracey deservedly won an Oscar for his performance as the Portuguese fisherman who rescues young Freddie Barthomelew from the sea, it seems unjust that the 12 year old lad himself wasn't awarded an Oscar for his part as well. Freddie was magnificent both as the spoilt son of a business tycoon and later as the humbled cabin boy of an old fishing boat. He steals the show with such subtlety that you never notice him doing it and by the end of the film he has stolen your heart as the son you really wish was yours.

Victor Fleming also deserved an Oscar for his direction. One is often moved to tears not through contrived tragedy or exaggerated emotion but simply through the portrayal of pure love that grows between the man and the boy as they struggle with the elements of life. Kipliing's book is given such focus and depth that even the screenplay might be thought of as Oscar worthy whilst the photography and art direction hold solid merit as well. Showing it recently to my son, he simply declared it to be the best film he had ever seen. What more need be said.

It's a wonderful film to show your kids - that's about it. For the average 6-10 year old I am sure there are plenty of simple slapstick laughs and a decent message underneath it. But for those of you with a few developed brain cells I would counsel against wasting an evening on this well intentioned but ultimately weak effort. However the film is in no way offensive or racist as some reviewers have suggested. In fact the characterization is extremely even handed with both black and white villains and heroes. The Bushmen tribe come out particularly well and we can but envy their simple and pure way of life that is beautifully captured in the film. Indeed not only is their way of life so beautiful but the very people are undoubtedly the most beautiful in the film and their inclusion brings a sparkle to what otherwise would be a mundane farce.

Just how exactly do gay Asians manage in a culture that generally refuses to even recognize the concept of homosexuality? For millions of gay Hindus and Muslims there seems little hope of ever leading a life that is accepted and endorsed by their otherwise very close knit families. This is the main point explored in Chicken Tikka Masala - presumably named after the Western spicy dish involving tender pieces of young chicken flesh! Jimmy is a typical young Asian brought up in Britain by traditional parents with the common narrow minded and selfish views on marriage and grandchildren. Like millions of others he is led into an arranged marriage that seems inescapable even though he is apparently completely gay and deeply involved with a very attractive young man with whom he lives. He knows that the truth should be told but fears for the consequences of that particularly so as his father appears to be terminally ill. And so he becomes embroiled in a web of deceit that becomes wider and wider as the plot develops.

The film is beautifully sensitive and not at all judgmental or patronizing to any group portrayed. The acting is generally excellent although it might seem a bit ham in places as the director tends to search for humor rather than letting it blossom naturally. There are no prizes for photography or script but the film is made entire by the wonderful sentiment expressed at the very end - a sentiment that all fathers across the world would do well to learn from.

OK so the script is mundane and the atmosphere is rather too pukha to be true, but I have no hesitation in recommending Above Us The Waves to all serious buffs out there. It's rather like a fanciful trip down memory lane into a bygone era that was very real to the actors but only a dream to us. The world in which public school educated Commanders strode up and down wharfs wearing immaculate stiff collars and Gieves and Hawkes tailored uniforms. The world in which a beaten enemy saluted their conquerors with trays of brandy and warm dry blankets. That's the real value of the film; it acts as a glimpse into that half forgotten world of sheer courage and decency that has long been lost in the senseless chase for mammon. When men gave their lives for honour and principal rather than offering their time for glamour and ego.

And the film has its moments of well staged tension to keep us alert. John Gregson and James Kenney give memorable performances when a mine drifts dangerously close to their surfaced sub and they must fend it off with outstretched feet. Don't listen to the detractors on this one - grab a good cup of strong cocoa and allow your dreams to drift back in time.

With Oscars for Ingrid Bergman (Best Actress) and William Ferrari (Best Black and White Art Direction) besides a string of other nominations and awards, Gaslight is a must see for all classic movie fans.

The plot centers upon the psychological terror exerted upon a woman by her husband whose greed for jewels leads to deception and murder. Such story is adequate enough but the real strength of the film lies in the immensely absorbing mood of darkness and claustrophobia that gradually overwhelms the heroine. It is as if we feel ourselves her inexorable descent into perceived madness as each of us can easily identify with the sheer frustration of knowing something to be true but feeling unable to convince others of its reality.

Joe works on a coal barge working Clyde the shortly after WW2 when he finds the near naked body of a girl floating in the river. What we learn thereafter is the depths to which human life will descend in order to gain pleasure at the expense of everyone and everything else. Judging from the title we can only surmise that he represents the temptation of man to taste the fruits of selfishness and human degradation for there is no actual character named Adam in the entire plot. His ultimate fate is perhaps the point of the whole film for with him rides the future of all those who succumb to base temptation.

It's a good subject and a well made film but the screenplay cannot overcome the basic weakness of the original novel in so far there is very little dialogue of any interest and the drama moves at a pace similar to the barge on which it is set. Young Adam may well make you think about fundamental issues but it won't provide any answers and the entertainment value is certainly for the eclectic few.

Ewan McGregor acts superbly and drops his underwear as usual in graphic fashion. Devotees of his genitals will find superb screen grabs available when Tilda Swinton whips the sheets off him. As usual with such British drama all the cast give splendid performances and young Jack McElhone as the Bargeman's boy seems to show good promise for the future.

I don't regret spending the time watching it but at the same time I don't think I would bother to see it twice - and to me that is the acid test of a good film. Hence I must rate it below the basic benchmark of 5 that I give to films worthy of a second viewing.

Both Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster do their best in what appears to be an otherwise sadly low budget production. Besides the rather pathetic toy models floated on water tanks to provide virtually all action shots, the producers seem to believe that torpedo explosions result in instant obliteration of entire destroyers. Swathes of Japanese aircraft bombard the surfaced US submarine but not a single bomb finds its target. A torpedo crushes the head of an unfortunate sailor but we see his legs and arms struggling to break free of it. The action scenes stretch credulity beyond acceptable limits and the plot is as predictable as any formulaic Hollywood movie.

Nonetheless I would recommend all Naval War Film fanatics to give it a viewing not least for the splendid tension created between the two greats as their egos fight a more entertaining struggle than any side show against the Japs. It's only 50 years old but the attitudes appear so dated. After blowing up ship after ship there is no thought about helping any survivors, no remorse for the hundreds who have just lost their lives and no discussion about the morality of sinking unarmed merchant ships. Any German sub doing the same would have been damned with vicious diatribe but, as always during this era of post war propaganda, it's one code of acceptable conduct for the Allies and a completely different one for their enemies.