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Reviews
Hotaru no haka (1988)
Straight into my top 10
Okay, it's a bit lame to even have a top 10. But hey, whatever.
Adored this film having waited an age for it to come back onto a platform I had access to (Nflix - UK - Sep24).
The story is of a teenage boy and his c.4-5yo sister who survived a bombing in 1945 Japan. Their mother dies and their dad is away with the Imperial Fleet. Taken in by a selfish and resentful aunt, he (Seita) takes his sister (Setsuke) away to live alone in a cave / hut and care for her.
The bombing is remembered as an incendiary attack, but Setsuke in particular ails from severe eczema and Seita tries to care for her as her condition worsens.
The illness feels very much like radiation poisoning and when Seita returns to his home town it resembles one of the A-bomb locations, so I'm not sure whether they were intended to be nuclear victims of poisoning, but I took it that way.
Irrespective, the story is heartbreaking as Seita struggles to keep Setsuke alive and fed, despite living rough and accessing food and water being nearly impossible.
The fireflies of the title are indicative of short lives that shine in the dark and are frequently referenced in the film.
Rarely have I found an animated film so engaging or emotional. A masterpiece of the art.
Cold Call (2019)
Moving wallpaper
Needed something to watch. One of us has recorded this and it looked easy viewing. We don't mind Sally Lindsay, although accept she's a pretty limited actress. She blew the rest of them off the screen, but only because the rest of the acting was some of the worst I've ever seen committed to production. Truly terrible.
The series kind of went downhill from a 7 to a 3, so my rating reflects that. Silly escapism and certainly not unwatchable. A preposterous plot, but you know what you're going to get, so watching this is a bit like reading a trashy novel on holiday..... you know, the type you wouldn't dream of displaying on your bookcase afterwards, or recommending to a friend!
12th Fail (2023)
Restart!
What a fantastic film. One of the most energising and uplifting films I've seen in years.
The lead actor is a real find. As I'm watching with subtitles, the nuances of the acting can sometimes get lost. But he conveys every emotion with his eyes as much as with his words.
Yes, there are one or two dramatic tropes that feel a little 'constructed' but as this is based on a true story, I imagine it isn't far from the real events (despite the careful disclaimer at the outset).
The spoilers bit:
- the story centres on a young man who makes his way from a tough village life in a corrupt region of India, moving to Delhi to study to join the IPC (Indian police). It follows him and his friends, and love interest, as he struggles through the tough exam and interview processes to qualify (apparently only a c.1-2% success rate) without the financial advantages of many of his fellow students. There are genuinely uplifting and rousing moments, particularly in his interview near the end.
I will certainly watch this film more than once. Probably gone into my top 10.....
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (2022)
They don't make films like this any more...
You know when you are stuck in on a cold wintry day with a few hours to kill?
You know when you're curled up on the sofa with a cuppa or a hot chocolate?
You know when you've scrolled Netflix a dozen times and spent longer scrolling than the running time of an average Scorcese film?
You know when you're recovering from a cold, or a bad week, or cancelled plans, or just need something to make you feel a bit better?
You know when you think what I need is a 40s or 50s black and white classic and you think "shall I watch Breakfast at Tiffany's for the umpteenth time"?
You know when you think "they don't make films like that any more"?
They damned well do, you know!
Poor Things (2023)
An absurdist perversion?
What happens when you marry an absurdist director with a perverted soft porn script and a Hollywood budget? Poor Things.
The acting is good enough - at time of writing Emma Stone is hot favourite for Best Actress, and the film is amongst the favourites for a few of the other awards.
I appreciate my view differs from the perceived wisdom, but I worry that this is just a bit "wrong". The concept is that a girl is manufactured / born fully formed, but develops physically slower than she does educationally. So we end up with some male power fantasy as a trapped woman is exploited. We have a supposed feminist element to the fantasy, as she uses and leaves her "suitors" as she intellectually develops. But that feels like an excuse to explain away some pretty gratuitous sex scenes.
The whole piece left me feeling uncomfortable, which I suppose is one aim of a high concept piece of art.
But ultimately I endured rather than enjoyed the film, and cross my fingers that there are more deserving winners in this award season.
The Prestige (2006)
Jackman a 10 out of 10
Never thought I'd write that. He overacts in most scenes of every film he's in, but occasionally his "ham" is exactly what's needed to carry a part, and this film fits beautifully.
Lovely cameos, not least from Michael Caine, who looks understated, and better for it, next to Jackman. But Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall and David Bowie also play their parts pitch perfectly.
The show is stolen by Christian Bale, though. He acts the whole cast off the set. A glorious baddie (or is he), with a sinister air of menace and madness.
Nolan is a class apart from most as a director, and he shows it here. What could've been a Vincent Price-esque piece of "mock Baroque" mystery is turned into a superior.
Smugly, I guessed the twist about two thirds the way through, but as Shakespeare knew, having the audience understand the forthcoming denouement well in advance doesn't ruin the drama - if anything it heightens the enjoyment of the moment the loser in this battle realises what he's failed to guess about the greatest trick.
Hopefully no spoilers there. Thoroughly enjoyable flick, that I can't believe it's taken me 17 years to catch up on.
Kimi no na wa. (2016)
Exceptionally good intro to animé
I've started watching a few animé (or animé style) films of late, and for anyone looking to delve in, who isn't familiar with them, this is a perfect starting point.
No spoilers, so I'll just say that this is a beautiful love story between people who don't know each other, but are somehow mystically connected.
They share experiences and get to know each other's lives, whilst grappling with feelings they don't understand.
There are a few familiar tropes that, clumsily handled, could have made the story cheesy. But the humour interspersed with the oddest of love stories, make it worthwhile.
Not gone for a 10, only because I needed subtitles to understand the written Japanese, which was relevant to the story, but I found it disconcerting that the subtitles of the dialogue were, frankly, rubbish! And it irked me that I was reading something contextually different to what was being said. A minor quibble, though. Great film.
Repulsion (1965)
A visceral masterpiece
I've had this film on a list of "films to watch one day" and needing one with a running time short of two hours, I ended up watching it without much forethought.
I was drawn in by one of the most brutal descents from (near) normality to madness that's ever been captured on film.
I knew Deneuve was good, but not this good. And as reluctant as I am to admit it, I can fully see why the word genius is banded about for Polanski.
We see a virginal, innocent, French beautician in London, living in a run-down flat with her sister. The sister is not quite so innocent, bringing her married lover home much to Deneuve's annoyance. The sister is off for a lover's break in Italy with her man leaving the fragile Deneuve character alone.
With a fear of men, caused by what we can only guess, but which is revealed in the very final frame of the film, Deneuve's character drifts into dreams that seem terrifyingly real, and her behaviour goes from abnormal to disturbing in a short period of time.
She imagines the house coming to life and simultaneously falling apar, and a series of violent events bring about the tragic end.
Not much more than 90 minutes, but I won't forget it in a hurry.
Empire of Light (2022)
Colman is stellar in a decent film
Michael Ward and Toby Jones are excellent, Colin Firth and some of the other cast members are a little caricaturish. But Olivia Colman stands, as she so often does, in a league apart.
In this role she plays a cinema worker in a slightly run down 1981 Brighton picture house. She is emotionally fragile, has mental health issues and is being dominated by her lascivious boss.
She forms a close bond with Ward's character (which I'll be honest does stretch credulity slightly) and is exposed to a world of intolerance in those 'bovver boy' days of the early eighties.
Ward plays a studious, slightly meek, but charming character and after a brief fling the two form a close bond, as Colman tries to keep her mental health issues at bay and Ward tries not to fall into an unfulfilled life.
I thought the reviews were somewhat unfair. This was a bit of a hidden gem, and Olivia Colman fans needn't worry. She's well worth a watch in this as in pretty much everything in which she appears.
Redemption (2022)
What a pile of garbage
Can't believe this has scored as high as it has on this site. I normally have faith in the ratings here and take it as a sigh that a programme is worth watching.
Have I tuned in to a different Redemption or something? Genuinely never seen worse acting in a TV mini-series, and I've seen programmes with James Nesbitt in them!
The accents are mixed. Some clearly genuine, some almost comical. The story is turgid - my wife gave up after two episodes, I struggled through three.
Dramas are supposed to draw you in, so that you empathise. I'm yet to find a character I care the least about, apart from maybe the dead woman, who had the good grace to get out before the whole thing started.
Woeful.
Living (2022)
Poignant. Nighy at his best.
I had low expectations as the film hadn't garnered nearly as much publicity as others in the 2023 Oscars season. But I watched it because of Bill Nighy, who rarely puts a foot wrong in my view.
I was pleasantly pleased and wouldn't be surprised if this grew to be a bit of a slow-burn favourite for film buffs and casual viewers alike.
The austere office environment of the first half of the movie gave us an insight into what had made Mr Williams (Nighy) question his lack of achievement and purpose as a doctor's diagnosis caused him to reflect on his life and work.
Nighy plays the stiff upper lip gentleman with a heart so perfectly, that even though it's a role we've seen from him before, it cements his position as one of the foremost character actors of his generation.
Loved this film, and I think I'll revisit again, and try and convert a few followers.
Nobody (2021)
Sorry about the mess
This film is a revenge thriller cheese-fest.
But I keep coming back to the fight scene on the bus as one of the best action sequences I've ever seen. Short, utterly brutal, and so, so, satisfying on many levels.
Odenkirk is excellent (isn't he always?) channelling as he does the forces of Charles Bronson with the inner monologue of Dirty Harry.
Aleksei Seberayakov is astonishingly menacing as the out-of-control mob boss, hell bent on revenge on Odenkirk's character, Mansell, a former FBI agent.
A beautiful little cameo by Christopher Lloyd as the protagonist's father risks schmaltz, but the sharp script prevent this.
If you want something intellectual or original, you're in the wrong place. If you want a bloody good revenge action film laced with humour, you have found it. Great watch.
White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch (2022)
I wasn't aware of the dark side of A&F
Clearly a nasty piece of work, and good to see him called out for it so publicly.
It felt like this was a one hour documentary stretched to 90 minutes to class as a documentary film. That meant a lot of repetition.
But I have primarily scored this documentary down for the truly dreadful sound editing. Genuinely the worst sound editing I've even heard in any film or TV programme. Voices over a music background but that are so faint you can't pick out the words. Technically pretty amateurish.
I don't think Abercrombie & Fitch are at all unique in the way they treat any kind of diverse population. But its good that the brand is now pretty poisoned, and will at least ensure D&I is treated seriously elsewhere.
Couples Come Dine with Me: Birmingham (2014)
The most obnoxious man in TV history
I've given it a 3....... its formulaic TV and if you want to fritter away 40 minutes watching stuff like this, fine. But I have to vent somewhere and this is the only option. Anthony (S1, Ep7) is genuinely the most obnoxious human being I've ever seen on TV. Wow. The guy has zero redeeming features yet his wife seems lovely. I really hope she watched this back and thought the same, upped sticks and left to find someone worthy. Shocked by how horrible he was.