Reviews

I rarely review but *had* to after reading other comments. This is one of those movies written and directed by the same person, and often they crumble but this doesn't, so here's why you should give it a go.

Each actor plays convincingly - it does feel like the kind of heart-engaging, off-centre ensemble of an unearthed John Hughes 80s cladsic, as the leads do have the dawning ability to 'radiate' at times to camera.

All LGBT films get diverse reviews. Some people just don't get it. Even those who are LGBT have their own quite unique trajectory because it is mostly an introspective experience. That kind of coming out, alongside teen romantic projection, is conveyed charmingly here. It's not here to shake foundations. It's seems here to add warmth to a body of all to few LGBT films. A light touch uses gentle charm and occasional funny gags but focus remains on conveying confusion only some experience, but all would do well to be aware of.

If you want arthouse style and pathos watch Another Country, A Single Man, Priest (the UK one starring Linus Roache) or The Lost Language Of Cranes. All gems, but darkened by layers of tragedy. They are utter classics but not the most optimistic for a newbie.

Slightly lighter but still in the arthouse to an extent are the wonderful Call Me By Your Name and the very moving yet humble and verbally explicit Weekend, which is as much about an LGBT sense of difference and disconnection as it is about love at a tricky time.

This movie takes a gentle tone and would be ideal for someone finding courage to face the issue, or for adjusting relatives to gain a bit of lighter perspective. It walks a delicate balance of trying to acknowledge inner disorientation whilst retaining a perhaps idealised teenage warmth which many straight films have been privileged by. Yes, straight people, you have been blessed enough to coast with that so much you hardly even realise it is there but LGBT people notice it. This click is a bit like an American 'Beautiful Thing'. It has charm, if you let it in.

It gave some giggles here and there but I was more invested in the lead character's journey than needing it to make me chuckle. It is moving though, and I recommend it as one of the most 'comfortable to watch in straight company' gay films.

Some reviewers forget a person coming out can sometimes be hypersensitised as much to overt sexual imagery as their adjusting relatives. This movie would stretch that a *little* bit, but still be in the well intentioned comfortable zone.

Netflix could be a bit more brave with their gay films, but there is a place for this also. That they launched this movie is a great baby step. It deserves some kindness. Just chill and have a smile, then reflect.

If you have read any of the press, you will know that 'This is Jinsy' started life on BBC Three and was then picked up by Sky Atlantic for a full series.

Jinsy is a fictional island and nothing is normal there! Only two episodes have screened in the UK at this time of writing and already the voice of Jennifer Saunders has warned us about the dangers of electric owls which attacked a man and excreted A4 or A5 size photocopies of his horrified face, the size depending upon the owl's age. Yes, I did warn you that this was surreal.

Watching Jinsy is an immersive experience. It transports you into the bizarre and is neither a sketch show nor a single continuous narrative. It has elements of both. Imagine what Surrealist painter Salvador Dali might have imagined to amuse himself, and you get close.

Episode one features some of former Dr. Who David Tennant's best moments on screen ever. Adorned with Thatcheresque lacquered orange hair, a bright yellow jacket and horribly patterned overly tight trousers, his Mr. Slightlyman is an hilariously camp creation that deserves a show in its own right, or at least many returns to Jinsy. In this instance he is overseeing the island's wedding lottery, which happens every three years. And yes, you did read that correctly. Every resident is entered into a lottery and paired off for three years, with often hilarious results.

Episode two draws some parallels with another comedy classic team - Monty Python . . . specifically their cult masterpiece, Life of Brian. A cupboard salesman is recognised (or mistaken) to be a being of great power in Jinsy. Cue lots of visual gags alongside a slightly weaker story. It does develop the characters further though.

Jinsy goes beyond the single episode narrative though. Each episode appears to have returning elements, an unexpected highlight being Harry Hill in drag, dishing out punishments to islanders who have committed amusingly odd and hardly offensive crimes. His/her tastefully gloved hand hovers seductively above a rather lethal looking red button while the seedy details are recounted with a cosy yet conspiratorial and somewhat malevolent gaze. It gets funnier the more you see it and has to be one of the gags you long for each time you return to Jinsy. And I say this as someone who has never really bothered with Mr. Hill's ITV shows. He has transcended himself! Other gags pop up as songs, and unlike most comedies, these are actually FUNNY. So many times I have watched otherwise brilliant comedies, such as Smack the Pony, and felt that the musical bits were only funny to those who wrote or performed them and were ultimately just fillers. On Jinsy it is different. They are so weird they are brilliant. Episode one features a song contest judged by a dog, whose paw wavers over a green 'Woof' button, or a red 'Enoof' button. The song itself is a bizarrely catchy creation about . . . a dog . . . licking. Obviously all songs in the contest aim to win the dog's praise! In episode two, the cupboard based story takes to music with a very retro Eurovisionesque man in drag singing about types of wood . . . "La La La La La Larch . . ." etc. It sounds mad and it is, and it works. It at once references Monty Python and feels immediate because it knows its own genre so well.

Also of note is the short segment in episode two featuring a dishevelled art critic who details the controversial depictions of fruit with leaves removed. How immodest! Words fail to express how spot on this character is. Just think of old BBC Open University broadcasts and you will have an idea of how funny it is. His back is so bent and his gaze at first seems awkward, progressing to be so off-kilter that he has to be 'revolved' back to face camera. A moment of pure genius.

So there you have it. All of the above is Jinsy. Having seen two episodes, it is not all perfect, but there are enough comedy treasures in there to warrant repeated viewing, and yes it gets better each time. Central performances are sufficiently weird and wonderful, and not just the cameos. Lesser known talent is starting to shine too.

I suggest you visit the island, and if you find any of it funny, go back several times, because you will like it all the more. Let's hope Sky realises that while it may take a while to catch on, it really is a comedy classic. Kudos to all involved.

Real gems are rarely appreciated or understood by everyone. They shine because they deliver and demand something 'more'. They linger in the imagination because they convey understandings we are only beginning to realise. This is certainly true of 'Belladonna', an increasingly intriguing tale which emerged unexpectedly as a cult triumph of Australian cinema.

The movie opens with the unseen guiding voice of an hypnotherapist alongside imagery of contemporary alternative medic Luke and past life scenes in Polish woods circa 1600.

The story chronicles the build-up to Luke's proposal and marriage to Katherine, a lawyer so driven that she even answers her mobile during his proposal. Even so, she emerges thanks to a fascinating performance, as a slightly off-kilter, often unintentionally amusing force to be reckoned with. Luke is also beautifully played, and as his past life love affair is recalled, so do powerful shifts begin to occur in his life. Changes which challenge his choice of bride and readiness to choose his heart's true calling. More than this you will have to savour when you watch the movie yourself.

The movie has been criticised for its slightly 'abrupt' ending, and this misses the point. This is a tale depicting sudden inner transformation and in truth, profound realisations can change things abruptly as a new chapter begins. Also, the suddenness heightens the emotional impact, so much so that I could hardly speak for a minute or so. I was so moved.

The soundtrack is a wonderfully eclectic mix, taking cues from the script to fuse the contemporary with seemingly modern vocal play at the climax . . . except this exceptional piece was amazingly written by Purcell centuries ago, and while it is taken from his opera 'King Arthur' it fits perfectly here, as if it were an evolution of a moment in Sally Potter's mesmerising 'Orlando' when Lord Orlando becomes Lady Orlando! While that movie was a tale of feminine sexuality emerging via androgyny and self-knowledge, Belladonna is an unusually tender tale of an endearingly average guy opening to intuitions and heart-felt callings. Both films play with time and consciousness and are linked by their exploration of feeling out of place.

Whether a viewer believes in reincarnation or not is secondary to the transformative power of the metaphor, and 'Belladonna' has an enveloping truthful resonance which will find the right people. I am thankful that I am one of them.

I give it a ten. I loved so much about it . . . the soundtrack, its shimmering central performances and it's thoughtful depiction of structured lives disintegrating deliciously in order for something new to emerge. Belladonna is a truly affirming, diverting and unusual tale to be savoured. Open your mind and your heart will enjoy it. Let Belladonna find you too.

I stumbled on this documentary one morning on BBC TV back in the early nineties. Who would have thought that capturing one woman's incredible relationships and communications could have left such a lasting impression? The film is touchingly intimate portrait of a person who suddenly realised she was being shown the experience of flight by an injured bird. Since then, Samantha has helped many animals and their 'owners', both in professional and personal environments. She also lectures from time to time to teach others how to communicate.

Scientists do not feature in the programme, but it still manages to emerge as a very credible documentary because owner after owner reveals how pet behaviour changed and settled for the better following a visit to Samantha. Whether it is goats changing instantaneously from the expensive habit of just eating flowers and leaves to eating stalks as well, or the exhausted racing horse who reveals that her time out on pasture was actually more time working under the care of a determined trainer against the owner's wishes . . . it all causes the viewer to raise incredibly important questions about consciousness and the role we can play with other species.

Perhaps the film succeeds most because it doesn't lecture. It simply recounts with what feels like simple, pure honesty and I defy you not to be changed after viewing it. It is an absolute gem.