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mikemalcolm66
Reviews
Creation Stories (2021)
Another Boyle Classic!
I don't get some of the overtly poor reviews here. Those who like music biographies (albeit with a lot of poetic licence) and like the signature Danny Boyle directing style of scene subcuts and flashbacks ( a la Trainspotting) will enjoy this movie on a lot of levels. Ewen Bremner does a fab job of portraying Maghee, driving the character along the rock roll road at breakneck speed. There are some great philosophical moments tied up in the deeper slower scenes .The film has pace, energy, great performances...Nicely done !
Star Trek: Discovery: Such Sweet Sorrow (2019)
Please stop crying Michael!
There have been admittedly emotional moments and difficult dilemma over the first two series, I'm kinda getting over the constant need for tears...tears about family, tears about lost love, tears of respect, tears of goodbye, tears of joy....Surely starfleet offers are made of sterner stuff,,emotional monologging in a battle scene etc etc....Burnham is carrying waay too much herself and the whole seeming on off love affair with the Newt Scamander of the Universe is nothing more than overly contrived. Foe the series itslelf It is clear that there is box tick agenda here trying to include as many politically correct characters as a Star Wars Disney production and unless the stories are more interesting and vital, it comes across as vapid filler. Die hard fans will doubtless drool over the human tech that is 930 years later, but a few natty CGI scenes and a portable transporter still don't hack it. It's early days and the rest of her beleaguered crew are yet to romp into view at some life threatening moment. I hope to goodness there's a decent story coming from this and not some jingoistic "lets rebuild the federation" feel good propaganda.
Seat in Shadow (2016)
Puzzling in parts but entertaining
OK this is a solid Arthouse film. A coming of age story about a young gay boy embroiled in a poisonous relationship.
Shot in Glasgow there is a lot to enjoy from a cinematography point of view. Dreamlike landscape shots combine with extreme closeup shots to create a quite atmospheric film. Sillars as the eccentric Artist cum ex-psychoanalyst excels here in a film that is based in static location of his flat.. He portrays Albert as a both a whimsical and slightly tragic figure as he struggles with his own demons whilst helping a young man overcome his own.
Due to the main gay theme in the film, many will dismiss this as a cult niche movie, yet there is something more amongst the sharp dialogue and the spaces in between. A couple of surreal or dreamlike (?) sexual scenes towards the end of the film seem a slightly unnecessary signposting of the messages the film was trying to convey, but fortunately don't wreck it.
I'd watch it predominantly for Sillars in his film debut performance of Albert. One can only hope the calls come in for him on the back of this for more roles and screen time.