Film Review: Arctic
Located at the northernmost point of Earth, the Arctic region is a desolate and unforgiving place. Spanning a number of countries, the climate is brutally cold and the landscape is a mix of permafrost, arctic tundra, snow, ice and frigid ocean. If you get stranded there, you’re liable to die from exposure. Unless you’re eaten …
Film Review: Blue
Earth is rapidly approaching a point of no return. Humans have polluted the air, seas and raped the land for all its worth. Our rampant consumerism knows no bounds and unless radical action is taken the tipping point will be breached and then we’re set for a rapid ride down the poop chute to extinction. …
Blu-Ray Review: The Grand Duel
In the mid-1960s, a very strange phenomenon occurred in the American-centric world of Westerns. Whilst there was already a small industry of comedy variants being made in Europe, it wasn’t until that decade that a proliferation of Italian finance, directors and producers created the stylised sub-genre of the Spaghetti Western. The unrivalled master of these …
Incoming: The Curse of La Llorona
In 1970s Los Angeles, La Llorona is stalking the night—and the children. Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother suspected of child endangerment, a social worker and her own small kids are soon drawn into a frightening supernatural realm. Their only hope to survive La Llorona’s deadly wrath may be a disillusioned priest and …
Incoming: Von Lux
Von Lux is a stylish and absorbing modern portrait of a troubled pop star’s rise from the ashes of a major national tragedy to pop superstardom. Von Lux is out in cinemas from 3 May.
DVD Review: Fahrenheit 11/9
Michael Moore is one of those film-makers who you either love or hate. Whilst he’s obviously well-intentioned and has a knack of hitting the nail on the head, he also has a strong self-promotional line; making films which have a tendency to end up being as much about Michael Moore as anything else. Early work …
DVD Review: Death Trench
Wars provide fertile backgrounds for genre cinema given the natural horror generated by the brutalities and atrocities of conflict. World War I was particularly arduous, with thousands upon thousands of men dying just to gain a few inches of ground. If the bullets didn’t kill you the disease or inhospitable conditions would. Trench warfare was …
Blu-ray Review: Iron Sky: The Coming Race
In 2012, Timo Vuorensola, Johanna Sinisalo and Michael Kalesniko brought us Iron Sky, the Nazi science-fiction comedy the world didn’t know it was missing. In 1945, Hitler escaped and has been hiding in a secret base on the dark side of the Moon. Whilst his invasion of earth may not have been successful in 2018 …
Film Review: Woman at War
Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. With well under half-a-million inhabitants, the Nordic nation is self-contained in many ways. Boasting volcanoes, mountains, geysers and glaciers, the sub-arctic island is both starkly beautiful and mercilessly unforgiving. Icelandic cinema often reflects this. The likes of Nói albinói, Rams and Of Horses and Men are …
Blu-ray Review: Cujo
Since their domestication thousands of years ago, dogs have been man’s best friend. Loyal, obedient, protective, loving. Our cinema screens have been graced by some truly great canine performances – Lassie, Red Dog, Marley and Beethoven all won over hearts, if not always minds. Indeed, the latter starred in a whopping eight film series and …