Blu-Ray Review: Silent Action
Of all the countries in Western Europe, it is perhaps Italy which has the worst reputation (whether deserved or not) for corruption, crime and bribery. Much of this can be attributed to the Sicilian Mafia, undoubtedly the most famous illegal organisation in modern history. Political and criminal subterfuge played a large role in Italian cinema …
Film Review: Citizen Lane
Born in County Cork, Hugh Lane played an intrinsic role in championing the arts in, and of, Ireland. A dealer and collector, he was renowned for having a nose for a bargain and eye for spotting both painting and painter. A man of myriad contradictions, whose generosity knew no bounds but who established a reputation …
Blu-Ray Review: Tales From the Urban Jungle
During the 1940s, Jules Dassin was somewhat of an underrated powerhouse within Hollywood. However, like so many he fell foul of the blacklist which decimated the US entertainment industry at the beginning of the Cold War. Barred from fully completing post-production on Night and the City, he had no option but to flee to Europe. …
Blu-Ray Review: The Frightened City
Sean Connery has been one of the most iconic faces of British cinema for decades. The passionate Scotsman started picking up film roles in the late 1950s but it wasn’t until he played James Bond in 1962 that he made a major breakthrough. It’s a role which made him a star, a household name and …
Film Review: The Power
The UK economy was beset by high levels of inflation throughout the 1970s. As a response, governments capped public-sector pay, leading to unrest within trade unions. Eventually resulting in work-to-rule followed by strike action by the National Union of Miners. The response from Edward Heath’s Conservative Cabinet was to introduce a three-day week. Power outages …
Blu-Ray Review: Charulata
Indian cinema is often dismissed, on the world stage, as nothing more than simply Bollywood. This does a huge disservice to a diverse and rich film industry which caters for millions of people, spanning serval languages across the country, and beyond. The great Bengali filmmaker Satyajit Ray is considered by most to be the nation’s …
Grimmfest Review: Trans
As humans, we’ve long been fascinated with getting bigger, better, faster and stronger. Physical strength and muscular prowess have been a desirable feature, for obvious reasons, of soldiers and warriors down through history. Even going back to Ancient Greece and the first Olympics or the modern incarnations, we celebrate athleticism in many forms. However, homo …
Grimmfest Review: Mara
Memory is a fragile thing. Anyone with friends or relatives who suffer from dementia or Alzheimer’s know just how painfully true this can be. On the other hand, those suffering from trauma or grief may gladly surrender certain events from their recollection. It’s an area which intrigues science fiction filmmakers, creating such wonderful cinema as …
Grimmfest Review: Rendez-Vous
Each filmmaker approaches their craft in a unique and individual way. This goes all the way back to the basics of how they write or approach a script to the choices made around filming and the equipment they’re going to use. One of the most complicated and complex ways of producing a film is by …
Grimmfest Review: Threshold
Modern technology has been rapidly changing the face of cinema. Long gone are the days when you need cumbersome equipment or a complex development process. Today, all you need is a mobile device, a lot of imagination and the appropriate software. The likes of Steven Soderbergh and Sean Baker have demonstrated what can be done …