DVD/Blu-Ray Review
Blu-Ray Review: Toto the Hero
When it comes to the powerhouses of global film-making Belgium would not be at the forefront of anyone’s mind. Indeed, I would guess that most people would struggle to name half a dozen films which hail from the low county. Outside of the more recent work of the Dardenne Brothers, you’d be struggling to find …
Blu-Ray Review: Story of a Love Affair
After the post-war neoliberalism movement, which saw Italy become a leading player on the world stage, there was a huge gap to fill. Along with a spree of lighter comedies, two major figures stepped into the breach; Federico Fellini and Michelangelo Antonioni. The latter is best known for the L’Avventura, La Notte, and L’Eclisse trilogy, …
DVD Review: The Assistant
Whilst the outcry following the revelations surrounding Harvey Weinstein started a new debate about the treatment of women in Hollywood, his crimes are only the tip of an iceberg. Powerful men have been abusing women and girls for as long as the film industry has existed. At the extreme end this is sexual and physical, …
Blu-Ray Review: Three Outlaw Samurai
In many ways, the western and samurai genres are often intrinsically linked. Indeed, tales of wandering Ronin and revenge didn’t become popular in Japan until after American boots were occupying the land of the rising sun. By far and away the most famous example of this symmetry is the Seven Samurai/The Magnificent Seven film. A …
Blu-Ray Review: Hanagatami
Film-making is a strange vocation. Unlike music, where your first album is often the culmination of a lifetimes’ work, directors can make film after film before bringing their pet project to fruition. It can become an obsession, which consumes and sometimes defeats. More often than not the end result is a disappointment. Terry Gilliam’s attempt …
Blu-Ray Review: Force 10 from Navarone
Whilst things might be slowly changing, Hollywood has been a boys’ club for a very long time. This has been reflected in the cinema it has produced, where’s there’s often a hefty dollop of bromance. Bringing a group of men together to undertake some sort of mission is a regular plot device. Whether that’s the …
Blu-Ray Review: The Mad Fox
Tomu Uchida was a Japanese director who, despite the best attempts of critics, could never really be pigeonholed. His work oscillates wildly between nostalgic social realism and experiment theatrical exuberance. Despite struggling for recognition during his own lifetime, much of which can be attributed to World War II and working for an unfashionable Studio, hr …
Blu-ray Review: Tokyo Story
Yasujiro Ozu was unquestionably one of the best, if not the best, Japanese film director of all time. His unique style and perspective made him one of the most singular and visionary film makers of his generation. The main themes running through his work, particularly in the post-war era, are of family and inter-generational relationships. …
Blu-Ray Review: The Vanishing (Spoorloos)
I think it’s fair to say, especially in relation to its larger European neighbours, Holland hasn’t exactly set the world alight when it comes to cinema. Indeed, outside of Paul Verhoeven’s work (Soldier of Orange, Turkish Delight, Black Book etc), films from The Netherlands have generally had only a limited impact on the wider world. …
Blu-ray Review: After Midnight
Multiplexes are dominated by big-budget studio horror films which, as often as not, are uninspired and insipid franchises. However, if you look hard enough it’s possible to find low-budget independent genre movies which are trying something a bit different. That was the case when Jeremy Gardner and Christian Stella arrived on the scene with an …