FIlm Review
Film Review: Violette
Simone de Beauvoir is considered to be a household name in the spheres of groundbreaking female authors and feminist philosophy. Violette Leduc is not, but her work did as much to push the boundaries of female sexuality in literature, and open-up opportunities for women within the literary arena. Martin Provost’s biographical drama doesn’t pull any …
Film Review: Ida
When colour replaced black and white as the universal celluloid medium it began a slow demise of a certain artistry of cinematography. There’s something about the use of light and shadow in old films which holds a spell over me. The last few decades have produced some beautiful modern black and white films: The White …
Film Review: The Last Impresario
The cult of celebrity is a fairly new aberration. The name Michael White is unlikely to mean anything to you but at one time he was one of the most famous people in theatre/film circles in London. Director Gracie Otto stumbled across him during a Cannes Festival in the late ’90s. Her curiosity was peaked …
Film Review: Life of Crime
Sometimes when films don’t get wide theatrical releases it can be more to do with the prevailing winds and clustered release schedules than anything to do with the quality on show. Based on Elmore Leonard’s novel The Switch, A Life of Crime is an enjoyable crime caper which has a plot that twists and turns …
Film Review: Night Moves
Kelly Reichardt’s films have always owed a debt to the work of Terrence Malick. Ever since her debut Rivers of Grass, the American director has segued elements that are quintessentially Malick into her films. There’s a studied elegance in Reichardt’s film-making, and in her latest movie Night Moves she pushes herself to another level in …
Film Review – Delicious
Early July saw the UK premiere of Delicious, an independent film that dives into the dark depths of mental illness and its devastating effects on personal relationships. Delicious tells the story of Jacques, a talented French chef who arrives in London in search of employment at an uptown restaurant. The job is the least of …
DVD Review: I am Divine
Occasionally someone comes along who is such a huge personality that they immediately dominate every film they’re in, becoming a phenomenon. Divine (Harris Glenn Milstead), actor, singer and drag queen, became a huge underground success through his collaboration with John Waters. I am Divine is his story. Jeffrey Schwarz’s documentary charts Milstead’s early life right …
Film Review: The Paddy Lincoln Gang
I’m naturally suspicious of any film which tries to sell itself off the back of having a ‘famous’ musician in it. More often than not their appearance is fleeting and cringeworthy. In The Paddy Lincoln Gang, Glen Matlock has a very brief cameo which sadly fits into the above box. However, playing on this does …
Film Review: Mood Indigo
Michel Gondry is one of the most sought-after and ‘trendy’ film directors out there, yet other than Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind he’s failed to produce a film that can be classed as great. Whilst Be Kind Rewind and The Science of Sleep have their moments he’s yet to reproduce that magic for the …
Film Review: The Two Faces of January
Patricia Highsmith is a criminally underrated American novelist, probably best known for the film adaptations of her work. Her first book, Strangers on a Train, has been adapted several times (most famously by Alfred Hitchcock), but it’s probably The Talented Mr Ripley for which she is most renowned. It has also been adapted several times, …