Pom Poko

Year of Release:  1994
Director:  Isao Takahata
Screenplay:  Isao Takahata
Starring:  Konkontei Schinchou, Makoto Nonomura, Yuriko Ishida
Running Time:  114 minutes
Genre: Animation, fantasy, comedy  

In the Tama Hills, in the outskirts of Tokyo, a group of tanuki (Japanese raccoon dogs) find their homes threatened by human developers.  The lazy and capricious tanuki take a break from their favorite pastimes of partying, eating and fighting to use their considerable shape-shifting powers to fight against the developers.

This is one of the lesser known entries in the back catalogue of Japan's great Studio Ghibli .  The storyline suggests a fairly conventional plot of cute animals fighting to save their homes from greedy developers, but the film is far weirder and darker than that suggests.  Writer and director Iasao Takahata (who also made Grave of the Fireflies (1988), Only Yesterday (1991), My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) and the Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013)) specialised in films inspired by and based around Japanese history and folklore and this is the case here.  The film uses a variety of animation styles, from realistic depictions of landscapes and animals, to more traditional cute animation, to images based on traditional Japanese art, one sequence even animates the action as video game graphics.  The film uses a documentary-style voice over and moves from goofy, slapstick comedy (true to the folklore the tanuki have massive testicles which they use in their shape-shifting), to surprisingly dark and violent.  It's funny and entertaining, but it's very inconsistent in tone and certainly too long.  Some of the sequences used when the tanuki terrify people with grotesque monsters and demons are genuinely nightmarish, and they are far from averse to straight up killing people, so it might be worth checking it out yourself before showing it to young children.  The films' tonal inconsistencies and the donwbeat ending really threw me when I first saw it, but I enjoyed it much more on a second viewing        

Tanuki in Pom Poko

The Princess Bride

Year of Release:  1987
Director:  Rob Reiner
Screenplay:  William Goldman, based on the book The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Starring:  Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Wallace Shawn, Andre the Giant, Christopher Guest, Fred Savage, Peter Falk
Running Time:  94 minutes
Genre:  Fantasy, adventure, comedy

In the magical land of Florin, young farmhand Westley (Elwes) must battle villains and magic to rescue his true love, Princess Buttercup (Wright), from the evil Prince Humperdink (Guest).

This is a genuinely magical film, which works as a fairy-tale and as a spoof of fairy tales.  It's funny throughout and full of endlessly quotable dialogue ("Hello.  My name is Inigo Montaya.  You killed my father.  Prepare to die.").  It features great action, particularly the impressive dueling sequences.  It also has great, funny performances, including cameos from a number of well-known comedians (such as Mel Smith, Peter Cook, Billy Crystal and Carol Kane).  The film also has a fun post-modern element with the story being framed as a fairy-tale that a grandfather (Falk) is reading to his ill grandson (Savage) who would rather be playing videogames.  The movie balances it's various elements perfectly with the comedy working along with the romance and the fantasy adventure, and none of them drowning out the others.   Even for people who don't like fairy-tales, like the grandson, it's almost impossible not to get swept up in this hilarious magical adventure that is just as much fin for adults as it is for children.

Robin Wright and Cary Elwes in The Princess Bride

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Year of Release:  2018
Directors:  Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Screenplay:  Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Starring:  Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Liam Neeson, Zoe Kazan, Tom Waits, Tyne Daly, Brendan Gleeson
Running Time:  133 minutes
Genre:  Western

This is an anthology film consisting of six unconnected short stories set in the Old West:  A singing gunslinger (Nelson) meets his match; A condemned bankrobber (Franco) tries to escape his fate; An elderly impresario (Neeson) and his artist, who has no arms and legs, scratch out an existence travelling from town to town; A prospector (Waits) dreams of riches as he searches for gold; Following the death of her brother, a young woman (Kazan) undertakes an arduous journey in a wagon train; and a group of travelers in a stagecoach encounter a pair of bounty hunters en route to a strange destination.

This film is funny, dark, profound, violent, occasionally lyrical and often beautiful.  As with all anthology films, some segments work better than others, although they are all impressive, well-written and well-performed.  The Coen Brothers are no strangers to the Western genre, and here they make full use of their gift for dialect and witty, absurdist dialogue.  The first story is the most traditionally "Coen-esque" being a violent and funny take on the "singing cowboy" genre.  The second story starts as a simple hold-up tale before becoming something much more poignant.  The third story is a dark tale of cruelty, with a disturbing conclusion.  The fourth story which is almost entirely a single-hander, featuring a great performance by Tom Waits, is dramatic and beautiful.  The fifth story, which features a powerful performance from Zoe Kazan, is possibly the most traditional, until it's heartbreaking conclusion.  The sixth story marks a turn almost into "weird west" territory with a strange and ambiguous tale set in a stagecoach to a surreal town.  This film had a limited theatrical run before being released onto the Netflix streaming service.  Personally I loved it, and hopefully it will to another revival of the Western genre.     

Tim Blake Nelson saddles up for The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Halloween

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  David Gordon Green
Screenplay:  Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride and David Gordon Green, based on characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill
Starring:  Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Will Patton, Virginia Gardner, James Jude Gardner,
Running Time:  105 minutes
Genre:  Horror

On October 31 1978, serial killer Michael Myers (Gardner) went on a murderous rampage in the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois.  Forty years later, Myers is incarcerated in an institution and Laurie Strode (Curtis) who survived Myers' attack is a hardened survivalist, obsessed with Myers and the idea that he will return one day.  Her obsession has alienated her from her daughter (Greer), and granddaughter (Matichak).  Until Myers escapes while being transferred and returns to Haddonfield to finish what he started all those years ago.

This is technically the eleventh film in the Halloween franchise, including the 2007 remake by Rob Zombie, and it's 2009 sequel.  However, this hits the reset button being a direct sequel to Halloween (1978) and rewriting the entire chronology.  The idea that Laurie Strode is Michael Myers' sister which was introduced in Halloween II (1981) and has been canon ever since, is specifically stated here not to be the case.  Also, here, Michael Myers has been locked up for 40 years.  This is very much a traditional slasher film although it does have a 2018 makeover, Myers doesn't exclusively kill horny teenagers, here he kills pretty much anyone who he happens across.  He also expands his repertoire from exclusively slashing and stabbing to include hammers and banging people's heads against anything solid.  The film returns Myers to the enigmatic killer of the first film, and makes him less of a supernatural being, although he does have seemingly supernatural powers of strength and resilience.  Curtis is great as the traumatised Laurie as are Judy Greer and Andi Marichak as her estranged daughter and granddaughter.  The film benefits from a strong supporting cast, who make the characters more than just the typical faceless victims.  The film takes it's time to get going and does at times get bogged down in subplots that don't go anywhere.  However, while it is never exactly scary, it is tense and exciting and gory enough to appeal to fans without being violent enough to alienate more mainstream audiences.  It also has humour and some fun nods to previous films in the series (including a cameo from Nick Castle who played Michael Myers in the first film, and supplies some of Myers' sound effects here), and is certainly one of the best in the franchise.

Trick or Treat:  Michael Myers (James Jude Gardner) in Halloween

The Devils

Year of Release:  1971
Director:  Ken Russell
Screenplay:  Ken Russell, based on the book The Devils of Loudun by Aldous Huxley and the play The Devils by John Whiting
Starring:  Oliver Reed, Vanessa Redgrave, Dudley Sutton, Max Adrien, Gemma Jones,
Running Time:  103 minutes (original cut) and 117 minutes (restored cut)
Genre:  Drama, historical, horror

In 17th Century France, a convent of nuns in the small provincial town of Loudun, led by the hunchbacked, deeply repressed Sister Jeanne (Redgrave), fall victim to a bizarre hysteria, which is blamed on demonic possession.  The town's charismatic but controversial priest Urbain Grandier (Reed) is blamed, as the town falls victim to horrific mass exorcisms and a hysterical witch hunt, all of which is being carefully orchestrated by the highest powers in the land.

This is probably the most controversial film in writer/director Ken Russell's controversial career.  The film has been celebrated, despised and censored, and in fact a full uncensored cut of the film has never been released.  Given the film's lurid and still shocking violence and sexual imagery, it's easy to overlook the fact that it is a powerful and important piece of work, which has valid point to make about belief and the abuse of power.  It's based on true events that happened in Loudun in  1634, and it is notable that in the film the "possessions" are not supernatural, but are the product of Sister Jeanne's obsession with Grandier  and then whipped up by the state who want to discredit Grandier so they can demolish Loudun's protective walls.  The film's religious themes have proven problematic for censors, but there are deeply spiritual moments in the film (Russell was a practicing  Roman Catholic and he considered the film his "most Catholic" work).  The film is visually striking, the impressive sets were designed by future film director Derek Jarman.  There are times when the film goes so far over the top it just becomes ridiculous, with scenes of nuns rolling their eyes and lolling their tongues to sounds of bells, whistles and birds, as well as the insane exorcist (and David Bowie look-a-like) played by Michael Gothard and King Louis XIII (Graham Armitage) having shooting parties where the targets are people dressed as blackbirds.
This is one of those films which you will either hate or love but which you will not be able to easily forget.

Vanessa Redgrave in The Devils     

First Man

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Damien Chazelle
Screenplay:  Josh Singer, based on the book First Man:  The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen
Starring:  Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, Ciaran Hinds, Christopher Abbott, Patrick Fugit, Lukas Haas,
Running Time:  138 minutes
Genre: Drama, historical, biography,

This film tells the story of Neil Armstrong (Gosling) and the first manned mission to the Moon.  It opens in 1961 where Armstrong is a test pilot and culminates with the historical mission in July 1969.  Along the way it deals with Armstrong's relationship with his wife, Janet (Foy), and the personal and professional sacrifices and trials that were made on the way to the Moon.

Everyone is familiar with the Apollo Moon landing in 1969, the first step on the Moon is one of the most iconic images of all time, and the line "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," is one of the best known quotes in the world.  This film shows just how risky and dangerous it was.  Basically the astronauts were sitting in a tiny tin can on top of a missile, all of which was pretty much handmade at the time.  The film opens with Armstrong in the middle of a test flight, bouncing off the edge of the atmosphere, shot in fast, almost impressionistic images, from Armstrong's point of view wit constant rattling and roaring.  It's in the aerial and spaceflight sequences where the film soars (no pun intended), exciting, visceral with a genuine sense of wonder.  It captures the excitement of spaceflight and exploration, a time which is pretty much gone now, and it's probably as close as you will ever get to being in a space capsule.  The film depicts the training, and the sometimes fatal missteps along the way to the mission.   It also explores Armstrong's personal life.  Ryan Gosling plays Armstrong as a taciturn, emotionally distant man, it's hinted that he is deeply depressed following the death of his daughter.  As Janet Armstrong, Claire Foy carries the emotional heft of the film.  Having already buried a daughter, and seeing many of her friends and neighbours lose their husbands to the space program, she is very well aware of the risks involved and frustrated that Neil is so casual about it.  In one scene, she forces him to sit down and tell his kids that he may not come back, which he does as if he is at a board meeting.
This is a great film, and needs to be seen on the biggest screen possible.

Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling) in First Man 

Molly's Game

Year of Release:  2017
Director:  Aaron Sorkin
Screenplay:  Aaron Sorkin, based on the book Molly's Game by Molly Bloom
Starring:  Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Jeremy Strong, Chris O'Dowd, Bill Camp
Running Time:  140 minutes
Genre:  Crime, drama

Molly Bloom (Chastain) is a world-class skier, who is severely injured while trying to qualify for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, ending her athletic career.  Molly moves to Los Angeles where, after several low-paid jobs, she ends up as a secretary for an obnoxious, unsuccessful real estate agent (Strong) who asks Molly to run his weekly high-stakes poker game.  The game regularly attracts very wealthy and very famous individuals, including movie stars and sports stars, and Molly is soon earning  a lot of money.  When she is unceremoniously sacked by her boss, Molly starts running her own game, but soon finds herself in serious trouble with both the Mob and the FBI.

Based on a true story, this is a hugely enjoyable thriller.  With a witty, complex and intelligent script, and slick, dynamic direction from Aaron Sorkin, Jessica Chastain gives a truly great performance as Molly, who owns the entire film.  This is Molly's story and the other characters don't really get fleshed out, with Kevin Costner in particular never really getting much to do as her overbearing father.  Idris Elba however, gives a typically suave performance as Molly's lawyer, and he and Chastain have brilliant chemistry together.  Personally, I have never had any real interest in poker, I've never played it and don't really know anything about it, but the film makes the gaming scenes not only understandable for a newcomer, but genuinely exciting.  Even though there were times where I could see where the story was going, and there aren't many surprises, with a running time of well over two hours, this is a fast-paced film with not a scene or a line wasted.

Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba play Molly's Game       

The Predator

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Shane Black
Screenplay:  Fred Dekker and Shane Black, based on characters created by Jim Thomas and John Thomas
Starring:  Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Jacob Tremblay, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Thomas Jane, Alfie Allen, Sterling K. Brown
Running Time:  107 minutes
Genre:  Science-fiction, action

An alien spaceship crash-lands in Mexico.  The "Predator" creature inside attacks US Army Ranger sniper Quinn McKenna (Holbrook) and his team, killing them all but McKenna, who succeeds in incapacitating the creature.  So he can prove it's existence, McKenna takes the alien's facemask and wrist gauntlets and mails them off to the US.  A Special Forces team retrieve the unconscious creature and ship it off to a secret research base in the USA.  In order to discredit McKenna and cover-up the existence of the creature, he is sentenced to indefinite imprisonment.  The alien mask and gauntlet are delivered to the home of McKenna's estranged wife (Yvonne Strahovski) and their young, autistic son Rory (Tremblay), who manages to activate the mask.  In the research institute, the alien revives and, after messily breaking out, sets out on a violent search for it's missing property.  It also becomes apparent that there is more than one alien on the hunt.

This is the fourth film in the Predator franchise (sixth if you count the Alien vs. Predator films), and is probably the worst of the lot.  While the original Predator was a stripped down action film, this film has a convoluted story that feels more like a grab-bag of ideas.  The actors do their best with what they're given but large cast of characters are mostly defined by just one character trait or quirk, which means that they never really register, and are largely unlikable particularly the boorish, bullying McKenna.  The action frequently grinds to a halt for attempts at humour and winking references to the first two films, although personally I didn't laugh once.  Shane Black, who worked on the script to the first Predator (1987) and has a brief acting role in that film, has done much better as both a director and a writer.  Almost all of the characters can apparently work out alien technology after a few seconds of fiddling about with it, and is saddled with a ludicrous ending, which sets up sequels.  In the film's defense, some of the action is well-staged, particularly in the later part of the film,  and, aside from some ropey CGI, the special effects are fine.      

Meet The Predator   

All the Money in the World

Year of Release:  2017
Director:  Ridley Scott
Screenplay: David Scarpa, based on the book Painfully Rich:  The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty by John Pearson
Starring:  Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Charlie Plummer, Romain Duris, Timothy Hutton
Running Time:  133 minutes
Genre:  Crime, thriller, drama

Rome, 1973, John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer), known as Paul, is kidnapped.  Paul is the grandson of billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer), at the time the world's richest private citizen, and his kidnappers demand a ransom of $17 million dollars (which is a sum that Getty Senior could easily afford).  However he refuses to pay, despite the pleas of Paul's mother, Gail (Williams).  Under intense media scrutiny, it falls to Gail to attempt to negotiate with both the kidnappers and Getty for Paul's release, with the help of ex-CIA operator Fletcher Chace (Wahlberg).

Based on a true story, this is a gripping thriller, which was overshadowed somewhat by behind the scenes drama.  J. Paul Getty was originally played by Kevin Spacey, however when allegations of sexual assault were made against Spacey, he was replaced at the last minute by Christopher Plummer, who does a fantastic job, considering he was cast and his scenes were shot within a month.  As Getty, Plummer moves from avuncular geniality to cold-blooded ruthlessness, and it is to his credit that he finds a sense of humanity and sympathy to someone who would otherwise be a complete bastard.  He is someone who would pay millions for a painting, but won't pay to get his laundry done.  The film is dominated, though, by Michelle Williams, who turns in a fantastic performance as Gail Getty, who provides real dramatic and emotional heft.  She is someone who is linked to the most powerful man in the world, but has to fight for her own power. 
While not Ridley Scott's best work, it is a stylish and well made thriller telling a very interesting story. 

Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg face the press in All the Money in the World

The Wolf Man

Year of Release:  1941
Director:  George Waggner
Screenplay:  Curt Siodmak
Starring:  Lon Chaney Jr., Claude Rains, Warren Williams, Ralph Bellamy, Maria Ouspenskaya, Evelyn Ankers, Patric Knowles, Bela Lugosi
Running Time:  70 minutes
Genre:  Horror

Larry Talbot (Chaney Jr.), the prodigal son of Sir John Talbot (Rains), returns to his ancestral home to reconcile with his estranged father.  He soon befriends Gwen Conliffe (Ankers), the daughter of a local antiques dealer.  One night in the woods, Larry attempts to save Gwen's friend Jenny (Fay Helm) from an attack by a large wolf.  Jenny is killed and Larry is bitten, but he does seemingly succeed in killing the wolf, but the corpse  is not a wolf but a man (Lugosi).  Larry's wounds miraculously heal by the next day, and he becomes increasingly obsessed with the village's local legend of a werewolf (a human who turns into a wolf at "certain times of year").

This is not the first werewolf movie, but it is one of the most influential, and one of the best films in  the "Universal Monster" cycle.  It benefits from a  poetic, literate script from writer Curt Siodmak, and striking photography with evocative, shadowy, mist-shrouded forests and iconic make-up from Jack Pierce (who created the look of Frankenstein's Monster in Frankenstein (1931)).  Lon Chaney Jr. turns in a great performance as the tortured Larry Talbot, both in his guilt-ridden human form and  monster form, he brings a powerful physicality and agility to the role.  He creates a sympathetic, tragic character.  Claude Rains is also a standout as the unbelieving Sir John, who refuses even to entertain the idea that his son might have anything wrong with him, either physical or mental as the bodycount rises.  The film is almost more of a psychological drama at times than a monster movie, Chaney only appears in the full "Wolf Man" makeup fairly late in the film, and only quite briefly.  His doctor, naturally enough, is convinced that Talbot is mentally ill, and there is a lot of discussion about psychology and folklore. 
While the movie has aged a lot better than many of the other films of it's time, it still shows it's age.  Evelyn Ankers has very little to do except be rescued, and a lot of the supposedly Welsh or English  characters are obviously Americans, the transformation sequences (which focus on Talbot's feet) are not particularly impressive  and the famous werewolf poem is recited no less than three times throughout the short film.  By the way, some people believe that it is a traditional old poem, but it was written by Curt Siodmak
However it retains it's power and, despite it's flaws is one of horror cinema's finest moments.  It's been followed by several sequels and was remade in 2010 with Anthony Hopkins and Benecio del Toro.

"Even a man who is pure at heart
And says his prayers by night
May become a wolf
When the wolfsbane blooms
And the Autumn moon is bright."

Things are getting hairy for Lon Chaney Jr. as Larry Talbot in The Wolf Man


      

Climax

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Gaspar Noe
Screenplay:  Gaspar Noe
Starring:  Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, Souhelia Yacoub, Kiddy Smile, Claude Gajan Maull, Giselle Palmer
 Running Time:  96 minutes
Genre:  Horror, musical, drama

Winter, 1996:  A company of dancers preparing for an international tour, hole themselves up in an isolated,  abandoned boarding school in the middle of a thick forest.  After three days of productive rehearsal the dancers cut loose with a booze fuelled party, however someone spikes their sangria with LSD.  Soon the existing tensions within the group turn much more sinister, paranoia takes hold, and the dancers are soon trapped in a hallucinatory nightmare.

If you are familiar with enfant terrible Gaspar Noe's previous work: I Stand Alone (1998), Irreversible (2002), Enter the Void (2009) and Love (2015), than you will have an idea of what you are in for with Climax.  Noe tones down his typical sex and violence, although this is still graphic and disturbing.  The film opens with it's end-credit crawl, and has it's opening credit sequence at about the half-way point, there is bravura mobile camera  work, skewed angles (a lot of the film is intentionally shown upside down), point of view shots, odd title cards and weird colours.  Lit in red and shadows, a lot of the latter part of the film is almost incomprehensible.  It features extended dance sequences, which are very well choreographed, and then movies on to dark, intense horror.  While this is mild for Noe, this may be strong for anyone else. 

"Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson

Year of Publication:  1992
Number of Pages:  440 pages
Genre:  Science-fiction, cyberpunk, thriller

The book is set in a futuristic Los Angeles.  The United States Government no longer exists, having ceded most of it's power to private companies and entrepreneurs.  LA is now divided up among numerous franchises and syndicates.  People escape from their everyday lives into the computer-generated reality of the Metaverse, where you can be anyone and do anything, providing you have the necessary money, technology and coding skills.  A new drug called Snow Crash, is spreading through the Metaverse.  In reality, though Snow Crash is a deadly new kind of computer virus, which doesn't just infect the system, it infects the operator. 
Sword-wielding, pizza-delivering super-hacker Hiro Protagonist, and loud-mouthed, teenage, skater punk courier Y.T.  soon stumble upon the shadowy conspiracy behind Snow Crash, who are seeking to bring about a worldwide information apocalypse.

This is one of the most influential science-fiction novels of the 1990s, most notably popularising the term "avatar" for a computer representation of a person (although it wasn't the first to use the term in that context).  The book takes in linguistics, archeology, mythology, religion, computer science and politics, and ranges from surreal, punning humour, to hard-edged action.  Tonally it is all over the place, and it does get bogged down in the middle with long exposition. Plot elements are picked up and dropped without explanation, but when it works, it works brilliantly.  It is funny, it is exciting and and  an intriguing, involving thriller.  If you are a fan of Ghost in the Shell or Akira then you'll probably really enjoy it.

            

The Great Dictator

Year of Release:  1940
Director:  Charlie Chaplin
Screenplay:  Charlie Chaplin
Starring:  Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Jack Oakie, Henry Daniell, Reginald Gardiner, Billy Gilbert, Maurice Moscovich
Running Time:  124 minutes
Genre:  Comedy, satire, drama

Following the resounding defeat of Tomania in the First World War, ruthless fascist dictator Adenoid Hynkel (Chaplin), leader of the Double Cross Party, has risen to power.  Meanwhile a poor Jewish barber (also Chaplin), who has suffered amnesia for the twenty years since the First World War, leaves the hospital and returns home to the ghetto.  The barber soon falls in love with his neighbour Hannah (Goddard), and together they stand up against Hynkel's forces.

This was Chaplin's first true sound film, having come to fame during the silent era, Chaplin was one of the few film-makers to successfully continue making silent films well into the sound era.  However, the film has dialogue-free passages, and most of the humour is the physical comedy that made Chaplin famous.  It was also one of the first major Hollywood films to openly attack and mock Nazi Germany and Hitler himself (Hitler banned the film from being shown in Germany and  Nazi occupied countries, although apparently he saw it himself twice - what he thought of it has not been recorded).
Given the full horror of the Nazis it does seem strange to portray them as basically a gaggle of dim-witted, bullying clowns (Chaplin himself said that he would not have made the film if he had been aware at the time of what the Nazis were actually doing), but it is an effective film, and quite brave for the time.  The mockery is pretty scathing, and the film is genuinely funny, containing possibly Chaplin's funniest work.  The film concludes with an impassioned final speech, one of the finest in cinema, and elevates the film to the pantheon of the great. 

Charlie Chaplin as Adenoid Hynkel in The Great Dictator

BlacKkKlansman

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Spike Lee
Screenplay:  Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott and Spike Lee, based on the book Black Klansman by Ron Stallworth
Starring:  John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace
Running Time:  135 minutes
Genre:  Crime, thriller, drama

In 1979, Ron Stallworth (Washington) is the first black detective in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  Frustrated with his early assignments, and the racism of his colleagues, Ron is inspired when he is sent undercover to investigate a civil rights rally, and becomes close with activist Patrice (Harrier).  Ron works out a plan to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan chapter, calling up the leaders, pretending to be a racist white man, and recruiting white Jewish detective Philip Zimmerman (Driver) to pretend to be him in face-to-face meetings. 

Based on a true story, this is Spike Lee at his angriest and most powerful.  Opening with clips from Gone with the Wind (1948) and the horribly racist The Birth of a Nation (1915), this is a powerful and well-made film with a serious and powerful message about the pervasiveness of racism and how it is bound up in some people's sense of identity.  However, this is not a preachy message film, it's an entertaining thriller, exciting, intriguing and often very funny.  The film has a lot of contemporary relevance, which is occasionally pushed a little bit too bluntly in the dialogue, considering the film's 1970s setting.  Spike Lee is a real visual stylist and, despite, the film's generous run time, it's gripping throughout, and it's well-performed by a talented cast, with John David Washington dominating the screen in the lead role.  However, the film doesn't let it's audience off too lightly concluding with heart-breaking images that show how little has changed. 

Adam Driver and John David Washington in BlacKkKlansman
   

Reservoir Dogs

Year of Release:  1992
Director:  Quentin Tarantino
Screenplay:  Quentin Tarantino
Starring:  Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Steve Buscemi, Micheal Madsen, Chris Penn, Laurence Tierney, Quentin Tarantino, Eddie Bunker
Running Time:  94 minutes
Genre:  Thriller, Crime

When a jewelry store robbery goes badly wrong, the surviving robbers retreat to their warehouse rendezvous.  It soon becomes clear that one of them was an undercover cop.  As suspicions and accusations pile up, the survivors are soon violently out of control.

This was the film that introduced the world, for better or worse, to Quentin Tarantino.  While this was a moderate success upon it's initial US release, it was an absolute sensation in Britain, where it was very controversial due to it's violence.  Denied a home video release in Britain until 1995, the film played pretty much constantly in late-night screenings for almost three years. 
The film opens with a pre-credit sequence set in a diner where the characters banter and kvetch about Madonna and the ethics of tipping, and then you're pretty much thrown into the action.  It takes place almost entirely in the aftermath of this botched heist, and unfolds in real time in this derelict warehouse, with flashbacks delineating the backstories of various characters and the events leading up to and immediately following the robbery (which crucially we never actually see).  It's well-written with Tarantino's typically profane, pop-culture fueled dialogue, and well-performed by a talented cast of notable character actors.  It's a violent, bloody film but not quite as violent as it's reputation suggests, the famous ear-slicing scene is never actually shown in all it's gory details.
It's a gritty, funny and genuinely exciting thriller.  Tarantino has made better films, but none of them have the stripped-down, muscular grit of this one.

Micheal Madsen, Harvey Keitel and Steve Buscemi in Reservoir Dogs 
         

Bone Tomahawk

Year of Release:  2015
Director:  S. Craig Zahler
Screenplay:  S. Craig Zahler
Starring:  Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox, Richard Jenkins, Lili Simmons, David Arquette
Running Time:  132 minutes
Genre:  Western, horror, action, adventure,

In the 1890s, grizzled Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Russell), his loyal, elderly deputy Chicory (Jenkins), ruthless, bigoted gunslinger Brooder (Fox) and cowboy Arthur O'Dwyer (Wilson), who has a broken leg, set off on a dangerous quest to rescue three people, including O'Dwyer's wife, Samantha (Simmons), who have been kidnapped by a hidden clan of cave-dwelling cannibals.

For a variety of reasons, the Western genre has declined greatly in popularity in recent years, but good ones are still made occasionally, and this is a good one.  It is a gripping, if bleak, blend of horror and Western, that plays like a mix of The Searchers (1956) and The Hills Have Eyes (1977).  The film is beautifully shot with stunning landscapes, contrasted with (literally) gut-wrenching violence.  Mostly it moves at a sedate pace, but keeps the tension high and there is a strong vein of dark humour throughout, which helps alleviate the film's often grim tone.  It's very well-performed by a great cast and always visually interesting.  The film really kicks into another gear with the action-packed climax, which feels as if it's been dropped in from another movie entirely.  The film's violence is pretty graphic, and the amount of gore may put off some viewers, while the film's largely slow pace may put off some of the horror fans, but it's worth giving it a go. 

Richard Jenkins, Kurt Russell and Matthew Fox saddle up for Bone Tomahawk
  

Batman

Year of Release:  1989
Director:  Tim Burton
Screenplay:  Sam Hamm and Warren Skaaren, from a story by on Sam Hamm, based on characters created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger
Starring:  Micheal Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Billy Dee Williams, Micheal Gough, Pat Hingle, Jack Palance
Running Time:  121 minutes
Genre:  Action, science-fiction, fantasy, superhero

In Gotham City, reporter Alexander Knox (Wuhl) is investigating the mysterious "Batman" terrorizing the city's criminals.  No-one takes Knox seriously except photojournalist Vicki Vale (Basinger).  The trail leads them to eccentric billionaire Bruce Wayne (Keaton).  Meanwhile, the city's police department are desperate to bring down powerful crime boss Carl Grissom (Palance) and his ruthless enforcer Jack Napier (Nicholson).  Realising that Napier is having an affair with his girlfriend, Alicia (Jerry Hall), Grissom sets him up during a raid on a chemical works.  Batman intervenes and badly injures Napier, who is presumed dead.  Shortly afterwards Gotham City's underworld is taken over by a mysterious and deadly new criminal known as The Joker, who plans a horrific revenge on the good people of Gotham City.

This is kind of a difficult film because it gets a lot right, and when it's good it's brilliant, but it gets a lot wrong, and when it's bad it is terrible.  At the time it came out Batman was probably best known to general audiences from the campy 1960s TV series with Adam West and Burt Ward, but in the world of comics writers such as Frank Millar, Alan Moore and Grant Morrison were bringing a much darker and grittier version of the Dark Knight with critically acclaimed stories such as The Dark Knight Returns (1986), Year One (1987), The Killing Joke (1988) and Arkham Asylum (1989).  The film combines both aesthetics, despite the gloom and surprising levels of violence, a lot of it is as camp as anything in the TV series.  As you would expect from Tim Burton, the film has a lot of visual style.  Borrowing a lot from the shadowy world of traditional film noir, Gotham City is an almost surreal blend of 1920s, 1940s and 1980s styles.  Micheal Keaton does a great job as Bruce Wayne and Batman, although his casting was controversial at the time, with some fans deeming him not muscular enough for the role, as well as the fact that he was best known as a comedy actor.  He makes Bruce Wayne a strange and slightly sinister character (although to be fair, it is a little strange to dress up in an animal costume and beat up criminals every night), however it is slightly odd the amount of times that Batman get his ass kicked in the film.  He's knocked over a couple of times and gets knocked out and unmasked once by a gaggle of random goons (which include Mac McDonald, best known as Captain Hollister in Red Dwarf (1988-present)).  However Jack Nicholson is perfect as The Joker.  However, the film's biggest flaw is that it totally demystifies The Joker, because it gives him a definitive origin, whereas the character works better when he is ambiguous, as well as forcing a connection between the Joker and Batman.  Kim Basinger is good as Vicki Vale, although she is not given enough to do.  The film's unsung hero, however is Robert Wuhl as Alexander Knox.  It's an interesting idea to have a superhero story told from the point of view of an investigative journalist and Knox adds a lot of humour to the story, and he is the main character early in the film, but then he pretty much gets written out and abandoned. 
The film was released to huge publicity in the summer of 1989, and, when viewed with later Batman films, seems like kind of an oddity.  Tim Burton openly stated that he had no interest in comics, and the filmmakers don't really seem to connect with the Batman mythology and it's characters.  

Batman (Micheal Keaton) investigates The Joker (Jack Nicholson) in Batman

Destiny

Year of Release:  1921
Director:  Fritz Lang
Screenplay:  Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou
Starring:  Lil Dagover, Walter Janssen, Bernhard Goetzke, Rudolf Klein-Rogge
Genre:  Fantasy, romance
Running Time:  99 minutes

In this silent German film, a young couple (Dagover and Janssen) on a journey encounter the personification of Death (Goetzke), who takes the life of the man.  Heartbroken, the woman finds her way into Death's realm to plead for the life of her beloved.  Touched by her plight, Death presents her with three tales of love and death:  One set in an ancient Middle Eastern city, the other in Renaissance-era Venice and the third in ancient China.  If the woman can change the tragic outcome of just one of the episodes, Death will release her lover. 

This is an early and unjustly neglected film from acclaimed director Fritz Lang.  The film's original German title translates as The Weary Death:  A German Folk Song in Six Verses, and it is like a folk story, with a dream-like, expressionist look and, for the time, innovative special effects.  The three love stories all have a distinctive flavour to them, they all have a unique look beyond the lavish costumes and production design.  Looked at today, the fact that the characters are all played by white people in heavy make-up is problematic, albeit standard for the time.  The story was inspired by Indian mythology.  The film depicts Death as a gaunt, pale man in a wide-brimmed hat, a strangely sympathetic character who is tired of his endless task, and being cursed and despised by the living (Lang claimed that his concept of Death came from a fever-dream he had as a child).  None of the other characters are as memorable are as well-imagined as Death.  Even today, the film is visually striking and endlessly imaginative, although not without it's problems.  There is humour in the movie, but it takes itself seriously and invites it's audience to take it seriously and some level to believe in it's dark magic. 

Bernhard Goetzke as Death in Destiny 

Trees Lounge

Year of Release:  1996
Director:  Steve Buscemi
Screenplay:  Steve Buscemi
Starring:  Steve Buscemi, Chloe Sevigny, Mark Boone Junior, Anthony LaPaglia, Elizabeth Bracco, Seymour Cassel, Carol Kane, Samuel L. Jackson
Running Time:  95 minutes
Genre:  Drama, slice-of-life

In a tough, working-class neighbourhood of New York City, alcoholic Tommy Basilio (Buscemi) is a fixture at the local bar, Trees Lounge.  His girlfriend of eight years has left him for his boss and former best friend, Rob (LaPaglia).  Rob subsequently fired Tommy from his job as a mechanic for stealing money form the till.  In between drinking at the Trees Lounge, Tommy spends his time half-heartedly looking for work, eventually being given an ice-cream truck, following the death of the owner.  He also manages to form a connection with Debbie (Sevigny), the seventeen-year-old niece of a former girlfriend.

This is a downbeat, slice-of-life drama, very much in the John Cassavetes school of gritty realism, and features Cassavetes regular Seymour Cassel.  By and large the film sticks with Tommy, but it also deals with the lives of other Trees Lounge regulars, all of whom seem to lead pretty miserable lives.  Some crucial elements in the film are left ambiguous, not depicted on screen we are left to decide for ourselves what really happened from the often differing versions of events that the characters give us.  Not much happens in the film and, in keeping with the lives these characters lead, there are no real conclusions, despite glimmerings of hope it looks as if they will keep doing the same things over and over again.  This is a strong debut from Buscemi as a writer-director making largely unlikeable characters sympathetic and giving the film a strain of dark comedy.  The film has a strong cast full of recognisable faces from nineties independent movies.  The film's largely plotless nature and slow pace may put off some viewers but it is worth sticking with because it is a well-performed and well-written drama.  Buscemi scripted and directed one other film Animal Factory (2003) and has directed a number of TV episodes, but Trees Lounge really makes me which that he had done more as a writer/director because, on the evidence of this, he could have become a notable filmmaker as well as an actor.     

Steve Buscemi in Trees Lounge

Hotel Artemis

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Drew Pearce
Screenplay:  Drew Pearce
Starring:  Jodie Foster, Stirling K. Brown, Sofia Boutella, Jeff Goldblum, Brian Tyree Henry, Jenny Slate, Zachary Quinto, Charlie Day, Dave Bautista
Running Time:  94 minutes
Genre: Action, science-fiction, crime

Los Angeles, 2028:  A full-scale citywide riot is in progress over the cost of privatised water.  Under cover of the riot a small crew try, unsuccessfully, to rob a bank.  During the escape, brothers Sherman (Brown) and Lev (Henry) are injured; Lev very seriously.  They go to the Hotel Artemis, a combination hotel and hospital that only treats criminals, run for 22 years by the Nurse (Foster) according to a strict set of rules, with assistant / enforcer Everest (Bautista).  Also in the hotel are racist, misogynist arms dealer Acapulco (Day) and contract killer Nice (Boutella).  The Nurse receives word that crime boss The Wolf King (Goldblum), who owns most of Los Angeles (including the Artemis), is on his way for emergency treatment.  Meanwhile the Nurse takes a huge risk, breaking her own rules to help cop Morgan (Slate), who has a connection to her past.

This is a stylish action, crime-thriller with futuristic overtones and a top-drawer cast.  Set almost entirely in the confines of the hotel, which looks like a decaying Old-Hollywood palace. Jodie Foster turns in a typically strong performance as the vulnerable but strong nurse, Jeff Goldblum has a lot of fun with a comparatively small role, and Sofia Boutella is memorable as the seductive, acrobatic killer.  Stirling K. Brown anchors the film as the essentially decent robber who will do anything to save his brother.  With the hotel given to frequent power outages, characters are often shown in shadowy pools of golden light and occasionally bathed in neon neon and bright red emergency lighting.  We are given glimpses of the nightmare world outside in the news bulletins the characters watch and the frequent explosions in the distance.  There are brief impressions of the world outside Los Angeles (a character talks about taking a chopper "south, over the Wall").  This is not a wall-to wall action film, it is more of a thriller, but when the action comes it is well-staged by debuting director Dave Pearce, and exciting.  The story has few surprises and, despite the big-name cast it looks like quite a low-budget film, but it is a lot of fun, and could become quite a cult film in years to come.

Stirling K. Brown and Sofia Boutella check in to Hotel Artemis     

Punch-Drunk Love

Year of Release:  2002
Director:  Paul Thomas Anderson
Screenplay:  Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring:  Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Luis Guzman, Mary Lynn Rajskub
Running Time:  95 minutes
Genre: Romantic comedy 

Los Angeles:  Barry Egan (Sandler) is a lonely entrepreneur who owns a company which sells toilet plungers and other, similar novelty items.  He suffers from severe social awkwardness which is exacerbated by his seven sisters who ridicule and humiliate him constantly.  To make matters worse, he is given to bursts of violence when he is really upset or stressed.  Barry also collects large quantities of puddings for a frequent flier air miles promotion. 
After meeting and falling for shy Lena Leonard (Watson), Barry has a new purpose to life, but things become complicated when the operator of a phone sex line he called tries to extort money from him.    

This strange film is a very offbeat romantic comedy.  Although it adheres to the general boy meets girl formula, in terms of approach it is very different.  Adam Sandler contributes a striking performance, toning down his usual comic persona, and making it somehow darker, closer to the more realistic "cringe comedy" of someone like Ricky Gervais, but making his sudden bursts of violence even more disturbing.  Emily Watson's character is more if an enigma, which nevertheless hints at hidden depths.  The world of Punch-Drunk Love is a deeply strange one.  In each of Paul Thomas Anderson's carefully composed shots there is the hint of things happening in the background.  The whole thing has a dreamlike feel to it with love the thing that provides hope in a nightmare world.
Incidentally, any Murderinos may recognise the voice of Karen Kilgariff as one of Barry's sisters. 

Emily Watson and Adam Sandler in Punch-Drunk Love 

Nowhere Boy

Year of Release:  2009
Director:  Sam Taylor-Wood
Screenplay:  Matt Greenhalgh, based on the book Imagine This:  Growing Up with My Brother John Lennon by Julia Baird
Starring:  Aaron Johnson, Anne-Marie Duff, Kristen Scott Thomas, David Threlfall, Thomas Sangster, David Morrissey
Running Time:  97 minutes
Genre:  Biography, drama 

Liverpool, the late 1950s:  Rebellious, charismatic teenager John Lennon (Johnson) lives with his strict aunt Mimi (Thomas), who has raised him since the age of five.  At the funeral of his beloved Uncle George (Threlfall), John gets back in contact with his mother, Julia (Duff).  Around the same time, John becomes obsessed with rock 'n' roll music, and decides to start a band with some of his friends from school, including Paul McCartney (Sangster) and George Harrison (Sam Bell).  As John becomes increasingly preoccupied with music, his behaviour worsens and a bitter conflict brews between himself, Julia and Mimi.

This isn't a film about the Beatles, although Paul McCartney and George Harrison do feature, the focus is entirely on Lennon and it ends just as the newly formed Beatles are about to set off for Hamburg.  Also, although Lennon's love of music plays a huge part in the film, it's not really about the music or about Lennon as a musician.  It's an entertaining and  intriguing 1950s family drama, anchored by some great performances from Aaron Johnson, Anne-Marie Duff and Kristen Scott Thomas.  This was the feature debut from fine art photographer Sam Taylor-Wood and she does a good job.  If you are expecting a comprehensive biopic of John Lennon or a film about the Beatles and their music, than you might be disappointed, but if you are looking for an affecting drama, then this is well worth checking out.

Aaron Johnson as John Lennon in Nowhere Boy     

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders

Year of Release:  1970
Director:  Jaromil Jires
Screenplay:  Jaromil Jires, Ester Krumbachova and Jiri Musil, based on the novel Valerie and Her Week of Wonders by Vitezslav Nezval
Starring:  Jaroslava Schallerova, Helena Anyzova, Karel Engel, Jan Klusak, Petr Kopriva
Running Time:  73 minutes
Genre:  Surrealism, horror, fantasy

This virtually plotless film centres around 13 year old Valerie (Schallerova) and her surreal dreamlike adventures involving vampires, predatory priests and her mysterious family.

This is a beautiful film featuring a succession of stunning images.  Virtually unclassifiable,  it has elements of horror, fantasy, fairy-tales, however it makes a kind of dreamlike sense, you can see it as a girl's fears of and attraction to the adult world filtered through her subconscious, as she enters puberty.  Sensual, and ethereal, it's a unique film and one that you really have to experience for yourself.  It's a world where horror and beauty coexist and is full of life and energy.  It's a film that some will find pretentious and wilfully obscure, but others will find it mesmerising. 

    Jaroslava Schallerova in Valerie and Her Week of Wonders.

Yellow Submarine

Year of Release:  1968
Director:  George Dunning.  Animation Directors:  Robert Balser and Jack Stokes.  Live-action Directors:  Dennis Abey and Al Brodax
Screenplay: Lee Minoff, Al Brodax, Jack Mendelsohn, Erich Segal and Roger McGough (uncredited) from a story by Lee Minoff, based on the song Yellow Submarine by John Lennon and Paul McCartney
Starring: Paul Angelis, John Clive, Dick Emery, Geoff Hughes, Lance Percival, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, George Harrison
Running Time:  87 minutes
Genre:  Animation,  Fantasy,  Comedy, Musical

The colourful, magical world of Pepperland lies deep beneath the sea.  A cheerful, music-loving paradise, it's very existence enrages the music-hating Blue Meanies who live in the mountains just outside Pepperland and decide to take it over, paralysing the inhabitants and draining them and their land of colour, joy and hope, as well as forbidding all music and encasing Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in a music-proof bubble.  Just before his capture, Pepperland's Mayor sends Old Frank (Percival) to the surface to get help.  Arriving in Liverpool, Old Frank recruits the help of the Beatles, and they set off on a surreal, music-filled journey save Pepperland.

This is still an astonishing film, colourful, joyfully strange and psychedelic, and filled with many classic Beatles songs.  The story is pretty basic, but it's not about the story, it's about the music and the visuals.  The script however is very funny and smart, full of jokes, puns and clever wordplay.  The film is packed with invention throughout, from the cast of weird and wonderful characters and creatures, including the strange but lovable Nowhere Man, to the imaginative background design, utilising a variety of animation styles and techniques.   Although this is technically a Beatles film, the Fab Four themselves had very little to do with it, aside from contributing the songs, they do not voice their animated characters, although they do appear as themselves in a brief live-action sequence at the end of the film.
If you're a fan of the Beatles, of course you won't want to miss it, but it is also a colourful, imaginative, hilarious, joyful and surprisingly sweet adventure for young and old alike.  It really hasn't dated much either.  Cleaned up and restored for it's 50th anniversary, it still feels as fresh and fun as ever.

   

"It's all in the mind, y'know":  Yellow Submarine

A Clockwork Orange

Year of Release:  1971
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Screenplay:  Stanley Kubrick, based on the novel A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Starring:  Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Adrienne Corri, Miriam Karlin
Running Time:  136 minutes
Genre:  Science-fiction, crime

Near future England:  Teenage gang leader Alex (McDowell) leads his three friends (or "droogs") on nightly rampages of theft and savage violence against whoever is unlucky enough to encounter them.  Tiring of Alex's arrogance, his friends set him up to be arrested after their latest attack goes fatally wrong.  Alex is convicted and sentenced to fourteen years in prison.  After two years inside, Alex is submitted to an experimental treatment called the "Ludovico Technique" which is intended to cure criminality by making the subject unable to act violently.  Alex is released after the treatment and soon finds that where he was once the predator, he is now the prey.

This is hugely controversial film which is now acclaimed as a modern classic.  It is still a shocking film, in fact I would say that it would probably not get made today. because it would just be too problematic, with the way sexual violence is presented.  Not necessarily because of the on-screen violence, which is heavily stylised and more shadowplay than graphic blood and gore, but because we are invited to like and sympathise with a  brutal, unrepentant rapist and murderer.  The entire film is shown through Alex's eyes, and he breaks the fourth wall with his voice-over narration (addressing the audience directly as "my brothers and only friends").  The first part of the film, depicting Alex's crimes is heavily stylised, whereas the latter part of the film, where Alex becomes the victim, the violence is much more realistically depicted thereby inviting the audience to enjoy Alex's rampages at a distance, but to sympathise with his own sufferings.  Which is, of course, how Alex would see it.  Also there is the towering performance of Malcolm McDowell as Alex, alternately threatening and innocent, fearsome and funny, it is a career best performance, and he is in pretty much every scene of the film.  No-one else really gets to make much of an impact in the film, or even get a lot of screen time.
The film is relatively faithful to the novel, although it discards the final chapter of the original, British version of the book.  There are some odd elements in regards to the book, in which Alex's age is stated as being fourteen.  Malcolm McDowell was in his late twenties when he made the film, and yet he is constantly referred to as a child, despite being clearly an adult.
The film depicts a very seventies future, and it really is a product of it's time and place, it feels more like an alternate early seventies than a futuristic piece.  The novel was written in an invented slang called "Nadsat" and this is memorably retained in the film, although toned down.  Burgess invented nadsat because he felt that if he wrote it in then-current slang then novel would feel dated as soon as it was published, and he was right.
Alex has a deep love of classical music (especially Beethoven) and music is used throughout the film, often contrasting with the images on screen.  One of the film's most notorious scenes has McDowell singing "Singin' in the Rain" while he brutally attacks a husband and wife (Patrick Magee and Adrienne Corri).
The film was famously withdrawn from release in Britain by Kubrick himself and was not legally available there until after his death.

Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange

Sometimes They Come Back

Year of Release:  1991
Director:  Tom McLoughlin
Screenplay:  Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal, based on the short story Sometimes They Come Back by Stephen King
Starring:  Tim Matheson, Brooke Adams, Robert Hy Gorman, Chris Demetral, Robert Rusler, Nicholas Sadler, Bentley Mitchum, William Sanderson
Running Time:  98 minutes
Genre:  Horror

In 1990, high school history teacher Jim Norman (Matheson) returns to his childhood home town for the first time in 27 years, with his wife Sally (Adams) and young son Scott (Gorman).
In 1963, nine year old Jim (Zachary Ball) and his fifteen year old brother Wayne (Demetral) are walking through a railway tunnel on the way to the library when they are set upon by a gang of teenage greasers who kill Wayne, but are themselves almost immediately killed by a train.
Despite still being haunted by nightmares of his brother's death, Jim and his family settle in, and he starts teaching at the local high school, bonding with some students and making enemies of others.  However, the students who Jim gets close to start dying in apparent suicides, and are replaced in class by students who look suspiciously like the gang who murdered Wayne.
Jim realises that the spirits of the dead gang members have returned and are set on revenge.

This film was originally made for TV and was first broadcast in 1991.  Based on a 1974 short story by Stephen King, it's a pretty by the numbers horror film, that features plenty of King tropes.  Made on a low budget without particular style or flair, with a cast of solid performers, including veteran William Sanderson, who all try their best with stodgy material (pity Brooke Adams, who really has nothing to do here at all except be alternately supportive and scared).  The story is not one of Stephen King's best and the screenwriters have trouble punching it up to feature length.  The film is at it's best when the focus is on the ghoulish greasers who (as played by Robert Rusler, Bentley Mitchum and Nicholas Sadler) are ominous and threatening, although we never find out enough about them, they have no backgrounds or personalities, and are portrayed as pack animals (they growl, bray and howl like wolves).
Probably due to the limits of television in 1991, the film is light on blood and gore.  At times it seems more like a supernatural drama about coming to terms with grief, than it is about shocks and scares, and the two sides don't gel together.  The biggest problem that the film has is that it offers nothing new.  Really, if you're interested at all in horror, than you've seen it all before.
Followed by two direct-to-video sequels: Sometimes They Come Back... Again (1996) and Sometimes They Come Back... for More (1998) .

Robert Rusler, Bentley Mitchum, Nicholas Sadler and Don Ruffin in Sometimes They Come Back

Hereditary

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  Ari Aster
Screenplay:  Ari Aster
Starring:  Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd, Gabriel Byrne
Running Time:  128 minutes
Genre:  Horror

Annie Graham (Collette) is a miniaturist artist who lives with her husband, Steve (Byrne), their 13 year old daughter Charlie (Shapiro) and teenage son Peter (Wolff).  Following the death of Annie's reclusive mother, with whom she had a very troubled relationship, the family become haunted by mysterious, malevolent forces.

To say too much about this film would be to spoil it.  This is a quiet, unsettling, serious horror film, which, while referencing classics such as Rosemary's Baby (1968), is very much it's own thing.  It's worth pointing out that this film does demand patience.  It's long for a horror film and quite slow, building up atmosphere and suspense, but there are some shocking plot developments and towards the end it really kicks into high gear.  The acting is superb, especially from Toni Collette who really carries the film, although she is very well supported, particularly by Alex Wolff and Milly Shapiro as the two kids.  It's very well made with effective sound design, a lot of the film takes place in complete silence, with subtle sounds emerging suggesting dark forces.  The film is largely free of graphic violence, although there are some disturbing images.

Family matters:  Toni Collette in Hereditary 

The French Connection

Year of Release:  1971
Director:  William Friedkin
Screenplay:  Ernest Tidyman, based on the book The French Connection by Robin Moore
Starring:  Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Tony Lo Bianco, Marcel Bozzuffi
Running Time:  104 minutes
Genre:  Thriller

New York City police detectives Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle (Hackman) and Sonny "Cloudy" Russo (Scheider) investigate a huge international heroin smuggling operation being run out of Marseille by wealthy Alain Charnier (Rey). 

This is one of the most influential cop thrillers ever made.  Inspired by true events it's filmed in a semi-documentary style with a jittery, constantly moving camera on the wintry streets of New York and dialogue that sounds like snatches of overheard conversations.  The filmmakers strived as far as possible for realism.  Police detectives Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso (the real-life models for the characters played by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider) were constant presences on set, and the film does spend a lot of time on the minutiae of police work.  The detectives spend most of the time standing in the freezing cold, or huddled in cars and dingy subterranean offices transcribing wiretap tapes, interspersed with sudden bursts of action.  A lot of viewers at the time found the film very confusing (a MAD magazine parody was called "What's the Connection?"), but that kind of storytelling is more familiar now thanks to TV shows such as The Wire (2002-2008).  Gene Hackman turns in a great performance as the generally pretty repellent racist, lecherous, boorish and violent "Popeye" Doyle. 
The film features some spectacular action sequences, including a justly-famous car chase  sequence, which is one of the best ever put onto film.  If you are a fan of thriller, and have not seen this one, it is definitely a must-see.

      Gene Hackman and friends make The French Connection

Rosemary's Baby

Year of Release:  1968
Director:  Roman Polanski
Screenplay:  Roman Polanski, based on the novel Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Starring:  Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon, Sidney Blackmer, Maurice Evans, Ralph Bellamy
Running Time:  131 minutes
Genre:  Horror

New York City, 1965:  Rosemary Woodhouse (Farrow) and her ambitious actor husband Guy (Cassavetes) move into a spacious apartment in a classy building, which has a dark history of murder, witchcraft and cannibalism.  Shortly after moving in, the Woodhouse's meet their eccentric elderly neighbours, the Castevets.  When Rosemary falls pregnant, she becomes increasingly suspicious of the Castevets, and convinced that she is being targeted by a Satanic conspiracy, of which her neighbours, friends, and even her husband are part.

This is possibly one of the most influential horror films ever made.  At the time, horror tended to be gruesome drive-in fare, or classier Gothic productions based on Edgar Allan Poe stories, or about Dracula, Frankenstein and other classic monsters.  In this film horror is brought bang up to date and into the heart of Manhattan, it's also aimed squarely at an older audience, Rosemary and Guy are young, but they are certainly not teenagers, and the film deals with pregnancy and middle-class ennui.  It also takes it's time, in a period where horror films rarely lasted much over an hour an a half, this has a generous running time of two hours plus.  It also doesn't look like a horror film, with the opening shots floating over New York City, with the opening credits appearing in pink copperplate lettering to the strangely eerie lullaby, the discussions about pop culture and news events, the evil Satanists worrying about stains on the carpet and having most of the film take place in broad daylight, this is more like a comedy-drama about a disaffected young woman.  The most memorable horror moments come in the genuinely disturbing surreal nightmare sequences, where Rosemary is attacked by a demonic creature, the morning after, in another deeply problematic scene Guy cheerfully informs her that he had had sex with her while she was passed out, he casually brushes off Rosemary's shock and distress at this.
The film is a very faithful adaptation of Ira Levin's book, in fact pretty much everything that is in the film is in the book.  The main difference is that at the end, the film still leaves it ambiguous as to whether anything supernatural is happening at all.  In fact the entire film could be read as it all being in Rosemary's mind.  This was because writer / director Roman Polanski had a strong aversion to the supernatural.  The horror in the film becomes more due to urban isolation and paranoia, a favourtie theme of Polanski's.  Rosemary is alternately abandoned or patronised by her selfish husband, she doesn't have a job, apparently, and spends most of her time rattling around on her own.
The film boasts some fine performances, particularly Mia Farrow, sporting an iconic hairstyle, combining frailty with steel.

Baby blues:  Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby         

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Year of Release:  2018
Director:  J. A. Bayona
Screenplay:  Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly, based on characters created by Micheal Crichton
Starring:  Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Rafe Spall, Justice Smith, Daniella Pidella, James Cromwell, Toby Jones, Ted Levine, Isabella Sermon, B. D. Wong, Geraldine Chaplin, Jeff Goldblum
Running Time:  128 minutes
Genre: Action, science-fiction

Three years after the events of Jurassic World (2015), the island of Isla Nubla has been more or less abandoned and left to the cloned dinosaurs.  However an imminent volcanic eruption threatens to destroy the island and the dinosaurs.  Despite strong opposition, a charity, headed by Jurassic World's former manager, Claire Deering (Howard), hope to save the dinosaurs.  Claire is contacted by a representative of millionaire Benjamin Lockwood (Cromwell), a partner of the founder of the original Jurassic Park.  He wants Claire to help find the dinosaurs and relocate them to a safe island, where they can live out their lives in peace.  Claire agrees and recruits the aid of former dinosaur trainer Owen Grady (Pratt) to help.  However, once on the island, Claire and Owen find that they are being used for a much more sinister purpose.

This is the fifth film in the Jurassic Park movie franchise, inspired by Micheal Crichton's 1990 novel.  It's an enjoyable action packed adventure, full of spectacular set-pieces and eye-popping special effects.  It starts out as a familiar Jurassic Park adventure, escaping marauding dinosaurs on the tropical island, and then makes a sharp turn becoming something very different, dealing with the franchise's constant moral quandary about the rights and wrongs of cloning extinct animals.  The performances are fine, Chris Pratt is perfect as the roguish but lovable hero, and he makes a great double act with Bryce Dallas Howard, who really carries the weight of the film and does it well.  The bad guys however tend to be one-note villains, and the other character tend to get lost amongst the dino-action, including Jeff Goldblum who, despite prominent billing has little more than a featured cameo.  It holds the attention throughout it's run-time and fans of the franchise won't be disappointed, there are also enough changes in the story to keep it intriguing and surprising enough, while setting the stage for more to come. 

     Jurassic World:  Fallen Kingdom

Monty Python's Life of Brian

Year of Release:  1979
Director:  Terry Jones
Screenplay:  Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam
Starring:  Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Micheal Palin, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam
Running Time:  94 minutes
Genre:  Comedy

Led by a star, Three Wise Men come to praise a child born in a stable.  However, they quickly realise they want to praise the baby born in the stable next door.  The first baby, Brian Cohen (Chapman), grows to manhood in Roman occupied Judea.  Fiercely resenting the Romans, Brian joins the hopelessly over-organized People's Front of Judea, who spend more time bickering amongst themselves and squabbling with rival revolutionary factions than fighting the Romans.
Meanwhile a series of accidents lead to Brian being proclaimed as a Messiah, much to his distress.

This was hugely controversial in it's day, and still is in some places, with the film being accused of blasphemy, although while the film does poke fun at organised religion, as well as political groups, it actually treats Biblical figures fairly respectfully.  The Pythons themselves have frequently said that the film is not blasphemous nor was it ever intended to be.
What it is, is very funny.  It's often regarded today as one of the best comedies ever made.  As is frequently the case with Monty Python the humour ranges from juvenile, schoolyard humour (a character called Biggus Dickus) to the quite sophisticated (the Romans criticising Brian's Latin grammar when he graffiti tags a building), and some classic lines that have become popular among comedy nerds all over the world (Brian's mother (played by Terry Jones) angrily yelling to his followers:  "He's not the Messiah!  He's a very naughty boy!").  There is also a bizarre sequence where, escaping from the Romans, Brian falls off an unfinished tower straight into a passing spaceship where two, one-eyed aliens take him for a ride, get involved in a brief outer-space battle, before crashing at the base of the tower.  The film also contains the song "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life", which has become quite a hit in it's own right.
The film, shot in Tunisia on a very low budget, mostly put up by ex-Beatle and Monty Python fan George Harrison, is well made.  It has a stronger plot than other Python films, feeling less like a bunch of sketches strung together, and for the first time has some genuine emotion rather than non-stop gags.  Graham Chapman has most of the straight acting to do as the lead, with most of the other characters being played by the Python's in multiple roles, including several of the female parts (most notably Terry Jones as Brian's angry mother).  Sue Jones-Taylor (who would go on to become the Mayor of Aberystwyth)  has the most prominent female role as Judith, Brian's love interest.  The film also has less of Terry Gilliam's distinctive animation, which only appears here in the opening credits sequence, although Gilliam did create the spaceship sequence.
This is Monty Python's finest moment, and one of the greatest comedies ever made.

Graham Chapman in Monty Python's Life of Brian