What I've Just Watched: Part 3 - The Search for Spock

The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964), from Hammer, this time written, produced and directed by Michael Carreras (The Curse of the Werewolf (1960), She (1965) and Shatter (1965)), this was a sequel to Hammer's The Mummy (1959), it has some good moments however the film suffers from having no big name stars, and it does have a confusing twist. Englishmen John Bray (Ronald Howard) and Sir Giles Dalrymple (Jack Gwillim) as well as French Professor Eugene Dubois (Bernard Rebel), along with Dubois' daughter Annette (Jeanne Roland), find a mummy's tomb out in Egypt, and have the artifacts sent back to England. American showman Alexander King (Fred Clark) bankrolled the expedition, and puts on an over the top show with the artifacts, however there's a shock in store when they discover the Mummy inside it's sarcophagus is missing. Plus it looks like that shady arts patron Adam Beecham (Terence Morgan) has something to hide. It's a film that doesn't outstay it's welcome, but it does drag a bit in the middle, and it was greenlit and filmed on the hoof, and it shows. It's horror and outcome have all been seen in other Hammer horrors, done better there as well, but this needed a better script and cast. 2.5/5



Dragonheart (1996), directed by Rob Cohen (Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993), Daylight (1996) and The Fast and the Furious (2001)), this is a very exciting and entertaining action-fantasy-adventure, written by Charles Edward Pogue (The Fly (1986)). It's a lighthearted, cheerful romp, and it's adventures like this that are dying out in cinemas these days. In Olde England, around 1000 AD, the Knight Bowen (Dennis Quaid) has been chasing a dragon called Draco (voiced by Sean Connery), who saved the life of Saxon Prince Einon (David Thewlis). But with the new lease of life, Einon turned evil, enslaving rebels to build a castle. Bowen finds Draco with a view to kill, however after learning Draco is the last dragon ever, Bowen and Draco form a truce and a partnership. Defrauding villages by doing staged dragon slayings. But it's not long before Bowen's path crosses with Einon's again, but Einon cannot die without dire consequences. It has some silly moments, but it's very entertaining, having Connery voice Draco was an inspired choice, adding humour and gravitas to the proceedings. It's still great fun to watch now. 4/5

Baby Boom (1987), directed by Charles Shyer (Father of the Bride (1991) and Alfie (2004)), and co-written and produced with Nancy Meyers (What Women Want (2000), The Holiday (2006) and It's Complicated (2009)). This is a very amusing comedy about the selfish yuppie generation of the 1980's, and how one change in life can make a lifetime of difference. J.C. Wiatt (Diane Keaton) is a fast-living, hard-nosed career woman working in Manhattan, she lives with investment banker Steven Buchner (Harold Ramis), but they have no time for a proper relationship. However, J.C. gets the news that she's inherited toddler Elizabeth (twins Kristina and Michelle Kennedy) from a cousin in England she hasn't seen in over 30 years. So J.C.'s life is turned upside down, which costs J.C. her job and relationship, attempts to put Elizabeth up for adoption fail. She and Elizabeth get away from it all, and move to Vermont, where J.C. starts over, and tries to make a new life. It's got some very funny moments, and Keaton puts in a hilarious performance as the career woman, whose life is turned upside down. But it is a comment on the me-me-me generation of the 1980's, and telling people to slow down and love life. 4/5



Elizabeth (1998), directed by Shekhar Kapur (Masoom (1983) and Mr. India (1987)) and written by Michael Hirst (The Tudors). This is a dark but beautiful looking film about the Virgin Queen and the early years of her reign. While it's not very sympathetic towards the Catholic Church, and does take liberties, the film has some brilliant performances in it. Princess Elizabeth (Cate Blanchett) is arrested by her half sister Queen Mary (Kathy Burke) for treason, but Elizabeth soon becomes Queen when Mary dies of cancer to the uterus. No sooner than Elizabeth has taken the throne, that she learns that there are people conspiring to kill her, including the traitorous Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk (Christopher Eccleston). Elizabeth calls upon 'spymaster' Sir Francis Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush) to put a stop to all conspiracies, plus people close to Elizabeth wonder if she will find someone rich to become her husband and produce an heir. It's a very lavish and sweeping film done with care and attention to detail. Blanchett is brilliant as Elizabeth, and this catapulted her to stardom, and there's a brilliant supporting cast, including Joseph Fiennes, Richard Attenborough, Daniel Craig, Eric Cantona and John Gielgud. 4/5

No Sex Please, We're British (1973), directed by Cliff Owen (That Riviera Touch (1967), Steptoe and Son (1972) and Ooh... You Are Awful (1972)), this adaptation of Anthony Marriott and Alistair Foot's hit 1971 play, adapted for film by Marriott, Brian Cooke and Johnnie Mortimer. This is a very funny farce with a lot of innuendos and misunderstandings, but it has a very good cast as well. Brian Runnicles (Ronnie Corbett) works for Barclays Bank in Windsor, life is good for him. But one day, he receives a packages which he thinks is his new digital calculator, but it isn't. In fact, it's a box filled with dirty photos. But it doesn't stop there, due to a mix-up, he's receiving blue films and pornographic books. Which he has to hide from his boss Mr. Bromley (Arthur Lowe) who is a staunch anti-porn crusader. Brian, with help from bank executive David Hunter (Ian Ogilvy) and his wife Penny (Susan Penhaligon) try to dispose of the filthy evidence, but then David's mother Bertha (Beryl Reid) has just landed for a few days. This is a very funny farce, the sort you don't get these days, maybe because it would be branded as dated, But we need comedy like this again, and Corbett steals the film, (as he does with nearly everything else he does), and it has a touch of Carry On about it, with the wordplay and double entendres.  4/5



Runaway Jury (2003), based upon John Grisham's 1996 bestseller, this had been in pre-production since 1997, producer Arnon Milchan acquired the rights before it was even written! The film adaptation was directed by Gary Fleder (Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995) and Don't Say A Word (2001)), and it's an entertaining and gripping legal thriller, even if differs from the book. After the shooting of Jacob Wood (Dylan McDermott) at his office in New Orleans. His widow Celeste (Joanna Going) takes Vicksburgs Firearms to court, claiming gross negligence on their part, with lawyer Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman) defending her. A jury is selected, overseen by jury consultant Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman). In the jury is store clerk Nick Easter (John Cusack), who really doesn't want to be there. But, he soon finds his life is in danger and his apartment has been ransacked. But nothing on this case is what it seems, and Easter's girlfriend Marlee (Rachel Weisz) has her own agenda related to the case. It's a film which shows all the dirty tricks that goes on when someone takes on a big corporation. In the book, it was a tobacco company in the dock, here it's a gun company, but that doesn't matter, it's still a suspenseful and gripping thriller, with a good cast at it's dark heart. 4/5

Green Card (1990), directed by Peter Weir, who at the time had just come off the critically acclaimed drama Dead Poet's Society (1989). Here, he wanted to do something quite different, a light and fluffy film. Only slightly based on Weir's time living and working in America, but it was also a chance to work with Gérard Depardieu, who was just about ready to crack America (briefly) at that time. In New York, Brontë Parrish (Andie MacDowall) is a keen horticulturist who has found the perfect flat with it's own garden. Only one snag, it's for married couples only. At the same time, she's introduced to Frenchman Georges Faure (Depardieu), who has found the perfect job in America, but he needs a Green Card to get it. So Brontë and Georges agree upon a "marriage of convenience", in order to convince the immigration authorities, they have to appear to be in love with one another. Which is difficult when they hardly know each other, plus the neighbours in the flat are suspicious, but Brontë and Georges soon get along. Weir does well with this slightly amusing comedy of cultural clashes and there is the odd bit of farce thrown in for good measure. It's not 100% perfect, but Weir was perfectly entitled to do something lighter after a lot of serious films, and Depardieu does well in his first American film. 3.5/5



Man of Steel (2013), directed by Zack Snyder and produced and co-masterminded by Christopher Nolan, this is a page 1 reboot of Superman. Forget the Richard Donner original and it's sequels and the underrated Bryan Singer take. This is a more human and grittier take on Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's creation. Despite some tiny niggles, it's a powerful, entertaining and exciting superhero caper. Kal-El (Henry Cavill) learns that he came from another world, the planet Krypton, son of Scientist Jor-El (Russell Crowe) and wife Lara (Ayelet Zurer). Kal-El was raised as Clark Kent by kindly farmers Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane). But, he is struggling to come to terms with his powers, and soon discovers his purpose on Earth, and his secret is discovered by Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane (Amy Adams). But, Earth isn't safe, and General Zod (Michael Shannon) comes to earth looking for Jor-El's son, seeking vengeance for being exiled, but Clark/Kal-El has to fight this unstoppable evil. This is a very powerful and moving epic superhero movie, trying to reimagine Superman for a modern age, and it works. Snyder is very respectful to the mythology of the character and his origins, and he gets the best from this amazing ensemble cast. Cavill is a great Superman, and he makes it his own. 4.5/5

Mrs. Winterbourne (1996), directed by Richard Benjamin, (The Money Pit (1986), Mermaids (1990) and Made in America (1993)), this adaptation of Cornell Woolrich's 1948 novel I Married a Dead Man was originally pitched as a serious film, but was turned into a light and fluffy romantic comedy-drama on the suggestion of the producers. It's got some good moments, and it's better than the critics said. 18 year old Connie Doyle (Ricki Lake) is heavily pregnant and dumped by her womanising boyfriend Steve DeCunzo (Loren Dean). She accidentally ends up on a train going from New York to Boston, where she meets Hugh Winterbourne (Brendan Fraser) and his wife Patricia (Susan Haskell). However, the train crashes, Hugh and Patricia are killed, and Connie wakes up in hospital where the staff believe her to be Patricia Winterbourne and she's whisked away to the Winterbourne home, ran by matriach Grace (Shirley MacLaine) and son Bill (Fraser again). Connie accepts this new life, but her past catches up with her. It's got some good moments, and some good performances as well. MacLaine is wonderful as always, and it's shocking that they still manage to get laughs out of the film, considering an heir and his wife and unborn child were killed in the film, but that's soon forgotten about, and doesn't spoil the film. 3/5



Big Nothing (2006), written and directed by Jean-Baptiste Andrea (Dead End (2003) and Brotherhood of Tears (2013)). This is a pitch-black crime caper comedy with a funny double act up-front and centre. Although it's hard to like these characters, you can understand why they're doing bad things, and it does have some funny moments, but it is a very dark film ultimately. In Oregon, Charlie (David Schwimmer) has just taken the position of call centre employee, who ends up getting sacked on his first day. Stressed out at how he'll provide for his daughter and policewoman wife Penelope (Natascha McElhone), he's approached by fellow employee Gus (Simon Pegg) at how they can make money. Gus discovers the local Reverend Smalls (Mitchell Mullen) is part of a child porn ring, so they plan to blackmail him. Good idea, but it all goes horribly wrong, especially when Gus' one night stand Josie (Alice Eve) gets involved, and Agent Hymes (Jon Polito) is thrown into the mix too. Filmed in 32 days in Canada, South Wales and the Isle of Man, Big Nothing is a briefly gripping and dangerously funny film, not all of it works, and there's quite a bit that's left hanging by the end of the film, but that doesn't seem to matter. It still manages to do something with a shoestring budget. 3.5/5

eXistenZ (1999), the other mind-bending computer-based sci-fi film of 1999, however, this one was the better one, because it was directed by David Cronenberg, and his style his unmistakable. This was inspired by an interview Cronenberg did with Salman Rushdie, and his take was a little more lo-fi than The Matrix, but that's a good thing, with added Canadian accents. This has computer game designer Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who has created a new video game called eXistenZ that taps into the minds of it's players, it's not so much a game, but a new way of life. However, after an assassination attempt during a demonstration of eXistenZ, she goes on the run and into hiding with marketing trainee-come-bodyguard Ted Pikul (Jude Law), eventually retreating into the virtual reality world of eXistenZ, in hiding in a motel room, but even within Geller's creation, nothing is what it seems. The film was inspired by a conversation Cronenberg had with Salman Rushdie, this is a weird yet highly underrated film indeed, touching upon familiar Cronenberg hallmarks such as indentity and the confusion between reality and fantasy, plus the film has a brilliant supporting cast including Ian Holm, Christopher Eccleston and Willem Dafoe. It's different from other sci-fi films, and all the better for it. 4/5



Tales from the Crypt (1972), from Amicus Productions and directed by Freddie Francis (Paranoiac (1963) and Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968)), this was adapted from the series of comics published by EC comics. Even if 2 of the 5 stories within the film were actually adapted from the comics. But it manages to be scary and entertaining, with a very good cast, all being good sports. While visiting old caves, Joanne Clayton (Joan Collins), Carl Maitland (Ian Hendry), James Elliott (Robin Phillips), Ralph Jason (Richard Greene) and Major William Rogers (Nigel Patrick) get separated from the group, and end up each being told they have died by the Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson). Clayton died after murdering her husband at Christmas, Maitland dies in a deja-vu esque car crash, Elliott dies after driving bin man Arthur Grimsdyke (Peter Cushing) to his grave. Jason dies from wishes from a Chinese figurine, while Rogers dies at the hands of angry blindmen led by George Carter (Patrick Magee). It's a good anthology film, each story has a message and a twist in the tale. Sort of like Tales of the Unexpected did, but Amicus did a lot of films like this, including Asylum (1972) and Vault of Horror (1973). 4/5

Alien vs. Predator (2004). written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, who had just come off the success of Resident Evil (2002). This project had been in development for over a decade, but a suitable approach could never be decided upon, until Anderson signed up, and he had an approach that everyone liked. It's a cheesy film, but it manages to be fun here and there. Rich industrialist Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen) sends an expedition out to Antarctica to investigate recent heat signatures. The team includes guide Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan), archaeologist Sebastian De Rosa (Raoul Bova) and photographer Graeme Miller (Ewen Bremner). But they soon find they're not alone, there's Alien eggs everywhere, with a Queen in a cryogenic state. Plus, they're being watched from space by a Predator ship, and one Predator comes to the site, but it's not the humans it's after it's the Alien Queen, who has just awoken. The humans find themselves slap bang in the middle of a battle between the two alien races. It's a very silly film, not all of it is perfect, but there are some good set pieces to admire, like the vast alien pyramid beneath the ice. Even if it is very derivative, Anderson clearly had fun making this mash up. It could have started a whole new franchise, and it did with a sequel in 2007, which ruined everything. 3/5



Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), after Alien vs. Predator (2004) proved to be a massive hit despite critical drubbing, Fox ordered a sequel. Paul W.S. Anderson turned down the offer to do it in favour of Death Race (2008 ), so Fox employed special effects artists Greg and Colin Strause to make their debut with this film, but it had a rushed shooting schedule, and it shows badly. After the events of Alien vs. Predator, a hybrid creature is formed, a hybrid between an Alien and a Predator, which crash lands on the outskirts of Gunnison, Colorado. The hybrid uses the facehugger to plant it's seeds into members of the community of Gunnison. This is noticed by a group of local residents, including recently released convict convict Dallas Howard (Steven Pasquale), his brother Ricky (Johnny Lewis), sheriff Eddie Morales (John Ortiz) and soldier Kelly O'Brien (Reiko Aylesworth). All of whom have to fight this unusual form of evil, but it's not long before a Predator comes to stomp out the hybrid, and the Aliens being born. It tries to hark back to monster movies of the 1970's and 80's, where a community gets together to fight it, but it's far too dull to be interesting. It was filmed on the hoof, while the Brothers Strause put their effects expertise to good use, they fail when it comes to creating a tense mood, what a disappointment. 1.5/5

Ladyhawke (1985), after being unceremoniously dumped by the Salkind producers off the Superman series, director Richard Donner plodded along until he and Omen producer Harvey Bernhard optioned this atmospheric and enchanting fantasy adventure. It's got brilliant locations, a good cast and excellent cinematography. Set somewhere in 12th Century Europe, young pickpocket Philippe Gaston (Matthew Broderick), known as 'The Mouse', escapes from the fortified city of Aquila through the sewers. The Bishop of Aquila (John Wood) sends the Captain of the Guard Marquet (Ken Hutchison) to find Philippe, by the time they do, Philippe is taken by the mysterious warrior Etienne of Navarre (Rutger Hauer), who has a majestic hawk with him. But, not all is what it seems, Philippe notices that Etienne disappears at night, and a beautiful young woman, Isabeau d'Anjou (Michelle Pfeiffer) appears, and so does a black wolf. The Bishop then sends trapper Cezar (Alfred Molina) to find them. Meanwhile, Etienne and Philippe have found refuge with Father Imperius (Leo McKern), but Etienne needs to get into Aquila to break a curse. It's a very magical fantasy, similar to other 80's fantasies like Legend and Labyrinth, but this has brilliant cinematography by Vittorio Storaro and an unconventional score produced by Alan Parsons. 1985 was a very good year for Richard Donner, with this and The Goonies out in the same year. 4/5



Coraline (2009), Henry Selick, who made a name for himself with The Nightmare Before Christmas, takes on Neil Gaiman's children's novella, and doing it in stop-motion is a match made in heaven. It differs from Gaiman's source material, but Selick makes it into a much better and visually perfect story. It has 11 year old Coraline Jones (Dakota Fanning) moving into the Pink Palace Apartments with her Mum (Teri Hatcher) and Dad (John Hodgman). Coraline is bored in her new surroundings, and her parents don't seem to take much attention of her, (they're more preoccupied with their career.) But, one day, Coraline discovers a hidden door, which leads to another world, where she has an Other Mother and Father, and it's more colourful and exciting world than the one which she lives in. However, Coraline gets more than she bargained for, when her Other Mother and Father expect her to stay in this Other World. It's very dark, and it's very creepy too, but there's so much invention and imagination on display here, Selick brings the best of it's source material, and much more. This film is the ultimate proof that we need more stop-motion animation films. It's not as good as NBX, but it's near enough, and one of the best animations of the last decade, and it's so original in it's style. 5/5

Walker (1987), after Repo Man (1984) and Sid and Nancy (1986) became minor hits, Alex Cox was given the opportunity by Universal Pictures to make whatever he wanted, no questions asked. Cox teamed up with screenwriter Rudy Wurlitzer (Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid (1973)), to make this surreal, other-worldly western, which is one of a kind and absolutely insane, but it says a lot about American invasion. In 1853, William Walker (Ed Harris), a soldier-of-fortune, is asked by millionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt (Peter Boyle) to go to Nicaragua and overthrow the government down there. He takes 60 mercenaries with him, and the plan is that Vanderbilt can open up a shipping lane in Nicaragua between the Atlantic and Pacific. However, it all seems to go too well for Walker, as soon as the government is overthrown, Walker finds himself elected as President of Nicaragua. He has a mistress in Doña Yrena (Blanca Guerra), and from 1855 to 1857, became delusional with power, and essentially a brutal dictator, angering Vanderbilt back in America. When Cox made this film, it was at the height of the Contra War in Nicaragua, around the time America became involved. But, it has some insane yet deliberate anachronisms throughout. Plus, there's a mad supporting cast including Rene Auberjonois, Joe Strummer, Edward Tudor-Pole and Kathy Burke. Cox never worked in Hollywood again after this. 4/5



Dead Calm (1989), directed by Phillip Noyce (Patriot Games (1992), Sliver (1993) and Clear and Present Danger (1994)), produced by George Miller (Mad Max (1979)), adapted from the 1963 book of the same name by Charles Williams. This is a tense, taut and minimalistic thriller from Australia, which manages to do a lot with a limited but claustrophobic setting, it's a great formula. Australian naval officer John Ingram (Sam Neill) and his wife Rae (Nicole Kidman) lose their son in a car accident, so they get away from it all by sailing in the Pacific on their boat. Rae struggles to come to terms with what happened, but John is on hand to support her. After over 30 days at sea, they come across a sinking, drifting boat, and from the boat on a dinghy comes Hughie Warriner (Billy Zane) who tells them the boat is sinking and everyone on board is dead from food poisoning. John goes to investigate, but soon discovers the real reason why everyone died, but Rae is alone on the boat with Hughie, who soon starts to show his true colours. It's a great thriller, almost the sort of story Hitchcock would have killed for, it's got some really tense and gripping moments, and Zane makes a perfect baddie. The film was a minor success, yet it enabled director Noyce to go to Hollywood, and it helped make Kidman a star, granting her fame in Hollywood as well. 4/5

Before Sunrise (1995), Richard Linklater had made a name himself with his indie films Slacker (1991) and Dazed and Confused (1993), but for his third film, he wanted to something completely different, and headed off to Austria for this minimalist romantic drama. Inspired by an experience Linklater had had in Philadelphia in 1989, he turned that into a film. It's a good chamber piece, set within a vast city. Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) meet on a train heading from Budapest to Paris, they strike up a conversation. Céline is heading back to Paris to go back to University, whereas Jesse is heading to Vienna where he'll catch a plane back to America. Jesse convinces Céline to spend a few hours with him in Vienna, as his flight is very early in the morning, he doesn't see the point in going to a hotel, so he asks Céline to be his companion around Vienna. They go around the architecture of Vienna, and talk about life and relationships, and Jesse and Céline soon find themselves falling for one another, but they can only spend a few hours together. It's a touching film, and it is a great travelogue for Vienna, but Hawke and Delpy make a good screen pairing, even if nothing much happens throughout the film, it makes for a good character piece, and it's a very good romance film, which has a touch of Brief Encounter about it's bones. 4/5



The Shipping News (2001), directed by Lasse Hallström (The Cider House Rules (1999), Chocolat (2000) and Salmon Fishing In The Yemen (2011)) and based upon the 1993 novel by Annie Proulx (Brokeback Mountain). This is a slow moving character piece set in a wilderness not many people know about, an old fashioned way of life, it's got some good performances but that's it. Quoyle (Kevin Spacey) experiences a massive tragedy when his unfaithful wife Petal (Cate Blanchett) is killed in a car accident after trying to sell their daughter to a sex trafficker. Despite getting his daughter back, Quoyle is visited by his paternal aunt Agnis Hamm (Judi Dench), who convinces him to return to Newfoundland, and the ancestral home Quoyle's Point in the town of Killick-Claw. He gets a job at the local paper, ran by Jack Buggit (Scott Glenn) and edited by Tert Card (Pete Postlethwaite), he gets his own article writing about the ships that come into port, and he becomes friends with local mother Wavey Prowse (Julianne Moore). One of the most striking things about the film is what life is like in Newfoundland, they have weird accents, a mix between Cornish and Irish, definitely not Canadian. But it adds to the mood of the film, about starting over and coming home, but there's no fireworks to the film, no big ones, but it'll do. 3.5/5

The Hired Hand (1971), after Easy Rider (1969) became a massive hit, Universal Pictures offered Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper the chance to make their own films. Hopper went off and made The Last Movie (1971), Fonda made this revisionist western written by Scottish novelist Alan Sharp. It's a bleak, sparse western with some lovely vistas photographed by Vilmos Zsigmond. Harry Collings (Peter Fonda) and Arch Harris (Warren Oates) have been wandering through the American southwest for 7 years, along the way they've picked up fellow young traveller Dan Griffen (Robert Pratt). They stop off in the ramshackle town of Del Norte, while Harris and Griffen decide to go on to California, Collings decides to head back in the opposite direction, and return to his estranged wife Hannah (Verna Bloom), but she's less than pleased to have him back, and to earn her trust again, he has to work on the land as a "Hired Hand", before she can start to accept him as a husband again, which will be difficult, but Collings works hard. It came out around the time when people were turning away from westerns, but Fonda tries to make it work within the confines of New Hollywood. Critics and audiences didn't like it then, although it's being praised as a lost masterpiece, and it is a meditation on friendship, reconciliation and responsibility. 3.5/5



Devil (2010), written and produced by M. Night Shyamalan, who had planned a trilogy of films known as The Night Chronicles, which focus on supernatural activities in urban surroundings. For the first film in this trilogy, directed by John Erick Dowdle (Quarantine (2008)), this is a claustrophic and creepy film which has a touch of The Twilight Zone about it, but it's a quick film that's over all too soon. In Philadelphia, 5 people get into an elevator, a mechanic (Logan Marshall-Green), a salesman (Geoffrey Arend), an old woman (Jenny O'Hara), a young woman (Bojana Novakovic) and a security guard (Bokeem Woodbine). The lift breaks down, but no-one can figure out what's wrong with it. Repair technician Dwight (Joe Cobden) can't find anything wrong, but Detective Bowden (Chris Messina), who is around the building investigating a suicide that occured from one of the upper floors, has to figure out what the hell is going on, and why it's happening to these people. Bowden soon discovers that the people in the elevator all have something to hide. It's a shame Shyamalan didn't direct this, as it could have resurrected his career after numerous flops. Shyamalan has more films planned in "The Night Chronicles", but after The Last Airbender (2010) turned him into a laughing stock, no-one wants to know, which is a shame, as this is quite good. 3.5/5

Les Misérables (1998), directed by Bille August (Smilla's Sense of Snow (1997)), this adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel actually started out as an adaptation of the musical version, but when the makers couldn't work out how to convey it faithfully to the screen, they decided to adapt the novel instead. It's a good adaptation too, even if it is condensed into 2 hours, it still works well on screen. In 19th Century France, Jean Valjean (Liam Neeson) has been released from jail after 20 years, but he skips bail and 9 years later becomes a wealthy industrialist. But, he is haunted by Inspector Javert (Geoffrey Rush), who watched over Valjean in jail. After single mother Fantine (Uma Thurman) is fired for her situation, Valjean feels guilty and wants to help her. But Javert finds Valjean and tries to arrest him, but Valjean flees with Fantine's daughter Cosette (Claire Danes). They find hiding in Paris, where 10 years later, Cosette falls for Revolutionary Marius (Hans Matheson), but Javert is now working undercover to stop the Revolution, and his paths cross with Valjean again. It's a good adaptation of the book, and it looks good on screen too, even if it focuses more on the cat and mouse chase of Valjean and Javert over the years, but it gives the story something to move it along. The film has a brilliant cast as well, but it's a shame thatr no-one went to see the film at the time. 4/5



Behind the Candelabra (2013), Side Effects (2013) might have been Steven Soderbergh's last theatrical release, but international audiences get to see this HBO biopic in cinemas. Based upon the tell-all 1988 memoir by Scott Thorson. It's certainly a glitzy, over the top biopic, but it has two brilliant performances at it's core, and it shows the excesses of celebrity culture. In 1977, animal trainer Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) through producer friend Bob Black (Scott Bakula) gets to meet pianist and showman Liberace (Michael Douglas), who takes an instant liking to Scott. After Scott treats one of Liberace's dogs, Scott is employed as one of Liberace's "assistants", although they end up becoming homosexual lovers, and Liberace even adopts Scott as his own "son". But, after Liberace tries to make Scott look more like him, and Liberace starts seeing other "assistants", Scott grows jealous and he descends into a nasty drugs habit, forcing a wedge between himself and the man who gave him everything. It looks like a biopic, but underneath, it's a blackly comic morality tale about the absolute corruption of absolute excess. Douglas is brilliant as Liberace, and you wouldn't have thought of him in that part, but it's absolutely inspired. It's blessed with glitz and glamour, and a nice score by the late, great Marvin Hamlisch. 4/5

The Terror (1963), produced and directed by Roger Corman, with directorial help from proteges Francis Ford Coppola and Monte Hellman. This is a creepy but effective ghost story set in France but filmed in Big Sur, California. While Corman was renowned for making films on the hoof, this one took over 9 months to make, but he and his team put their hearts and souls into making the film. In 18th Century France, Lieutenant Andre Duvalier (Jack Nicholson) is has lost his own regiment, and is wandering the countryside looking for them. On the coast, he comes across a young woman called Helene (Sandra Knight) who gives him water, but when Andre goes to a nearby house owned by Katrina (Dorothy Neumann), she says no such person exists. Bemused, Andre see's Helena again, and follows her to a castle which belongs to Baron Victor Frederick Von Leppe (Boris Karloff). Andre see's a portrait of Helena, which the Baron claims was his wife, and that she's been dead for over 20 years. Andre wants to find out who it is he's been seeing, and what's the Baron hiding. It's an effective horror film, even though poor distribution sadly knocked this one into the public domain, but it has some good scares along the way. Nicholson is particually good here, kinda like an American Angry Young Man, while Karloff is effectively creepy. 4/5



Broken City (2013), directed by Allen Hughes, (who had directed Menace II Society (1993), From Hell (2001) and The Book of Eli (2010) with his brother Albert), this is a tense and intriguing crime thriller which feels old fashioned in it's execution. It has a very good cast, and it's much better than what most critics say, it's not perfect, but it has a very good cast at it's core holding it together. Disgraced former NYPD detective Billy Taggart (Mark Wahlberg) is now a private detective, who is approached by New York mayor Nicholas Hostetler (Russell Crowe) to investigate his wife Cathleen (Catherine Zeta-Jones), whom he believes is having an affair. Taggart investigates, and discovers that Cathleen is seeing Paul Andrews (Kyle Chandler), who is the campaign manager for Hostetler's biggest political rival Jack Valliant (Barry Pepper). Taggart is about to meet Hostetler with the evidence, when Cathleen reveals to Taggart that she knows he's been following them, and that all is not what it seems, and that Hostetler has something to hide. It's a twisty thriller, focusing on political corruption and skulduggery, with the kinds of dirty tricks those high up like to play to stay in power. It does feel dated, and you do get the feeling it would have worked better if made 20 years ago, but it's far from being a disaster, and more people should have seen it. 4/5

Fear in the Night (1972), with Hammer trying to appeal to audiences of the 1970's, moving away from period pieces, to films set present day, Hammer veteran Jimmy Sangster directed this psychological horror that had been on Hammer's slate since 1963. It's a very unsettling piece with a good cast, and it felt like a new direction for Hammer then, but it was all too little, too late. This has Peggy Heller (Judy Geeson) being offered the position of a job in a posh boy's boarding school, she's just recovered from a nervous breakdown after a traumatic past. She moves into the grounds of the school with her husband Robert (Ralph Bates). However, nothing in this school is what it seems, and Peggy ends up getting attacked by a one-armed man at the school, but her doctor (Jimmy Cossins) doesn't believe her. And the schools headmaster's Mr. Carmichael (Peter Cushing), is quite sinister and his wife Molly (Joan Collins) is quite strict. However, it turns out the horrors are real, and Peggy has take desperate measures to survive, and Robert gets involved too, and even the school seems to be haunted. It's a complex horror, but it's very gripping. But, this is blessed with some good performances, and taut direction by Sangster. If only Hammer had continued more in this direction, instead of more Dracula and vampire films, they might just have survived. 4/5



Forces of Nature (1999), directed by Bronwen Hughes (Harriet the Spy (1995) and Stander (2003)), and written by Marc Lawrence (Miss Congeniality (2000), Two Weeks Notice (2002) and Music and Lyrics (2007)), this is a very amusing comedic travelogue which throws two unlikely characters together in situations where anything that can go wrong DOES go wrong. But it is a funny film in parts. Ben Holmes (Ben Affleck) writes summarys on the covers of hardback books in New York City, and he's just about to get married to Bridget (Maura Tierney) down in Savannah, Georgia. He's afraid of flying but he's taking the plane, but when the plane develops a fault on take-off when a bird flies into the engine. Ben finds himself stuck with the free-spirited Sarah Lewis (Sandra Bullock), who he was sitting next to on the plane. Now they have to get down to Savannah by any means necessary, hitchhiking, by bus, by train or by car, but something prevents them from trying to get there, bad weather or a bus full of old people. It's an amusing film, which has a touch of Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987) about it, and it might have set the template for what was to come in Due Date (2010). It has some funny moments in it, but it has a good supporting cast too, including Steve Zahn, Blythe Danner and Ronny Cox. 3.5/5

Django (1966), written, produced and directed by Sergio Corbucci (Minnesota Clay (1965), Johnny Oro (1966) and Navajo Joe (1966)), this ultra-violent western was made when the spaghetti western was starting to become popular. Compared to the grand epics Sergio Leone made, Sergio Corbucci kept it small, focused and to the point, and there's a lot of bloodshed in this film, but Django became a popular character. Django (Franco Nero) is a drifter wandering around the Wild West, carrying a closed coffin with him. He rescues Maria (Loredana Nusciak) from the clutches of the evil Major Jackson (Eduardo Fajardo), who Django has sworn revenge on after Jackson murdered Django's wife. Django tries to make a deal with Mexican General Hugo Rodriguez (José Bódalo) to steal gold from Jackson, but Rodriguez betrays Django, so Django steals Rodriguez's gold, but has his hands crushed as punishment. But, Jackson isn't finished with Django or Rodriguez, and he plans to massacre anyone involved with either of the two men, but Django has a plan too. It's a good, sparse western, it has some good moments of action and Nero makes a good action hero as well. There were dozens of unofficial sequels made following the success of this film, plus the title song and Nero were used for Django Unchained (2012). Oh, Quentin!! :P4/5



Wah-Wah (2005), written and directed by Richard E. Grant, this is a semi-autobiographical film based upon Grant's life growing up as a youngster in Swaziland, which at the time was still under the rule of the crumbling British Empire, and it's last days until it was granted independence. It's a very good coming-of-age drama with some good performances and a lot of local colour of the time period it's set in. Set between the mid 1960's to the early 1970's, this tells the story of Ralphie Compton (Zac Fox and Nicholas Hoult), whose father Harry (Gabriel Byrne) has ties with the aristocracy who lives in Swaziland. However, his mother Lauren (Miranda Richardson) leaves Harry for another man, and Ralphie goes to boarding school. A few years later, he comes back home to find out that Harry has married Ruby (Emily Watson), who works as a stewardess for American Airlines. Although Ruby and Ralphie don't connect at first, they soon do, but when Lauren comes back into Ralphie's life, Harry descends into serious alcoholism. Grant called upon a lot of favours to get this film made, but he shows a lot of confidence in his directing and his writing, even if it was a difficult production, with a "control freak producer" as Grant put it and only 7 weeks to film it. But, it looks brilliant, and he was lucky in having a good cast on screen to portray his childhood. 4/5

The Silent Enemy (1958), written and directed by William Fairchild (John and Julie (1955) and The Extra Day (1956)), this film was based on the 1956 book Commander Crabb by Marshall Pugh. This true life war film shows a side of the way that the history books and documentaries usually forget about, and how one brave man helped to topple the forces of the Italians in the Mediterranean, and it's got a good cast. In 1941, the Alexandria was sunk by a new form of "human torpedo" developed by the Italians. The British know they cannot let the Italians succeed, so they call upon maverick diver Lionel 'Buster' Crabb (Laurence Harvey) to help put a stop to this. Crabb is flown out to Gibraltar where the British have a vast naval base, Crabb gets together a team to try and find out how this is happening, including Seaman Knowles (Michael Craig), Able Seaman Fraser (Nigel Stock), Able Seaman Morgan (Alec McCowen) and Chief Petty Officer Thorpe (Sid James), plus they find they're being spied on by the Italians, across the water in Spain. It's a good war thriller, and it makes for a good story, and one side of how we would win the war, showing it wasn't just Germany we were at war with, it was the Italians as well. But Harvey makes a good hero in this rousing film, it has some good set pieces, and Gibraltar comes out well on film. 4/5



Desperate Measures (1998), directed by Barbet Schroeder (Maîtresse (1976), Reversal of Fortune (1990) and Single White Female (1992)), and adapted by David Klass from his own novel, which was published before the film came out. This has a good idea for a film, but it does have some very hammy overacting, but it does have some good moments of action and nasty suspense. In San Francisco, police officer Frank Conner (Andy Garcia) is on a frantic search for a bone marrow donor for his son Matt (Joseph Cross), who has leukemia. However, the only perfect match is Peter McCabe (Michael Keaton), who is a vicious mass murderer, serving a life sentence. Although reluctant to help, Conner offers McCabe a compromise including privileges, with McCabe agrees to. But no sooner than McCabe is in the hospital, than he seizes upon the opportunity to escape, causing havoc and carnage within the place, staying one step ahead of the police, but Conner needs McCabe alive in order to save his son. It's a good idea for the film, and while Keaton relishes at being a nasty killer, he is very over the top. Yet, this is one of those action-thrillers you get that would be toned down for an audience today. Schroeder is an underrated director, and he does well with formulaic thrillers like this, and he should be given more films. 3/5

Zulu (1964), a passion project for actor/producer Stanley Baker, who had worked on this adaptation of John Prebble's article Battle of Rorke's Drift, which Baker worked on with writer/director Cy Endfield (Mysterious Island (1961)), this is an epic historical war film which was one of the most famous battles in the history of the British Army, set in a time when Britain still had an empire. It has some brilliant acting and cinematography. In January 1879, the British Army had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Zulu Warriors at the Battle of Isandlwana. Deep in Natal at Rorke's Drift, the British Army's 24th Regiment of Foot, a Welsh regiment work at a missionary at Rorke's Drift, which is being used to store ammunition and supplies for the British Army. Lieutenant John Chard (Stanley Baker) is asked to defend the post from an impending Zulu attack, along with upper-class Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead (Michael Caine). They learn there's 4000 Zulu warriors heading their way, and there's only 150 British Officers there, most of them wounded, but they won't give in. Filmed on location in South Africa in glorious 70mm, this is a classy and gripping war film which you wouldn't be able to make now. But it's a film of the 1960's, where big expensive epics like this were made, but it was a massive success, and it helped put Caine on the road to superstardom too. 4/5



Zulu Dawn (1979), when Stanley Baker and Cy Endfield planned Zulu, they also wanted to portray the Battle of Isandlwana, but costs prohibited it. They never gave up on doing a prequel, even when Baker died in 1976, Endfield persisted, and it was given to Douglas Hickox (Theatre of Blood (1973) and Brannigan (1975)) to direct. It's got a better cast than the first film, but something is missing... In January 1879, in the province of Natal in British South Africa, where at Cape Colony, ran by the pompous Lord Chelmsford (Peter O'Toole) and the slimy Sir Henry Bartle Frere (John Mills) plan to bring down the neighbouring Zulu empires, and they give Zulu King Cetshwayo (Simon Sabela) one last chance to dissolve his troops, he refuses, and Lord Chelmsford is ordered to lead a British invasion force into Zululand to put a stop to them. The British troops go in, and a showdown is at Mount Isandhlwana, where the British are aided by Natal native Colonel Durnford (Burt Lancaster), but there's thousands of Zulu Warriors. It goes ahead with all good intentions, and it has a good cast, (even if Lancaster's accent shifts from Irish to South African jarringly), but it doesn't have the tight focus that the first film had. Despite a big cast and epic vistas, it was a massive flop at the time, but it's actually a very good film, just not as good as Zulu (1964). 3.5/5

Raining Stones (1993), directed by Ken Loach, who after a slump in the 1980's, had returned with a vengeance with Hidden Agenda (1990) and Riff-Raff (1991). He returned with this dark comedy-drama written by Jim Allen, who had worked with Loach on Hidden Agenda and Land and Freedom (1995), it's a film which despite things going wrong for it's protagonist, still has a sense of hope about it. Bob Williams (Bruce Jones) is on the breadline, and struggling to find work, his schemes with friend Tommy (Ricky Tomlinson) to make money have varying success, and then his van is nicked. All he wants to do is to raise enough money so that his daughter Colleen (Gemma Phoenix) can have a brand new dress for her First Communion. He tries to keep the news that he literally has no money from his wife Anne (Julie Brown). He tries to get advice from local priest Father Barry (Tom Hickey), who tries to convince Bob to get a second hand dress, which he staunchly refuses to do, he's determined to raise the money to get a brand new dress for his daughter. It has some brilliant naturalistic performances in it, Jones, who got the role of Les Battersby in Coronation Street because of this film, is brilliant. He's stuck in a quandry, and is determined to get out of it. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes in 1993, and it rightfully deserved it too. 4/5



Looking for Eric (2009), Ken Loach makes his 25th film in his amazing 45 years as a filmmaker. While this one retains alot of the bleak kitchen sink drama/documentary style look of most of his previous films, this one has a bit of lightness to it. It's actually his funniest film in a long time, and it's uplifting and very enjoyable. It follows the life of Eric Bishop (Steve Evets), a postman whose life is falling apart. 30 years previously, he abandoned his wife Lily (Stephanie Bishop), and their daughter Sam (Lucy-Jo Hudson), the latter he still keeps in contact with by looking after his granddaughter. He married again, and now has two criminal sons Ryan (Gerard Kearns) and Jess (Stefan Gumbs). In dispair, his friends teach him meditation and Eric has hallucinations of visits from his footballing hero Eric Cantona (as himself), whose philosopical wisdom and words of comfort help give Eric more confidence. He can now talk to his estranged wife, he can make himself a better person and even deal with the problems his sons have got into. It features all of Ken Loach's trademarks, the naturalistic way of shooting and the social realism. But, this is much more lighter, it's closer in tone to Loach's own Ae Fond Kiss (2004). But, it has a good sense of humour, which feels real and it shows that you can rely on your friends to overcome your problems. 4/5

The Running Man (1987), based on the 1982 book by Stephen King (writing as Richard Bachman), and directed by Paul Michael Glaser (Starsky from Starsky and Hutch. ), a last minute replacement for Andrew Davis, who was unceremoniously sacked after one week. This is a sci-fi action film which paints an unflattering picture of our future, but within this film lies what was to come in The Hunger Games (2012). In 2017, Ben Richards (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is a police pilot who was convicted of an accidental massacre and has been sent to a labour camp, from which he escapes from. America has become a totalitarian police state, where criminals are put on live TV shows, and massacred before the cameras. Richards is captured, and made to take part on The Running Man, a TV show hosted by Damon Killian (Richard Dawson). Richards is soon put before vicious serial killers and has to fight to survive, but he succeeds against most of them, and teams up with resistance leader Mic (Mick Fleetwood) to bring down Killian and the totalitarian government. It's very dated by today's standards, and it is very over the top with a lot of cheesy action, but it has some good moments throughout, Arnie does good as our unfortunate hero thrown into this hellish game. It says more about Reagan's American than it does about what was to come in the world. 4/5



Beavis and Butt-head Do America (1996), Beavis and Butt-head was a massive success on MTV, running between 1993 and 1997, it's success enabled a film to get made. For creator Mike Judge, it was the golden opportunity, but it was a trying experience upon him and his small team of animators, who were overwhelmed by the scale of it, but they succeeded with a very funny adventure for the duo. Beavis and Butt-head (both voiced by Judge) find out their TV have been stolen, so they go on a quest to find it, failing that replace it. They end up at a local motel which advertises TV's in every room, which is just what they want, but they end up being mistaken by criminal Muddy Grimes (Bruce Willis) as hitmen to murder his wife Dallas (Demi Moore), he pays them $10,000 to go to Las Vegas to "do his wife", which our duo misunderstand completely, when they get to Vegas, Dallas sends them to Washington where she says she'll meet them there, but Beavis and Butt-head are carrying a weapon they don't know about. It's a funny comedy caper which has some smutty comedy throughout, but it also has a good comedy soundtrack too, set all across America. All Beavis and Butt-head want is their TV back, but they end up on an odyssey they don't seem to be aware of, but it helped Judge move on to making live-action films. 4/5

Avalanche Express (1979), directed by Mark Robson (Von Ryan's Express (1965) and Valley of the Dolls (1967)), and adapted from the 1976 novel by Raymond Harold Sawkins under the pseudonym of Colin Forbes. This cold war adventure film should have been no trouble to shoot, but Robson and it's star died after filming, but despite this, it proves to be an OK film to watch, even if it is a little dated now. When Russian General Marenkov (Robert Shaw) decides to defect to the West, he is aided by CIA agent Harry Wargrave (Lee Marvin), who leads a team to get him over the border, and Wargrave decides the only safe way to do this is by train, which is named as "The Avalanche Express", from from Milan, Italy to Rotterdam, Holland. Wargrave has a plan, he decides to try and lure the Russians into attacking the train, thus rooting out enemy spies and their identities. But, further up the track, Russian spy-catcher Nikolai Bunin (Maximilian Schell) has a secret agenda, and plans to stop the train by causing an avalanche. Filmed mainly in Ireland, which doubles well as Eastern Europe, it has some good moments, even if has been seen before, and the special effects are quite ropey by today's standards. It's a shame Shaw died when he did, as he did have a lot more to offer as an actor, but not all of this works, but it'll do. 3/5



Runaway Train (1985), produced by Cannon Films, this was originally planned as Akira Kurosawa's first American film, but production problems led to Kurosawa's departure, Cannon had the entire film rejigged and brought in Russian director Andrey Konchalovskiy (Tango and Cash (1989)) to make the film. It shouldn't work, but the result is actually Cannon's best film against all the odds, and it's very suspenseful. In the snowy wilds of Alaska, at Stonehaven Maximum Security Prison, convicted bankrobber Oscar "Manny" Manheim (Jon Voight) plans to escape from the prison, and in tow he has rapist Buck (Eric Roberts), which he does and they trek across the freezing Alaskan Wilderness to freedom. Manny discovers a ticket to freedom in a train locomotive in a train yard. He and Buck hop on, but the train starts rolling away on it's own, and there's no way to stop it, they discover worker Sara (Rebecca De Mornay) on board, and Prison Warden Ranken (John P. Ryan) is in hot pursuit to try and recapture these two criminals. This film shows what Cannon could do when they really put their minds to it and invested some proper money too, Voight and Roberts went home with Oscar nominations as well, which was a surprise. If only Cannon had looked for films like this instead of greenlighting everything that landed on their desks, good or bad. 4.5/5

The Spirit of '45 (2013), directed by Ken Loach, whose background has always been documentaries, he takes on this documentary about when Labour came to power after the war, and helped a country stricken by war and poverty get back on their feet. It does try to present politics as art, and it does dive into criticisms about how things went wrong in later years, but it is a very informative film for the most part. Using old newsreel footage and interview clips of those who lived throughout those years, this tells how Clement Attlee's Labour Government in 1945 won a landslide election, and set about reforming the country, brought down by the Depression of the 1930's and the eventual war. The Labour Government set about changing the UK for the better, bringing in the National Health Service, so that people wouldn't have to pay for health treatment ever again, and reforming industries and giving people fair pay. But it all went wrong in the 1980's, when Thatcher's Conservative Government took away most of the reforms put in place after the way. It is politically biased, and it does have a touch of Michael Moore about it's bones, but it does show where this country went wrong and how we can learn from past mistakes, but the documentary makes out that the Tory Scum are responsible for our mess, which sadly, is very true indeed. 3.5/5



World War Z (2013), directed by Marc Forster (Monster's Ball (2001), Finding Neverland (2004) and Quantum of Solace (2008)) and ever-so-loosely based on Max Brooks' 2006 horror novel. This action-horror had a nightmarish production, with half of the film being reshot and 2 cinematographers quitting, but the big shock that a very good film has come out of the other end against all the odds. Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) and his wife Mireille Enos, and daughters Constance (Sterling Jerins) and Rachel (Abigail Hargrove) find themselves having to evacuate their hometown of Philadelphia when there's a Zombie Pandemic. A former United Nations employee, Gerry is asked by old colleague Thierry Umutoni (Fana Mokoena) to take part in a mission to find the source of the outbreak and how it started. They travel to South Korea then onwards to Israel to find answers, but Gerry notices the zombies don't go for everyone, and he has to find something to prevent more people from being massacred by the growing plague of the zombies. It has some good moments in it, but moments of wreckless danger, like Brad setting a grenade off on a loaded plane, killing innocent people. But the final act in a lab in Wales is much better than the action hero one they planned in Russia, and it's where most of the suspense and fear comes in, it should have come in sooner. 4/5

Awesome reviews as ever, Don. Runaway Train and Zulu are both ace, I recorded The Silent Enemy so I';ll give that go soon and I was also happy to see that World War Z wasn't the disaster many feared.

Yeah, I was pleased that it turned out right despite all the troubles, it's not perfect, but it has some good moments. His on-screen daughters were annoying though, I wanted to see the zombies get them though!!

Revengers Tragedy (2002), after a few years in directorial obscurity, struggling to get money to make films he wanted to make. Alex Cox returned home to his native Merseyside, and got lucky with this post-modern adaptation of Thomas Middleton's 1607 play, it's a very unusual film, and while it was good to have Cox back making films, this film does drag in places, despite all best intentions. It is 2011, and the South of England has been destroyed by a natural disaster, Liverpool has become a bleak dystopia, and personal vendettas are commonplace here. The Duke (Derek Jacobi) is a crime lord who rules over the city with an iron fist. Vindice (Christopher Eccleston) has come to the city to extract revenge on the Duke for the death of his wife. He has to get close to the Duke, which won't be easy, but he meets his brother Carlo (Andrew Schofield) who works as a chauffeur to the Duke's son Lussurioso (Eddie Izzard). It is through Lussurioso that Vindice is able to get close to the Duke, but Vindice discovers what a dysfunctional family they are. With a screenplay by Frank Cottrell Boyce (24 Hour Party People (2002)), this mixes up Middleton's play and mixes in modern Scouse with the original text of the play. This should have helped put Alex Cox back on the map, but he's retreated to Colorado, where he's been making home movies. What a shame. 2.5/5



Fair Game (2010), directed by Doug Liman (Swingers (1996), The Bourne Identity (2002) and Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005)), this is based on a true story which is based on two memoirs by the main characters in the film. It's a film about political betrayal, and dirty tricks played by those high up. It has a good cast, and it's a good political drama brimming over with suspense and drama. Valarie Plume (Naomi Watts) has just been employed by the Central Intelligence Agency, working on top secret operations overseas. Only her husband Joseph C. Wilson (Sean Penn), who has worked to assist U.S. ambassadors around the world, knows what she's doing. Wilson has been to Niger to determine whether uranium has been sold to Iraq, which he finds not to be the case. However, the U.S. Government believe otherwise, and still decide to go to war. Wilson submits a piece to the New York Times claiming the government are wrong, while Plume's identity and job in the CIA is made public, putting their lives in danger. It shows just how corrupt the U.S. Government truly are, and how they can ruin people's lives without giving two hoots. It does build a grim picture of Bush's government, but Watts and Penn give good performances as a husband and wife just doing their jobs, despite being hounded by the press, public and even their bosses. 4/5

Donald McKinney wrote:

His on-screen daughters were annoying though, I wanted to see the zombies get them though!!

I can't really disagree with that!