#161 - Blade of the Immortal (2017)

"Miike once again proves himself as a purveyor of madcap, frenetic energy via film, his eye still sharp for a visceral, bloody fight scene. 

Following the adventures of a samurai cursed with immortality, this story is nothing remotely new in terms of a bitter, cynical mentor figure finding meaning in his life through the apprentice who needs him to exact revenge of her own - in this case punishing the rogue group of fighters that killed her father. 

What lacks in originality is more than made up for with a wonderfully broad cast of interesting and unique fighters, each bringing a different twist to the multitude of battles that basically double for plot. 

One could argue the actual dialogue is a close second the story told through the fighting churning through a myriad of  camera shots, tricks, and turns 
to keep the energy highwire and action complete carnage.

 It's a wonderfully bloody mess that will charm anyone familiar with Miike's dark humour"


- 7.5/10 

#160 - White Right: Meeting the Enemy [doc] (2017)

"A thought provoking insight into the minds of those who espouse a white ethonation above all else. Focusing on the people behind the beliefs, this documentary never veers into lazy shaming; instead it's a neutral examination into the mindsets of those that lobby and protest against multiculturism and why.

 Perhaps the most telling and interesting aspect is those from the more working class backgrounds begin to see the contradictions in their messages, seeing the director, a minority Muslim feminist, as someone who is more than the colour of her skin. The cognitive dissonance slowly fractures, with many calling her a friend and even apologising. 

Those originating from a more affluent background are more worrying - a true us and them, 'I am better attitude' exuding from every sentence. 

The film wraps up with looking at those who have moved out of movement, the common theme being regret over an angry, impressionable youth being sculpted into hate by those with heinous motives"


- 8/10 

#159 - Pedal the World [doc] (2015)

"This documentary is as simple as it gets. A man, Felix, travels through 22 countries on his bike and documents his journey. 

Felix is a likeable, friendly man to follow and his constant reminders that this journey is about the people he meets and the kindness he sees never feels overly sentimental or eye-rollingly sweet. 

Instead, we get to absorb the breathtaking views of many countries as we travel with Felix down many a lonely road with nothing but rolling fields or mountains for company. 

The problem, however, is we never really get to here or see much about the people he meets. 

There are some short snippets when other travelers briefly join him or minor information about countries or areas, and that magic connection with the people of the world we hear so much is sorely lacking in what we see, which makes this harder to feel like you're riding along with him and experiencing the same joys"


- 6/10

#158 - Zenith [short] (2015)

"An astronaut drifts in space, staring at a nebula in silence. He reflects on the wife he left behind and the unborn child who will never know him. This short film is relatively simple to the point of feeling hollow.

There are sprinkles of potential ideas but noting fleshed out. Perhaps space is a metaphor for the vast emptiness he feels for abandoning those he loves; maybe he's symbolic of his own unborn child, lonely in the never ending womb of the universe.

Who knows.

 Large portions are in silence with only the minimal of ambient humming creeping out the speaker. At one point even that cuts out and I wasn't sure if there was an audio problem or if the dead silence was an artistic choice.

It's a shame really because this could have been a really gripping psych trip dripping in excellent use of space as metaphor. Instead, it's just a simmering sun low on hydrogen"


- 3/5/10

#157 - Oldboy (2013)

 "Spike Lee's Oldboy is nothing special nor is it terrible. Brolin gives his all, there are no terrible performances to speak of, and the story is interesting and unique......if you haven't seen Park's original classic from 2003. 

And therein lies the problem.

 This is an ersatz production, a mimicry, a shadow of the brilliant original which gripped screens and turned heads. There is nothing here new, and the best scenes are castrated replicas from its source material. Why anyone thought an American remake was ever necessary beggars belief. 

This is frame by frame imitation but without any of the gusto of the original creation, a tepid mockery of a much better film that should be watched over this. And it's almost a shame.  Nothing is inherently terrible, indeed most parts grind along with a decent level of skill, but if you have seen the original it's a painfully broken mirror reflecting a contorted vision of a classic"


- 5/10

#156 - The Wheelman (2017)

"A taut thriller that never quite reaches top gear. We follow the eponymous Wheelman, driving for a bank heist to pay off his debt to the mob. Of course it all goes wrong as he receives a phone call telling him he's going to be double crossed, thus beginning a game of who can say 'fuck' the most in a conversation as gratuitous threats reign supreme over phone calls. 

The plot eventually quickens, however many scenes could have been trimmed of this already short feature, a strong third act doesn't quite make up for a plodding middle. The constraint of almost all scenes happening from within or on the car is a lovely way of creating different and unusual shots as well as a symbolic of the character being enslaved to his job as the driver.

 With a bit more focus this could have been special, instead it's a scattershot assault with only some bullets hitting"  


- 6/10

#155 - Over the Hedge (2006)

"Whilst never in the same league as the Pixar big hitters, the film has a heart which, although formulaic and simple, always feels genuine.

 It would have been easy for this to have felt overtly manipulating and tiresome considering the threadbare basics of the plotting, however there is a good balance between the focus on the meaning of family with the animals and the wacky hi-jinks of interacting with humans to steal the food. 

The animation is decent for the time, the voice acting excellent, particularly from Willis, and the set pieces imaginative enough to make this stand out in a rapidly becoming overpopulated crowd of anthropomorphic animal animation features. They even manage to sneak in a bit of satire and social commentary on humanity without tripping into flat out cynicism and disdain, something that could easily have turned into a big miss.

 Overall, surprisingly endearing and paced well enough to not outstay its welcome"


- 7/10

#154 - Maze (2017)

"When approaching a prison break out based on true events it can be difficult to try and dissect factual analysis from whimsical storytelling, especially when trying to keep taste of what is a touchy and difficult subject for many.

Maze, luckily, never falls into romanticism of either side.  We follow a republican prisoner, Larry, who masterminds a plot to escape 38 of his fellow prisoners. 

Looking beyond the politics of the story being told this is a genuinely gripping story that makes you see the destruction passionate belief can have, and how we can judge whether it is right, wrong, and if violence is ever an answer. 

The nuanced performances in  the slow telling of a story ripened in the dismal landscape of a bare barren prison are wonderful in their bleakness - this is a story  that perfectly transcribes a setting of wonder if prison is ever the answer to those that defy law"


- 7/10

#153 - The Garden of Words (2013)

"An absorbing, utterly gripping piece that is captivating from the first still. The story follows a 15 year old boy who skips school on rainy days to go to his favourite public garden, sketching shoes he wishes to make.

 One day he meets an older woman and the two spark an unlikely friendship that blossoms over the weeks, revealing a shared dissatisfaction and alienation from the world around them. 

This is the sort of dream-like story that flourishes through every detail revealed. The animation is absolutely beautiful, particularly the rain effects, and acts only to accentuate the isolated world in which our main characters find themselves. 

The subtle story telling is majestic, there is so much metaphor and symbolism packed into the 45 minute run-time without ever feeling heavy handed or forced that repeat viewings feel almost a must. A touching and poignant film about loneliness and hardship of trying to find yourself "


- 8.5/10

#152 - The Roma Project [short] (2015)

"Treads well worn water as it dives into a sullen, eerie showcase of shady government research labs and conspiracy. We follow Patrick, who awakes in a lab being assessed by a doctor with almost no memory of the 'accident' he is told about. We follow him as his confusion turns only to paranoia, meeting only one other person.

 Through snippets of dialogue and slices of scenes we establish there is something different afoot: is it government experimental human research, is he alien? The answers are vague as the short ends with him helping his friend escape, his eye glowing white before a sharp cut to black. 

This feels like a pitch. Little is given away with focus on somber music and sound cinematography leading the way as if to say: make this feature length. Perhaps it would work, but in this form it's nothing more than a taster of a larger idea"


- 6/10

#151 - Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)

"Miyazaki's debut is a frantic, fun animation that shows the roots from which the flourished tree of his career would grow. 

The now famous styling of unconventional camera angle and vivid, detailed backgrounds are here in abundance - it holds a fantastical allure and charm as it slowly coaxes you into the story through the outlandish beginning set pieces and likable characters of Lupin and Jigen. 

The story is nothing special: a sovereign state with an archetypal evil regent produces counterfeit money and wishes to marry a princess, the last of her family to unify bloodlines, so Lupin the master thief sets out to rescue her.

 On paper it sounds woefully ordinary, but the punchy delivery of the plot through the numerous side characters and helter-skelter bait and switches make it a delightful watch. You can see how many anime now considered classics were influenced by this piece - one definitely worth watching" 


- 8/10

#150 - The Outsider (2018)

"Yakuza films have been well trod and explored over the years, so if you're going to plunge yourself into that genre you should really be telling a uniquely gripping tale. This, however, does not.

 We follow a prisoner [Leto] who helps a fellow inmate escape, who in turn gets him out and a job with a Yakuza family. It's your typical white man inserted into a foreign land that comes with all the stodgy and predictable cliches that hover like flies around the corpse of a well beaten premise.

 Every scene has potential but it falls flat, from washed out colour and set design to turgid pacing. Leto is going for nihilistic intensity, but it comes off more stoic and bored - the line between subtle and uninteresting is unreadable. 

Lazy tension builders lead us to a frantic conclusion we hardly care about, a rush job finish to an overstuffed runtime"

- 4/10

#149 - Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

"Stunningly crafted, the stop motion frames the eccentricity of the story and thrusts the entire performance into its own believable world of anthropomorphic animals. 

There is a charming mixture of the banalities of human behavior thrust onto animals for comic effect and raw ferocity of the 'wild' side that is explicitly mentioned by Mr Fox that works well in both humor and exploration of character fears, worries, and growth. 

The core feel of Dahl's original book is still there, the villains wonderful caricature that zip the tension along and whose farms lead to some inspired set design and chase scenes.

 There is so much classic Wes Anderson styling you almost want to pause on some shots, each frame a work of art. Whether it be flat framing during an early action scene or symmetrical composition littered throughout, it once again fits the sculpted, magical feel of a self-contained world"


- 8.5/10 

#148 - Zero Theorem (2014)

"A film bursting with energy that will understandably infuriate many whilst ensnaring others. The beginning is so unsubtle it's like being hit  in the face with a brick that has etched into its front 'this is big government' and it feels deliberate, almost a cheeky wink to what Gilliam expects his audience to think the film will be about. 

However, after we are lost in the fantastically dream-like tapestries of our main character, his ambient nihilism building a twisting bridge that allows us to walk over a stormy sea of a plot, one that crashes in waves threatening to knock you down. Ultimately the best way to enjoy the sensory overload and not drown is to lie down and let the passing current take you.

 It's an existentialist ride that if there were conclusive answers would be a disappointment to the feel the film exudes - everything and nothing" 

- 8/10