Here's the elevator pitch: a home invasion thriller, but with alligators. If you think that sounds entertaining, you'll have some fun with Crawl. However, Crawl is ultimately another example of gimmick-premise driven genre movies that fall flat (see MA for a recent example - and the majority of Blumhouse's output). The issue is simple: an … Continue reading Crawl (Review)
Category: Films
Varda by Agnes (Review)
Agnes Varda is one of my favourite filmmakers; actually, Agnes Varda is one of my favourite artists full stop. Though her catalogue varies (somewhat varies - the vast majority is incredibly strong) everything she does is interesting and brings something for the table. Her latest film, a sadly posthumous release, takes the form of a … Continue reading Varda by Agnes (Review)
The Lion King (Review)
Despite being a great technical achievement, it would be fair to categorise Disney's Lion King reboot as an artistic failure. Even if you don't wish to go this far - as the technical skill on display is its own kind of artistry - it is at least pointless: an irrelevant update to a classic in … Continue reading The Lion King (Review)
Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story (Review)
Martin Scorsese's Netflix documentary is exactly the kind of film that Bob Dylan deserves. First of all, it's excellent. In addition to this it also manages to be playful, misleading and silly, whilst also being profound, meaningful and insightful. It's a perfect companion-piece to the man himself - or at least the man he projected … Continue reading Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story (Review)
The House that Jack Built (Review)
If you want to watch a thought provoking - yet incredibly violent - film in which a director reflects on the provocative and extreme content of their previous films, using allegory - and establishing a directorial surrogate - to make you question the boundary between art and artist... just watch Dargio Argento's Tenebrae. It (mostly) … Continue reading The House that Jack Built (Review)
Knife+Heart (Review)
It's been a great year for giallo throwbacks (with Piercing, In Fabric and now this). This, by itself, is a wonderful thing. For the uninitiated, giallo is a genre of Italian cult-films (primarily from the 70s), named after the yellow paper of detective novels and defined by their luscious aesthetic (full of 70s kitsch, gloves … Continue reading Knife+Heart (Review)
Spider-Man: Far From Home (Review)
The opening act of Far From Home is one of the best in the Marvel franchise. The latest Spider-Man establishes itself as a sharply written teen comedy determined to sidestep the conventions and baggage of normal Marvel fare. This is established through a simple premise: Tom Holland's Peter Parker wants to take some time off … Continue reading Spider-Man: Far From Home (Review)
Anima (Review)
Two of my favourite things, Paul Thomas Anderson and Radiohead, have often proven themselves to be great tastes that go well together (check out those music videos!). With Anima, this relationship has deepened into a collaborative project between PTA and Thom Yorke, resulting in a short film (or 'one reeler' as PTA is calling it) … Continue reading Anima (Review)
Midsommar (Review)
When the premise of a film involves a group of American college students attending a pagan festival in an undocumented commune in Sweden, you know what’s going to happen. To an extent, this is very true of Midsommar. The film spends a long time putting all of its pieces on the board just so that … Continue reading Midsommar (Review)
Child’s Play (2019) (Review)
Chucky's back! Well, I'm not sure he's ever really been away but he's at least been saved from endless straight-to-video sequelisation by Hollywood's unstoppable desire to reboot every horror movie that has ever existed (where's my Society reboot, huh, bigwigs?). The recent slate of remakes has been pretty variable, with some reboots bringing life into … Continue reading Child’s Play (2019) (Review)
Assorted Opinions 