Posts

Showing posts from October, 2017

Loving Vincent – Like Watching Paint Dry

Image
Runtime: 95mins | Director: Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman | Rating: 2 Stars Loving Vincent has made history by being the first feature film to be entirely oil painted. Unfortunately, however, it was also like watching paint dry both metaphorically and literally. For those who know little about the film (which wouldn’t surprise me due to its very limited advertisement), it explores the incredibly tragic life of Vincent Van Gogh – a man plagued by insecurity and mental instability. When alive, people thought he was a mad-man and no-one cared for his art. It was only once he died that his paintings became so highly coveted and recognised as some of the greatest artistic works ever created. Infamously, after an argument with a close friend, Van Gogh took a razor blade and cut his ear off which he then presented to a prostitute in a brothel. Several months after attempting to improve his mental health under the care of Paul Gachet, he then shot himself in the chest after s

Blade Runner 2049 – Out with the Old, in with the New?

Image
Runtime: 164mins | Director:  Denis Villeneuve | Rating: 3.5 Stars Before I delve into the review of Blade Runner   2049 , I feel it’s important to start from the beginning and give my two cents on the original Blade Runner . This sort of discussion is bound to cause controversy in some way or another given it’s now attained ‘classic’ status, but even so, I didn’t like it. At all. I also feel it’s worth mentioning I chose to watch the ‘Final Cut’ given that Denis Villeneuve, the director of 2049 , said that that is the one the sequel is canon to . Given that I deem myself a cinephile, I was somewhat ashamed of myself that I hadn’t seen Blade Runner until about two weeks ago. I went into it expecting great things given that almost everyone I had ever spoken to about it told me it was a masterpiece which revolutionised the sci-fi genre and explored the concept of A.I. better than anyone had done so before. Whilst I acknowledge, and admire it, for paving the way for the modern sc

Goodbye Christopher Robin – The Happiest of Tragedies

Image
Runtime: 107mins  |Director: Simon Curtis | Rating: 4 Stars As a child, I was incredibly lucky to have lived mere minutes away from The Ashdown Forest, the home of Winnie the Pooh. I distinctly remember going on walks and being warned to keep an eye out for ‘Heffalumps’ and ‘Woozles’ amongst the trees whilst playing pooh sticks on Pooh Bridge which was also a very short drive away from home. I never truly appreciated how lucky I was to grow up where I did, but seeing Goodbye Christopher Robin made me feel luckier than ever before due to its portrayal of such an idyllic and inspiring location. The film centres on the lives of A.A. Milne (Domhnall Gleeson) and his son, Christopher Robin (Will Tilston) who is playfully nicknamed ‘Billy Moon’. Having gone to war, Milne comes back with severe PTSD and struggles to adjust back to his normal life. In an attempt to get his creative juices flowing again, he and his family move to rural East Sussex in the heart of the Ashdown Forest.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle – The Good, the Bad and the Uncertain

Image
Runtime: 141mins | Director: Matthew Vaughn | Rating: 4 Stars Back in 2015 (which feels like aeons ago now) Kingsman: The Secret Service came out. Having not been familiar with the source material originally, I went in blind not knowing what to expect and I came out loving it. It was slick and a lot of fun – think Bond on steroids. Thankfully, the exact same can be said for the recently released sequel, Kingsman: The Golden Circle. The film takes place a year later with Eggsy now balancing life between being a fully-fledged member of The Kingsman and being in a relationship with Swedish royalty, Princess Tilde. All seems to be going well for him until a mysterious organisation surfaces called The Golden Circle, who hack into The Kingsman’s network and brings about their destruction. With his old mentor Harry and the rest of the Kingsman now gone, Eggsy enlists the help of their American counterparts, The Statesman. *SPOILERS FROM HERE ON IN – BE WARNED* I’ll cut stra