Filmmaker Interview by Chris Olson How would you describe your film, Yemen: The Silent War? Yemen: The Silent War is a short informative documentary about the silent war in Yemen. I wanted to take a non-traditional approach to make an informative documentary. The first sequence of the documentary is silent with only ambient noise, which is a reference to the fact that the war in Yemen is silent. I did not want the documentary to focus on certain stories or get the viewers emotionally attached with specific people, but rather with the situation as a whole. There are so many documentaries out there about refugees, and I didn't want this short to be another refugee documentary, but rather a documentary about the situation in Yemen as a whole. What made you want to tell this story? I am actually a Yemeni filmmaker, so naturally I wanted to tell this story. I graduated from American University in 2017, and I knew that the first thing I wanted to do after graduation was to go back to Yemen and make documentaries. After graduation, I felt like I was not ready to go back to Yemen just yet. I did not think I had enough experience to get the message across, so I decided to apply to graduate school. I have always been aware about Yemeni refugees in Djibouti. Their situation is very complicated, and I wanted to visit the camp regardless of whether I was making a documentary or not. I contacted Vanessa, an associate reporting officer for the UNHCR in Djibouti. She helped me get all the proper approvals and permits prior to my trip and helped make this documentary happen. Were there other documentaries/films that were inspirational? Or any other pieces? So many. Mostly pictures that brave journalists and civilians capture of the war. One major thing that the average non-Yemeni viewer would miss in this documentary is references. Each animation references a real story. For example, the animated girl with the teddy bear in the documentary [the one that moves her hand to open her eyes] is a reference to a girl who lost all her family members in an airstrike. Her name is Buthaina [she is also known as Buthaina, the eye of humanity]. If you look her up, you will understand one of many references that most Yemenis would understand watching this documentary. What has the journey been like getting the film made and now promoted? One story about my journey that I do not often share is being locked up at the airport for around 8 hours for being a journalist. I was not allowed to contact my embassy, and I was not given access to internet. After being locked up for hours, I eventually managed to get access to internet. Unfortunately, I had to bribe an airport security guard to get access to internet [something that I am not proud of]. I called my uncle, who had a few contacts, and he was able to get me out. While I was able to get out, my film equipments were confiscated at the airport until I got approval from the Ministry of Communication [something that I had prior to my trip]. The entire time I was locked u,p I thought that this was the government’s attempt to silence journalists. However, it turned out that people in high government positions were just leveraging the situation to charge non-existing fees as a form of bribery. It is a sad reality that documentary filmmakers have to budget for bribes in order to film in third world countries. The process was the best part of the documentary. Meeting people who have different backgrounds and traveling on my own was a fun experience. It was me, my camera, my laptop, my sound equipment, and a bunch of hard drives. Traveling for more than a month on your own can also be a good time to reflect on life, which is something that I did during my trip. As far as promotion, I decided to share my documentary on Vimeo prior to film festivals notifications. At the end of the day, I made this documentary as an informative video that I wanted to share. What's next for you as a filmmaker? Life is unpredictable. Right now, I am doing my masters in Film Production at the University of Southern California. I moved to LA right after my trip, and I can’t wait to see what life has in store. What advice would you give to new filmmakers? The most important advice I could give to new filmmakers is to remember that they have a voice. Use it. Be bold. Be ambitious, and do not undersell yourself. What's the hardest thing about making a film in 2018? The hardest thing is to be original. We live in a world that anyone can have access to a camera, which is incredible. It is a challenge, but it makes it interesting. What would you say if you were a dolphin? If I was a male dolphin, anything I say would probably be heard more than what a lot of people in the world would say because that is the discriminatory society we live in today. Sorry, I had to be political. Watch the entire documentary below as part of the UK Film Channel. #FilmmakerInterviews #Interview #Interviews #ChrisOlson #SufianAbulohom #Yemen #Documentaries

★★★ Directed by: Brett Haley Starring: Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Toni Collette Film Review by: Rachel Willis Director Brett Haley and co-writer Marc Basch have crafted a tender story of a father and daughter who spend a last summer together bridging their differences through a shared love of music. Nick Offerman is charming as Frank, a man who's never outgrown his dream of being a musician. Though his days are spent behind the counter of a record store, he wishes for something bigger. It's his daughter, Sam (Kersey Clemons, from Dope and Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising), who is the family's realist. Her goal is to go to college and become a doctor. The conundrum is that Sam has talent. A lot of it. Upon discovering how much talent Sam has during a family “jam sesh”, Frank's dreams are reignited. Much time is spent on the music itself. We watch as songs are written, revised, practiced, and recorded. These original tunes, written by Keegan DeWitt, are effective at highlighting the film's themes, and the title song is catchy enough to stay in your head long after the credits roll. The problem with this amount of attention on the music is that other areas of the film suffer for it. The relationships between characters are thin. We're told there's history present, but we never feel it. If the focus was kept on Frank and Sam, rather than expanding their world to include romantic relationships and a grandmother who adds little to the story, the audience connection might have gained more strength. As it is, we're told to care about characters who have little dialogue and next to no screen time. Though this imbalance exists, the actors do their best with what they have. There is a sweetness to the film, and Frank's excitement is so contagious, Sam's lack of enthusiasm is painful next to it. It's a touching portrayal of a father and daughter who've grown apart, but find a way to reconnect. Terse conversations deepen as musical bridges are hammered out, with memories brought to the surface and shared through poetic lyrics. Moments that reveal pieces of the past are subtle, yet striking. There's much to like about Hearts Beat Loud, even if it does rely too much on the music to carry it. #BrettHaley #NickOfferman #TedDanson #ToniCollette #RachelWillis #HeartsBeatLoud #RachelWillismovies #film #entertainment #moviereviews #filmreviews #independentfilms #musicals

★★★ Directed by: David Zellner, Nathan Zellner Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Robert Pattinson, David Zellner Film Review by: Hope Madden A lot of people headed west for a new start. Damsel, the latest quirky comedy from David and Nathan Zellner, doesn’t believe a fresh start is in store for any of us. “Things are going to be shitty in new and fascinating ways.” Like Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter —the filmmakers’ high water mark—Damsel is a gorgeous film marked with visual absurdity that emphasizes the uniquely bizarre nature of the human being. Unlike Kumiko, Damsel is a Western. A dandy stranger named Samuel (Robert Pattinson) arrives at your traditional, sorry-ass Western town to find the parson (David Zellner). He has a deal set with the parson. But an amazing opening sequence brimming with the beauty, brutality and existential angst of the Wild West means that we know something about the parson that Samuel doesn’t. Of course, Samuel knows some things he’s not sharing with the parson as well. Soon enough, the two are off, along with the miniature horse Butterscotch, to find and marry Samuel’s beloved Penelope (Mia Wasikowska). Into the utterly typical Western architecture ride characters entirely lacking that nobility and destiny of the Hollywood classic. The result is not a spoof, it isn’t wacky in the Mel Brooks fashion. It’s thoughtful and humorous, deliberately gorgeous and just a tad melancholy. Recent years have seen their fair share of revisionist Westerns, but few truly tinker with that romantic nobility associated with every character in quite the way Damsel does. Pattinson, continuing his streak, is a wonder. He steals every scene and scenes without him suffer from the loss. Wasikowska is solid as not just the traditional butt-kickin’ Western woman, but a revelation of the status quo. It will be her character that carries us through most of the film, and that is both an intriguing and thematically strong decision. It’s just not as funny. The film turns on a bullet from silly misadventure to something more profound: a glimpse into the historical constant of toxic masculinity. As much as the second half of the film scores points for insight, the humor is more depressing and scenes lack the bright, shiny idiocy of Pattinson’s Samuel. This is not a dooming flaw. The film’s deceptively whimsical comedy offers a biting criticism of traditional, romantically-masculine storytelling. #HopeMadden #movies #film #entertainment #moviereviews #Westerns #DavidZellner #MiaWasikowska #RobertPattinson #NathanZellner

★★★★ Directed by: Tim Wardle Starring: Robert Shafran, David Kellman Film Review by: Hope Madden The first time I saw Desperately Seeking Susan, I remember being unnerved by the image of three identical men, all dressed the same and leaning up against a building to ogle Madonna as she exited a cab. Weird, I thought. Little did I know that those three brothers were the center of a global media hubbub at the time. Back in 1980, as Robert Shafran moved into college, he was greeted warmly by many as “Eddy.” The 19-year-old would soon meet his doppleganger. Eddy Gallan—also adopted, also born July 12, 1961—and Bobby became inseparable friends. Brothers, actually, and their story attracted the attention of several newspapers as well as another young man born July 12, 1961. When David Kellman joined the crew, three brothers separated at birth held the world’s attention. This story itself, told warmly and with great compassion by documentarian Tim Wardle, is endlessly charming based on the contagious joy the brothers felt to be reunited. And you coast along on that charm for a while until this nagging idea creeps into the party atmosphere: why were they separated in the first place? Even those who remember the brothers’ tale will find this recounting fresh and fun. Footage and photos of their time together as young men paired with their own lively recounting of the story creates an energy that entertains. Wardle expertly moves the story forward, offering new, often funny and sometimes touching reminiscences of certain events from those closest to the action. Wardle’s less a master of visual storytelling. Stylistically, the film struggles. Some painful musical choices, stagy reenactments and otherwise uninspired visual representations give the film an amateurish appearance. Late-film montages of earlier revelations and quotes feel like information force-feeding. But, thanks to the truly fascinating story and the charm of its leads, these missteps don’t derail the effort. The filmmaker’s strictly sequential chronology relies on your assumptions about documentary and ensures consistent surprises. What begins as a zanier-than-life story slowly turns into a dark tale of conspiracy colored by larger themes of nature versus nurture. As Wardle pieces together a frustrating puzzle, he’s left with more questions than answers. Constantly revealing a new piece of information, a new source and more complications, the investigation itself becomes as much a character in the film as the triplets. If nothing else, it is quite a story. #TimWardle #HopeMadden #documentary #film #movies #moviereviews #filmreviews #ThreeIdenticalStrangers #RobertShafran #EddyGallan #FilmReviews #TheatricalReleases

★★★★ Directed by: Kevin Macdonald Starring: Whitney Houston, Nicole David, Bobbi Kristina Brown, Bobby Brown Film Review by: George Wolf Midway though Whitney, record business mogul "L.A." Reid sternly tells the camera,"You laughing at Whitney Houston? Fuck you!" An animated sitcom gag came just before that scolding, and I was laughing. The well-placed sequence gets to the heart of Kevin Macdonald's emotional look at a troubled life. Behind every famous public image are truths untold, and Whitney becomes a bittersweet labor of love. The persistent force behind the film is executive producer Nicole David. A longtime talent agent (and, interestingly enough, the original voice of Scooby Doo's "Velma") David represented Houston for almost three decades, and was committed to finding someone who would do justice to the Whitney she knew. David's sincerity convinced a skeptical Macdonald, the veteran director with sharp instincts for narrative features (The Last King of Scotland, State of Play) and as well as docs (Touching the Void, Marley). He gets beneath this tabloid fodder with necessary determination. Houston wasn't a soul-baring songwriter like Amy Winehouse, and her recorded interviews were scarce and seldom revealing. Macdonald digs hard into interviews with family members and inner circle friends, layering them all with intimate home movie and archival footage to build a sad and sympathetic timeline. The cycle of talent/fame/money/drugs may be cliched by now, but Whitney succeeds in making this rise and fall more personal. We see Houston's two personas: The vulnerable "Nippy" to those close to her, and the confident "Whitney" to an obsessive public. The whispers that come from her closeness to assistant Robyn Crawford, the trauma of sexual abuse from a family member, her volatile marriage to Bobby Brown, the Diane Sawyer "crack is wack" debacle and the tragic legacy passed down to daughter Bobbi Kristina are all addressed in necessary, but thoughtful ways. Near the end, fan-made concert video shows a once powerful voice destroyed by drugs and demons. That downward spiral is indeed no laughing matter, and Whitney is an emotional ride, a thorough and respectful take on a mysterious, superstar life. #GeorgeWolf #movies #film #entertainment #moviereviews #filmreviews #Whitney #WhitneyHouston #documentary #rockdoc #musicdocumentary #KevinMacdonald #BobbiKristinaBrown #BobbyBrown #DocumentaryFilmReviews

★★★ Directed by: Aislinn Clarke Starring: Lalor Roddy, Ciaran Flynn, Helena Bereen Film Review by: Hope Madden So many horror films delve into those murky holy waters of Catholicism. So many horror movies are clearly made by lifelong non-Catholics. If Aislinn Clarke's The Devil’s Doorway gets extra points, it’s for knowing the religion it is lambasting. Two priests—one young, one a veteran—head into dangerous spiritual territory in a film that fully understands that you will compare it to The Exorcist. How can you not? The Devil’s Doorway follows Fr. Thomas Riley (Lalor Roddy) and Fr. John Thornton (Ciaran Flynn) to a Magdalene Laundry, one of Ireland’s infamous workhouses populated by women the country wanted to hide and exploit. The setting itself is a way of inverting the gravitas of The Exorcist, which saw two priests—one firm in his belief, the other confronting a crisis of faith—come to the aid of an innocent girl facing the corruption of her purity from something demonic. Here, Fr. Riley, the elder priest, has to face his own crisis of faith. But his belief has been stretched to breaking by the corruption of the church itself, as manifest by this place. So, they go to investigate a miracle but find something more predictably menacing is afoot. There is an earnestness in the battle between faith and cynicism in this film. The Exorcist and films like it, those that saw the wayward horror of man as only correctable with help from above, have long given way to something else. A demonic possession now feels like it happens within holy walls because that’s where the devil lives in the first place. While most films of this ilk simply take potshots, The Devil’s Doorway mourns the corrosion of something worthwhile and holy. Applause for finding an honest statement to make within this over-worked subgenre, although the congratulations belong primarily to Roddy. The Irish actor finds truth in Fr. Riley—Doubting Thomas’s—struggle. He stands out as the only sane person, the only responsible adult in the house. And though the Mother Superior role is written with evil relish (as per usual), Helena Bereen’s delivery stings in a way that is eerily authentic. Until it’s not. We get it. Nuns are creepy. Twelve years of Catholic school clarified that. The film gets a bit caught in genre trappings, and what starts as an indictment of the church becomes so punchdrunk on jump scares it loses its focus entirely. The found-footage gimmick works well enough for a while, but devolves in the end into something so familiar it’s almost sad. The Devil’s Doorway started out with promise, but like so many lapsed Catholics, it lost its way. #AislinnClarke #LalorRoddy #CiaranFlynn #HelenaBereen #HopeMadden #movies #film #entertainment #TheDevil39sDoorway #horror #horrormovies #moviereviews #filmreviews #Irishmovies #FilmReviews #TheatricalReleases

★★★★ Directed by: Wil Magness Starring: JJ Johnson and Lauren Emery Short Film Review by: Niall Maggs The Manual is set in the distant future in what seems to be a post-apocalyptic America. Deep in the woods lives the last human on earth: James, played terrifically by JJ Johnson. James is raised by a humanoid robot known as the Machine (Lauren Emery) after his parents die. We see James' development and growth through a great span of time while being lectured - by the Machine - on a mysterious religion described in a handheld device called The Manual. The Manual's teachings include the idea of afterlife and reincarnation, and a world where robots are spiritual beings and are equal to humans. The Manual succeeds in granting the audience with ambiguity and mystery, while also questioning what it means to be alive. This is seen where James realises who he is and what he's made from. He compares himself to an animal as he discovers he's built from the same things. This idea seems inspired by Ridley Scott's Blade Runner - and that's not a bad thing! This homage to the sci-fi classic is seen almost throughout in other aspects such as the cinematography and the bleak colour palette which further adds to the apocalyptic setting. The drab feel given off from the short film is immersive and sucks you up like you're there alongside James and the Machine. There are some shots which are simply breathtaking due to Kevin Fletcher's awesome cinematography, and the way these shots are constructed with such precision and care works phenomenally with the deep and important subject matter discussed and displayed in The Manual. JJ Johnson's performance as James is powerful and emotional. His extensive passion is shown in just how he handles certain situations and scenarios. His depiction is realistic and unforgettable; it's one of the many things that played on my mind after the credits started to roll and the screen turned black. We slowly see him delve into depression and descend into madness as his search for other humans proves unsuccessful, and the way Johnson conveys this is nothing short of masterful. The final five minutes becomes slightly muddled and overly confusing, which is where the short film falls down. It tries to become too clever and trades in understanding for puzzlement. This doesn't pay off well because you're left confused and bewildered. This was a bad decision on Magness' part because it simply fails to work, which is why it doesn't quite get a perfect rating, but overall, Magness' directing is excellent. The Manual succeeds at many things such as the stellar acting, subject matter and stunning cinematography and would work brilliantly as a feature-length science fiction film. #ShortFilmReviews #ShortFilms #NiallMaggs #Dystopianfilms #SciFi #WilMagness #JJJohnson #LaurenEmery #Robots

★★★★ Directed by: Boots Riley Starring: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Steven Yeun, Armie Hammer, Jermaine Fowler, Omari Hardwick Film Review by: Hope Madden The stars are aligning for Boots Riley. The vocalist and songwriter for The Coup—the funkiest radical socialist band you’re likely to find—has managed to produce a wild and relevant satire of capitalism that might possibly find a mainstream audience. And that’s not because he whitewashed his message. Sorry to Bother You uses splashes of absurdity and surrealism to enliven the first act “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” tale of a weary young man’s ascension through the ranks of telemarketing. It is a funny and pointed send-up of cubical hell that—unlike most office comedies—focuses quickly on a system that benefits very few while it exploits very many. There is so much untidiness and depth to relationships, characterizations, comedy, horror, style, message and execution of this film that you could overlook Riley’s directorial approach. He expertly uses the havoc and excess, first lulling you into familiar territory before upending all expectations and taking you on one headtrip of an indictment of capitalism. Led by Lakeith Stanfield (Get Out, Atlanta) and Tessa Thompson (star of Creed, Thor: Ragnarock and her own gleaming awesomeness), Sorry to Bother You finds an emotional center that sets the friction between community and individual on understandable ground. Thompson offers bursts of energy that nicely offset Stanfield’s slower, more necessarily muddled performance as the “everyman” central character for a new generation. And who better to embody everything a capitalist system convinces you is ideal than living Ken doll Armie Hammer? He is perfect—an actor who entirely comprehends his physical perfection and how loathsome it can be. He is a hoot. Riley’s film could not be more timely. Though he wrote it nearly a dozen years ago, and it certainly reflects a trajectory our nation has been on for eons, it feels so of-the-moment you expect to see a baby Trump balloon floating above the labor union picket line. Bursting with thoughts, images and ideas, the film never feels like it wanders into tangents. Instead, Riley’s alarmingly relevant directorial debut creates a new cinematic form to accommodate its abundance of insight and number of comments. Does it careen off the rails by Act 3? Oh, yes, and gloriously so. A tidy or in any way predictable conclusion would have been a far greater disaster, though. Riley set us on a course that dismantles the structure we’ve grown used to as moviegoers and we may not be ready for what that kind of change means for us. Isn’t it about goddamn time? #SorrytoBotherYou #HopeMadden #BootsRiley #LakeithStanfield #TessaThompson #StevenYeun #ArmieHammer #JKermaineFowler #OmariHardwick #movies #film #entertainment #moviereviews #filmreviews #socialism #comeduy #FilmReviews #TheatricalReleases

★★★★ Directed by: Jennifer Peedom Starring: Willem Dafoe Film Review by: George Wolf "How big a screen ya got?" That's what you need to be asking for Mountain, a nature documentary that puts the breathtake in breathtaking. Director and co-writer Jennifer Peedom provides a majestic canvas for the truly stunning cinematography of Renan Ozturk, gracefully pondering the evolution of humankind's quest to climb upward. Intermittent narration from Willem Dafoe dots the landscape of footage from the world's highest peaks, and though the writing seems overly dramatic at first ("the holy or the hostile...nothing in between") the sheer grandeur of what you're seeing quickly demands nothing less. From swooping aerial shots featuring tiny specks of humanity to tight, miraculous skiing sequences a la Warren Miller, Mountain beautifully reminds us how truly small we remain. For those enthralled by such things (my hand is up) it might as well be mountain porn, questioning our fascination even as it's feeding it. But again: big screen. #JenniferPeedom #WillemDafoe #GeorgeWolf #documentary #Mountain #movies #fil #entertainment #moviereviews #filmreviews #RenanOzturk

★★★★ Directed by: Debra Granik Starring: Ben Foster, Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie Film Review by: George Wolf In her first feature since 2010's gripping Winter's Bone, writer/director Debra Granik is again focused on souls living on the rural fringes and scraping out a hardscrabble, under-the-radar existence. But with Leave No Trace, any sinister, menacing layers have been replaced by a tender, sympathetic grace that feels achingly authentic, and often heartbreaking. The film is driven by two haunting lead performances. Ben Foster, surely one of the most underrated actors around, plays Will, a committed single father living deep within a massive state park in Portland. Will and his teenage daughter Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) get all they need from their illegal homemade camp in the forest, taking constant measures to avoid being spotted. One mistake later, Will is desperate to break free from the bureaucratic pressure to adapt, while Tom begins to feel the pull of a "normal" she has never known. Granik adapts Peter Rock's novel with a subtlety that stuns, speaking volumes in the silences that would cripple lesser films. Sketches of Will's backstory are casually provided, allowing the two main performers to let us into the touching bond they create with each other. Though Foster's tremendous turn is not exactly surprising, the little-known McKenzie delivers a statement performance full of wonder and quiet power. "Tom," torn by the love of her father and the need to follow her own heart, becomes our window into this private world, and McKenzie comes nowhere close to any false notes. Leave No Trace follows its own titular advice, broaching a variety of relevant social concerns without ever raising its voice, yet cutting so deeply you may not get out of the theater with dry eyes. Less is so often more, and Leave No Trace emits a profoundly minimalistic beauty. #DebraGranik #GeorgeWolf #BenFoster #LeaveNoTrace #movies #film #entertainment #moviereviews #filmreviews #ThomasinHarcourtMcKenzie #FilmReviews #TheatricalReleases

★★ Directed by: Genndy Tartakovsky Starring: Adam Sandler, Kathryn Hahn Film Review by: Rachel Willis These days, whenever an animated movie is released, it's a near guarantee it will become a franchise. A few of these sequels are as good or better than the originals that spawned them, but most of them aren't. There's nothing inherently problematic with milking successful movies for more material, provided the new stories are able to stand alone. Hotel Transylvania 3 manages to do so, but there are areas of the film that suffer from the same problems as other sequels. The latest installment in the Hotel Transylvania series introduces us to the centuries-long feud between Dracula and the Van Helsing family. A brief montage shows the audience Abraham Van Helsing's many failed attempts to destroy Dracula. When it finally seems Van Helsing will no longer be a threat, we're brought to the present day Hotel Transylvania to catch up with Dracula, his daughter Mavis and their clan of family and friends. Deciding her dad needs his own vacation based on his more spastic than usual behavior, Mavis books a family trip on a monster cruise. Along for the ride are a number of characters from the previous films, but the new film would have been better served if they'd been left behind in favor of fleshing out the new characters. Aside from Mavis and Dracula, none of the previous films' characters seem to have been given much thought. As Dracula, Adam Sandler brings a new aspect to a centuries-old character. Instead of menacing, Dracula is a spaz. While trying to woo the captain of the monster cruise, Ericka, he's a nervous wreck. It's an interpretation that serves the franchise well as it provides moments of humor for both children and adults. Kathryn Hahn as Ericka is a good addition to the series, though her character's animation is reminiscent of Tweety Bird. She's a humorous character, and her scenes are among the movie's best. Hahn plays well against Sandler, and together, they're the glue that binds the film. Director Genndy Tartakovsky has helmed all three films in the Hotel Transylvania series, and he's done well with the material. The latest film will likely appeal to children of all ages, though their parents may surreptitiously check their phones once or twice. #GenndyTartakovsky #AdamSandler #RachelWillis #animatedfilms #cartoons #sequels #HotelTransylvania3SummerVacation #Dracula #monstermovies #KathrynHahn

★★★★★ Directed by: Jim Miskell Written by: Jim Miskell Starring: Martin Harris, Mark Edmonds, David Doak, Karl Hilton & Duncan Botwood Indie Film Review by: Dean Pettipher Few groups are as misunderstood as gamers. No medium has been misjudged quite like videogames. Jim Miskell’s spectacularly hilarious mockumentary, Going for Golden Eye (2018), achieves top scores in shedding light on two beautifully real truths. The first is that gamers are human. They have thoughts, passions, desires and anxieties like everyone else. The second is that videogames have power to entertain and inspire people in a manner that rivals and indeed at times exceeds the other gigantic storytelling avenues of movies and literature. Movies that adopt the features of a documentary are rare. Fortunately, features like District 9 (2009) illustrate that such a style of storytelling can be remembered for more than just being different. Going for Golden Eye is an essential summer comedy that does just that. By consistently hitting the target with golden precision when it comes to the notes of humour and sincerity especially Miskell has crafted a picture that deserves far more than remaining a top secret as far as mainstream entertainment is concerned. While it might not win over those who live far beyond the world of the gamer to a new-found love of videogames, Going for Golden Eye will certainly remind gamers that they are not alone in the joys and pains of their experiences, both in the real and virtual worlds. The dialogue is phenomenal; the writing is underpinned by remarkable authenticity that showcases the highs and lows of life as a gamer. Miskell’s wittiness just about penetrates the fortresses held by great British comedies A Fish Called Wanda (1998), television shows including The Inbetweeners (2008-2010) and of course the finest funny moments of the Bond Universe from stars like the late Sir Roger Moore. Those who have lived through them personally will best appreciate the jokes. However, even those who feel far removed from the gamer world will undoubtedly chuckle not on too few occasions. Character development for the protagonist, Ben, is soothingly satisfying. Observing his growth during his mission of self-discovery, in ways that audiences can painstakingly empathise with, leads to a heart-warming payoff, which made sweeter still by the laughs enjoyed along the way. Too go into greater detail would alert the spoiler radar. Suffice it to say that audiences have an unexpected treat awaiting them, which will not betray them, for instance, with any unexpected rushing of the story towards an array of frustrating loose ends. The mission is never without its setbacks. Here, the stakes during the build-up to the pleasantly surprising climax could have felt much higher. While strong enough to withstand the call to boredom, elements including the music and the camera presentation of videogame footage to have provided much more suspense than what was ultimately delivered. Those familiar with the videogame at the core of the film may not be deterred at all. On the other hand, those who have never known the game may remain forever unconvinced over what all the commotion was about, left wondering why the key conflicts mattered so much to the characters, with thoughts like, “it’s only a game” springing to mind. Still, one can just about comfortably believe that the struggle is real, even if one cannot truly feel encouraged to comprehend why. That ‘why’ would have been made clearer if time had been allowed to explore in greater depth what it was that made this game stand out and go on to stand the test of time. Based on Pierce Brosnan’s first outing as James Bond in 1995, the GoldenEye videogame was released in 1997 and sold more than eight million units worldwide. Moreover, the game grossed over two hundred and fifty million US dollars globally. Frequently cited as one of the greatest videogames of all-time, it has enjoyed a reception over the last two decades that many game designers and indeed filmmakers can only dream of regarding their own pursuits in the arts. Even more fine dialogue might have illustrated to the casual gamers sat amongst cinema audiences why this game was such a big deal and remains a popular talking point to this day. Yet, perhaps any lover of art, in whatever form it may takes, will understand that the game must have been something truly special to warrant such an overwhelming reception. Moreover, expecting a book to convey the same sentiments as a videogame with total accuracy is like expecting a film to do so regarding a great novel. In the end, they must be respected as uniquely different forms of storytelling. Thus, to truly comprehend the videogame behind Miskell’s film, one simply must play it. Going for Golden Eye will not leave behind a legacy even close to the one left by the videogame that inspired it. Not one tear need be shed, though, as this reality provides no warrant for disappointment. The mission has been accomplished as far as the execution of the superb film is concerned. The final feature gleams with golden attributes throughout, leaving one hoping with delight that the artists behind this movie will, like the spy at their latest work’s centre, return. The world remains in dire need of filmmaking that is this good. Watch the official movie trailer below... #comedy #JimMiskell #MartinHarris #MarkEdmonds #DavidDoak #KarlHilton #DuncanBotwood #DeanPettipher #ShortFilmReviews #ShortFilms #VideoGameMovies