★★★★ Directed by James Vanderbilt Starring Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford and Dennis Quaid Film review by George Dawson 'Truth' is a compelling drama asking questions about the truth, politics and conspiracy. 'Truth' stars Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford and Dennis Quaid. 'Truth' is the true story adapted from Mary Mapes' autobiography 'Truth and Duty: The Press, The President and The Privilege Of Power'. Sixty Minutes news broke a story that posed the question with a substantial amount of evidence, whether President George W Bush fulfilled his service in the United States Marine Corps, while at the same time evidence is also found that important people covered up some of his degenerate behaviour. Not surprisingly this caused massive controversy and the news team were heavily criticised and investigated. This is their story. Audiences will feel conflicted as they will feel angry with how the news team were treated, but also wondering how honest and truthful the writers have been to the actual events and conversations that took place. The movie progressed at a steady pace and kept me engaged all the way through and I never felt bored or lost. One problem I did have with the plot which I find is quite often the case with adapted true stories is that the conclusion felt a little flat. 'Truth' has a strong message to say about challenging the status quo and that maybe our leaders are not as squeaky clean as they have been presented to us. I found this a very interesting and sometimes haunting theme to explore. While I am not American I can relate it to the allegations made against our Prime Minister here in England. The cinematography was pretty standard with the exception of one brilliant shot. Cate Blanchett is delivering a particularly engaging monologue and the camera ever so slowly zooms in to her face and it is extremely effective. The performances in 'Truth' are all solid by Dennis Quaid, Elisabeth Moss, Topher Grace and Bruce Greenwood. Cate Blanchett and Robert Redford however deliver something quite special making them very memorable. The two have a unique and interesting relationship in the film and they portray it very well. Robert Redford leaves a lasting impression with his last scene but it is more to do with the plot and a bit forced than his acting. There are some very tender and humorous moments from Robert Redford though. It's no surprise that Cate Blanchett delivers a great performance again with her track record. By far her best scene coincides with the best cinematography I mentioned earlier. Towards the end of the film she delivers a thought provoking speech that really gets you thinking, along with the fantastic cinematography she creates a truly engaging scene. There is a particular quote in that monologue that really resonated with me. "Our story was about whether the President fulfilled his service. Nobody wants to talk about that. They want to talk about fonts and forgeries and they hope to god the truth gets lost in the scrum" I can't tell you why I brought up this quote specifically without spoiling the conclusion but suffice to say I was annoyed with how the external people and environment disrupted the flow of more information to the story. Overall I really enjoyed 'Truth' and think audiences will be intrigued by the plot and impressed by the standout performances. 'Truth' is definitely a film you should see when it releases Friday March 4th. More film reviews here. #GeorgeDawson #TheatricalReleases #CateBlanchett #RobertRedford #DennisQuaid #JamesVanderbilt #filmreviews #filmreviewsUK

★★★ Directed by David Simpson Starring Victoria Broom, Tyne Stewart, David Simpson, Grant Murphy, Paul Mackie, Michaela Ellis, Jack Eaton & Martin W. Payne Indie film review by Eleanor Hucklesby The supernatural, with its range of ghosts, zombies, vampires, etc. is a difficult concept to bring to screen. And in its attempt All Above Board, directed by David Simpson and co-written by Paul Mackie and David Simpson, mixes the horror and suspense of its ghost story with a very British type of humour. All Above Board tells the story of two police officers called to a pub, who go on to investigate the strange events that took place on Halloween after a séance hosted by the mysterious Morgana. In framing the action through the eyes of the police officers, the humour of All Above Board manages to come from two places: the dynamics between the characters and the story’s action set pieces. Indeed, a lot of the humour stems from the former. A particular highlight is the two police officers as they struggle, through sighs and raised eyebrows, to combine what they see with what they find. Another is the dynamic between Morgana, the psychic (Victoria Broom) and the landlord of the pub, Barry (Martin W. Payne), both characters being performed with relish by the actors. Of course, the premise of All Above Board is not a new premise and sometimes it feels as if the film is raking over old ground, rather than being influenced by other filmmakers. However, there are strokes of originality. With the film being very much a chamber piece (we never go beyond the boundary of the pub), the opening of the film is strong and the final act is even stronger. The script’s dialogue is, it feels, almost deliberately naturalistic. As the characters become more and more trapped by their own misdeeds, they eff and blind and find themselves discussing the true meaning behind the phrase “clocking off”. It feels like a lock-in at the local pub – only there’s angry spirits lurking, ready to punish the meek and unworthy. Yet where the dialogue hits, it also unfortunately misses. Some subplots feel unnecessary, and as such some scenes go on for too long, and you can’t help but think that a good minute or two could’ve been cut without major damage to the story – and could’ve even ramped up the overall tension that little bit more. Overall, All Above Board is a solid effort, with humorous moments and some strong ideas, but its flaws unfortunately prevent it from being a game changer. We have more indie film reviews this way! #EleanorHucklesby #IndieFilm #SupportIndieFilms #filmreviews #PaulMackie

★ Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Mark Strong, Isla Fisher, Penelope Cruz, Ian McShane Director: Louis Leterrier Film review by Colin Lomas There was always one at school; the boy who craved attention. Invariably quite amusing at first with his silly frolics, daft faces and good-taste challenging larks. He was popular, valued, admired, almost revered; the classic class clown. As the years passed the laughter would dry up, his audience distancing themselves from him so his antics would become more desperate and anarchic. Suddenly one day he would recognise that no-one was finding him funny anymore, instead of his expectant veneration all he would receive were occasional sympathetic glances of sadness and embarrassment. Not that this would stop him, there’s always another intemperate level of desperation for those willing to find it. In the school of comedy, Sacha Baron Cohen is in his last throes of hopelessness to entertain his sixth form audience with self-gratifying uber-grossness, only to find they have stopped caring and have virtually forgotten who he is. Grimsby follows two orphaned brothers who were separated at a young age; Sebastian (Strong) went off to reside with a middle class family in London and now works as an assassin for a secret anti-terrorism cell of MI6. Elder sibling Nobby (Baron Cohen) stayed in Grimsby to a life in the council estates; drinking, taking soft drugs, fathering an inordinate amount of children and obsessing over the England football team. They meet up due to information granted to Nobby regarding Sebastian’s whereabouts from a friend in the local boozer which is absurdly unexplained, Sebastian is wrongly accused of killing the head of the World Health Organisation due to Nobby’s badly timed intervention and the two brothers set out to clear his name. What follows is a menagerie of vulgar events which feel like a selection of tasteless sketches cobbled together without any thought to coherence. Grimsby is constantly bogged down with its writer’s obsession to shock whether it fits the storyline or not and quickly becomes boring and inconsequential. Gross can be funny, anything can be funny given the right script and correct context. Unfortunately for Cohen, the inverse is true; gross can be unfunny, anything can be unfunny given a terrible script and disjointed context. Possibly the most frustrating element of Grimsby are the very occasional moments of brilliant comedy; one-liners delivered with such Coogan-esque perfection that it makes the rest of the movie all the more maddening given they are so infrequent. There are also instances of attempted family tenderness but it is impossible to tell whether they are intended to be ironic or affectionate so constantly fall flat. The most baffling thing about Grimsby is how many big names it seemed to attract. Penelope Cruz and Daniel Radcliffe’s respective agents need to take a long look in the mirror and Ricky Tomlinson, Johnny Vegas and Ian McShane presumably had some down time between proper projects. Only Rebel Wilson feels like the kind of actress who would take anything that ends with a pay cheque. At 83 minutes, Grimsby is about 80 minutes too long. It’s ridiculous, self-indulging, incoherent and for all its attempted shock factor, boring. Read more film reviews here. #ColinLomas #MarkStrong #SachaBaronCohen #IslaFisher #PenelopeCruz #IanMcShane #DanielRadcliffe #Comedy #filmreviews

★★★★ Directed by Severin Fiala & Veronika Franz Written by Severin Fiala & Veronika Franz Starring Lukas Schwarz, Elias Schwarz & Susanne Wuest Film review by Dean Pettipher Tentatively tiptoe with terror on a journey composed with evidently tenacious craftsmanship that testifies to the tremendous amplification of creative flair resulting from an effective, finely clicked double-team endeavour. Helmed by a pair of directors who are very familiar with each other’s working methods, courtesy of a documentary that they made together in 2012 entitled Kern, Good Night Mommy, completed two years hence, will, with good reason, warrant even greater progression in their filmmaking careers. Previously unknown facets of the definition for the word, disturbing, might surface within the mind at the sight of corrupted innocence sparked by unshakeable obsessions throughout a psychological thriller that is not dissimilar, with its high frequency of throat-clogging imagery of suffering and insightful explorations into the fogged boundaries between the two most juxtaposed states of human sanity, to Shutter Island (2010). The extent of the scarring impact felt as a consequence of the movie, for better or worse regarding the psychological welfare of the audience, is hindered by a pace that on occasion grows painfully slow, primarily fuelled by silence and drawn out exterior shots screaming unnecessary inaction, testing the patience for even the most dedicated fans of mystery, thriller or horror features. The grip of curiosity also gradually loosens upon the hearts of veteran film lovers who relish the chance to dive into the realms of mystery, like children running with glee into a hedge-maze without a map or a guide, seeking to figure out plots, which are almost entirely dependent upon their ambiguity for maintaining viewer attention, as fast as they can, so that they might feel highly intelligent in the eyes of their peers sat in a contrasting state of confusion, or simply enjoy a chase-like ecstasy for themselves alone. Nevertheless, all are saved from total boredom on numerous occasions by beautiful cinematography of a lush, predominantly emerald green forest surrounding an isolated home that is at once a peaceful sanctuary and then a striking source of pain. The baton of entertainment is not infrequently passed onto another double act; young twin brothers, Lukas and Elias Schwarz, who play characters of the same first names so masterfully that they might easily capture the spotlight from other current child stars like Jacob Tremblay, who has recently been inspiring minds and massaging hearts for his award-magnet performance in Room (2015). The greatest reward, however, is given by impeccable timing of vicious camera movements building up to and displaying torture of body, mind and soul with bold, ruthless efficiency. Be warned. Proceed into the process of swallowing the sip of a drink, particularly a strong alcoholic beverage, or a handful of warm, salty popcorn, or perhaps a portion of a freshly cooked, ketchup-covered, cheesy hotdog at the wrong moment, then all of the rich, taste-induced joy will vanish without a struggle, replaced by an earnest sense of desperation for the characters, bound by blood, locked in bitter conflict upon the silver screen. While at the time less than desired, such a reaction might be appreciated as a good thing, for there are sometimes fewer indications of a good drama picture. If the treasure sought in the movie theatre is a chance to test the capacity rooted within for handling shocking scenes that rarely stray into the realms of over-the-top events worthy of ridicule, then there is nothing to fear in taking a chance with Goodnight Mommy; an impressive feat of Austrian cinema that does not quite summon enough power to become perched upon the overcrowded shelves of long-term memory but certainly throws a strong enough punch to draw out a decent amount of emotional blood from a persevering captive audience, for whom the psychological thriller is a proudly-declared favourite. Click here for more film reviews. #TheatricalReleases #filmreviews #DeanPettipher #Thriller #PsychologicalThriller

★★★ Directed by James Carver Starring Ben Willens, Ashlie Walker, and Jeremy Swift Indie film review by Sarah Smeaton #Starvecrow is a film that dominates every second of screen time with scenes that will shock and hold you captive. A compilation of ‘hacked’ mobile phone and CCTV footage, this is a story woven from the everyday threads of people’s lives. Ben and Jess, who have a severely destructive relationship, are the main focus in a plot that is bursting to the seams with meaningful and hard-hitting topics such as domestic abuse, violence, rape, murder and social pressures, to name but a few. This is not a film for the fainthearted. But if you can hang on past the wobbly mobile phone camera angles and the brief shots of disturbing (and sometimes irrelevant) ‘shock’ images then I think there’s a much-needed analysis of society here and some lessons to be learned along the way. What’s so captivating about this indie film is that it very cleverly juxtaposes the mundane aspects of life alongside horrific events that in any person’s ‘normal’ world would likely never happen and most certainly not be documented. But what is ‘normal’ anymore? In a world where, as #Starvecrow so cleverly depicts, more and more of our personal and private lives are being documented to the public – through choice. #Starvecrow shows humanity at its lowest, but also at its most boring, those small bursts of time that aren’t worth recording, or mentioning to your mates. It encourages reflection on where society has travelled, and whether or not living in the technology era is as glamorous as we perhaps once thought it would be. One of the things that let this film down, however, was the believability as to why these people would be filming themselves and each other in their worst moments and in moments that are not significant other than having a beer at the local. As main character, Ben, puts it when talking about the young and rich; ‘From the outside it’s all happy, it’s all fun, everyone’s having a good time. But start digging a little deeper and it’s a completely different story.’ I’m sure this is very true. This statement, however, appeared to contradict what the film was trying to portray; people no matter how glamorous on the outside can be rather ugly underneath. For me, I couldn’t ignore the fact that in a lot of scenarios in the film, most people would have turned the recording on their mobiles off. The plausibility behind this ‘reality’ film gets lost, and what you’re left with is the awful realisation mid-watch that actually you’re just watching a bunch of average actors with iPhones. There was therefore no moment in this film that I could suspend my disbelief and get lost in the story. Having said that, I’m not entirely sure this wasn’t the aim of the movie! Everything from the very first scene is so in your face, and the sequence of scenes are so disjointed and unlinked that it’s likely director, James Carver, never wanted the audience to feel relaxed. If that was the aim, all I can say is, mission accomplished. Want to read more film reviews? #IndieFilmReviews #SarahSmeaton #filmreviews #filmreviewsUK #SupportIndieFilms #FoundFootage

Directed by Sean Meehan Starring Erik Potempa, Timothy J. Cox, Jocelyn DeBoer & Michael Oberholtzer Short film review by Lorenzo Lombardi Amusing situational and sweet romantic comedy ensues in this short film, Over Coffee, written and directed by Sean Meehan. Meehan’s film is quirky and energetic fun that ultimately leaves you rooting for the main character’s goal. That goal is from office worker Andrew (Erik Potempa). He has a crush on his co-worker, Carla (Jocelyn DeBoer), and wants to win her over one day, overcoming his shyness. He sees an opportunity when she is talking to her overly stringent boss, Hamilton Rice (Timothy J. Cox). As he relentlessly dictates orders over the phone, she stumbles in her organization and forgets Mr. Rice’s daily ordered coffee. Andrew then gives a votive to get it for her. Subsequently, Andrew’s coffee order goes wrong, thus leaving him with a race against time as Mr. Rice gets closer to the office. This makes for a suitable and interesting set-up. Before all this, however, we get to see Andrew’s other co-worker Dave (Michael Oberholtzer) as he trades his own provocative thoughts as he torments Andrew with his “sexting” undertakings, making for a funny conversation. Over Coffee is filled with likable characters, swift editing and decent dialogue. I particularly admired some of the nuances seen in this film such as in the non-linear introduction, in which we see a character in a situation that the viewer is not aware of. However, after the viewer has finished Over Coffee, they can go back and recognise the character’s actions. I personally rewound the film to that scene to see where it belonged chronologically, and that created more depth. Over Coffee’s standout performance is within the boss, Hamilton Rice, played to a tee in short but memorable screen time by short film veteran Cox. In a scene with Mr. Rice entering the office, we see him conveying his disdaining superiority over his employees, and he dominates the screen funnily. Another nuance is seen when the camera is alternating between low angles and high angles. As Andrew and Mr. Rice are conversing, we see that the angle is making the boss look more powerful, but as the camera focuses on Andrew, the viewer notices how short he actually is. Or at least, how I did, and how it made me giggle. Over Coffee may not have the best production values, underlying themes or storytelling depth that the best romantic comedies are known for. Sound quality alternates and the plot is very simplistic. This can all be forgiven, however, as the conclusion is satisfying, it is overall well-made and I thoroughly enjoyed it as a whole. For fans of the rom-com and the quirky, this will give you a caffeine-esque boost. More film reviews this way. #LorenzoLombardi #Shortfilmreviews #filmreviews

★★★★ Director: Grímur Hákonarson Writer: Grímur Hákonarson Starring: Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theodór Júlíusson, Charlotte Bøving Film Review by Andrew Moore Winner of the Un Certain Regard prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival, Rams (Hrútar) is an Icelandic drama directed by Grímur Hákonarson. In a treeless, desolate valley, the scene is thus set for the tale of feuding brothers and sheep farmers Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson) who live adjacent to each other on the respective farmsteads where they breed sheep from their prized ancestral rams. Other than a sheepdog (and of course the sheep), this at odds duo are the sole occupants of the valley . . . there’s nothing! Oh, and they haven’t exchanged a word with each other for the last 40 years! The film starts with an expansive shot of the valley showing Gummi slowly walking from the right of the frame towards some sheep, who in turn walk towards him from the left of the frame. Not long after this Gummi opens a gate (getting off his quad bike to do so) whilst transporting his much loved prize ram to the local competition. Here Kiddi simply takes the opportunity and drives through on his quad bike transporting his own prize Ram (leaving Gummi to begrudgingly shut the gate). This subtle war of attrition says a lot about the brother’s relationship. At this annual competition in the nearest settlement those classic ‘Sarah Lund’ Icelandic jumpers are omnipresent, a constant visual reminder to the importance of sheep here. The community exists because the sheep exist! In fact with fierce beards and chunky knitwear, visually the brothers aren’t a million miles away from the sheep! It’s Kiddi’s prize ram that wins the competition (much to the distain of Gummi who comes second) but it’s discovered by Gummi (after leaving in disappointment) that the prize rams have Scrapie, a fatal degenerative sheep disease. This spells disaster for their prize stock and the community. Other communities have already been decimated by this! How the brothers react to this disaster and to each other sets up the premise of the film. In this film the brother’s way of life feels very much outside the modern world. At no point does the film allude to a wider Europe existing, in fact the vets that arrive for the culling of the infected sheep (coming from a slightly more modern Iceland) are the ‘other world.’ In the evening we see Gummi doing jigsaw puzzles, listening to the radio and at one point when a vet visits we see a calendar for 1978 on the door behind him. In a Christmas scene where he makes his dinner (lamb of course) and sits alone in his house with seasonal music playing on the radio and the meagre decorations you’re given no reason to think that this routine has changed at all in the last forty years. This scene is broken by the rescue of a paralytically drunken Kiddi, but after mechanically putting him in a warm to bath to defrost he carries on with this bucolic Christmas scene. They way Gummi deals with Kiddi is functional (I won’t give away how he gets him to Accident and Emergency during another drunken episode). It transpires that Gummi owns the land but who leased some to Kaddi as part of his mother’s deathbed wish, and who is slightly less erratic than Kaddi (whom their father didn’t want to have the land). The brothers themselves communicate via a note transported by sheep dog (such as when Gummi sends Kiddi an invoice for his broken windows which he shot through upon angrily receiving news of the sheep disease)! Given that they’ve not talked in 40 years how many sheep dogs were given this job, liaising between man and sheep (and man and man)! Here are their lives now then, two brothers, no women and some diseased sheep. When Gummi shoots a hundred and forty of his sheep you feel for the brother before the sheep, he’s deconstructing his life. When one of the visiting the vets casually asks Gummi if he’ll be giving up sheep farming now, it doesn’t even warrant an answer or consideration from him, there is nothing else he can or will do, you may as well ask him to cut his legs off! Of course, Kiddi eventually finds that Gummi is hiding sheep downstairs, protecting the prized lineage. Gummi’s initial reaction is to grab a gun and protect his sheep from him, not the outside world, but of course it’s the sheep (and protecting them) that finally brings the pair together. And thus with Rams we are left asking where our reception of this film lies, is there humour and if so how? It’s played straight given all we know about the encapsulated world of the two brothers. There are several, what could be considered ‘funny’ scenes but set against the genuine concerns of the brothers microcosmic world is a spade in the face a concession to filmic humour or a desperate reaction to a desperate situation. Yes, the brother’s life can perhaps be seen as quirky but if the humour was turned up at all then surely the film would descend into farce (which doesn’t seem its purpose). Turn the dial the other way and it’s a bleak, Scand-Bergmanesque study in sheep farming, which doesn’t seem its point either. In fact with less dialogue the film would sit very well next to Michelangelo Frammartino’s 2010 film Le Quattro Volte (which has an even more talented sheepdog starring in it)! In the closing credits there is duly noted thanks to the ‘wonderful people and sheep of the region’ without a hint of pathos. Why haven’t the brothers been friends for forty years? What else can it involve but sheep! What other dreams and desires do they have? Nothing else is alluded to, there’s no family circle and only fleeting communication with the wider community. It’s just them and their sheep and this drives the viewer to witness an incredibly bleak ending when it’s all threatened. If the ancient lineage ceases to exist then so do Gummi and Kaddi, what other role could they possibly fulfil as characters? One wonders how modern sheep farmers who have faced similar concerns will engage with this film, would they even watch it? Or is it just watched by city dwelling cineastes? The film is encapsulated in a particular world where those concerns are very, very real to its protagonists, and therein lies the film’s authenticity. That the film proves to be some kind of anomaly in terms of its classification we should consider to its advantage, it is what it is without concessions to anything else. Take a look at more of our film reviews. #AndrewMoore #TheatricalReleases #WorldCinema #InUKCinemasNow

Directed by Mark D Ferguson Starring Euan Bennet, Steve Patrick, Michael Cooke, Ashley Ford & Andy S. McEwan Short film review by Dean Pettipher Against formidable odds posed principally by Time, a group of rising filmmakers based in Glasgow, Scotland, have pulled off a remarkable arrangement of the moving image art form. Mark D Ferguson has led a team in embracing the thrill of the 48 Hour Film Challenge and consequently crafted an alluring mosaic of fantasy and drama with a hint of comedy that leaves behind a number of discomforting unanswered questions, shedding an intriguing light upon the potentially devastating penalties that might result from the outright ignorance of such questions. Broadfoot’s Magical Adventure is, in the best possible and most plausible manner, quite disturbing, oozing with connotations that convey a noteworthy but above all impressive likeness with Lynne Ramsay’s 2011 feature-length drama, We Need to Talk About Kevin, for both productions instil an ever-growing concern within audiences that something is about to go wrong. Horribly wrong. The tragic course set in motion, by running in the opposite direction to one’s problems or willingly dismissing those issues as non-existent, is all but inevitable, were it not for the faint amount of hope for divine intervention, which remains defiant throughout the picture as a result of casting and dialogue in particular that click excellently into place together, producing likeable and relatable characters. Of course the feature is not perfect. Not irregularly do moments of high emotional intensity lack that ostensibly small but ultimately powerful extra feature, which might make the heart pound that much faster. Albeit the acting is no less than engaging and believable, at times the sense of clearly fatal danger or urgency could be more greatly appreciated, perhaps through a tear, shaking and slightly increased levels of cruelty or distress in the vocal expression from the actors. These scenes are by no means ruined, however, for the chillingly suspenseful musical score from Andy Clark induces shivers that rise and fall with expert pace akin to that enjoyed while listening to the great movie themes from Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975) and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960). Moreover, the depth of heart and soul with which the actors interact with one another in order to emphasize the strength or indeed the lack of character-to-character connection concerned, as well as their careful interactions with major symbols of the adventure, which are superbly supported by care-filled camera shots that demand the film be watched at least twice, just in case the audience missed something integral to the sheer heights of meaning within the picture, all testify to the success of the 48 Hour Film Project in revealing some striking movie-making talent. While not essential for enjoying Broadfoot’s Magical Adventure, the film’s significance is only heightened by even a small degree of information regarding its crafting. The collaborators had just forty-eight hours to make a movie, which entailed the writing, the shooting, the editing and all of the other facets in between. To begin the process, Ferguson and the team had the genre of their film determined by fate, courtesy of a prize draw styled allocation featuring a hat. They were then bound by a handful of rules, serving to make the process more interesting and fun, rather than seeking to limit creativity. A specific character, prop and line of dialogue were all deemed essential elements to be included at some point in the movie. The completed work illustrates that the holy trinity of crucial elements were seamlessly woven into the project. Ferguson’s team, known as Kirkwood’s Babies, have shown that high quality films can be made in forty-eight hours. Moreover, although life might have presented numerous opportunities for drama to occur off-screen, the audience may never know for certain if that very likely set of circumstances plagued this project, for the artists both in and behind the scenes express the key notions promoted by the 48 Hour Film Project, which are arguably the undying reasons why the film industry remains an attractive industry to work in despite the immense challenges it presents for newcomers especially. Among other things, film is about teamwork. Film is about fun. And film, more crucially for everyone involved in the making of Broadfoot’s Magical Adventure, is about taking action for one’s dreams. Filmmaking does not revolve around simply talking about ambitions but instead taking practical steps in order to achieve them. For that reason alone, Kirkwood’s Babies are to be commended, for Broadfoot’s Magical Adventure, beyond being a story fuelled by themes of both Scottish and international significance, such as drugs, friendship and national identity, wonderfully represents an inspirational, determined pursuit of passion. Want to read more short film reviews? #DeanPettipher #Shortfilmreviews #filmreviews #ShortFilm48 #Filmmaking

Starring: Carme Calvell, Michelle Jenner, Dani Rovira, Camilo Garcia, Toni Mora Director: Enrique Gato Film Review by Colin Lomas For every Inside Out there are a hundred Capture the Flag’s. Considering the absurd amount of time and effort an animation feature takes to produce it’s surprising that so often such little effort is made with the script and character development. Where animation masterminds Pixar really excel, putting technology aside for one moment, is how perfectly they make you connect with their characters, and this is no more obvious than when you watch a film where this simply doesn’t happen. Home failed miserably with a great cast simply because all of the characters were so utterly annoying, Big Hero 6 an example of the contrary. The Incredibles 2 and Toy Story 4 are both released in the next few years and people (adults and children) care, and there’s a reason for that. A great commercial animation should be judged on its ability to fascinate the kids, gratify the parents yet produce something that is more than a kid’s film which gratifies the parents; a movie that stands on its own as an objective piece of work, not something that qualifies as a two hour cheapo Saturday morning outing for dads. Capture the Flag is a perfect example of the type of tripe that will saturate the throwaway Sunday one pound a seat mini-mornings across the UK multiplexes for months to come. The film focuses on the Goldwing family; grandad Frank who missed out on his one chance to land on the moon, his son Scott, a potential astronaut on the ever pushed-back NASA missions and Mike, the youngster trying to reconcile his dad and grandad who haven’t spoken for years for reasons initially unknown. A naughty billionaire, Richard Carson, attempts to discredit the initial moon landings as a diversion to his plans to mine Helium-3 from the satellite as an endeavour at super-villainy world energy control, and thus it quickly becomes super villain versus the Goldwings. There is potential for some good storylines here yet the animated film concentrates purely on silly action sequences and the child action-buck rather than anything remotely interesting. The film does try and engage its older audience at times, specifically with a clip of the not-dead Stanley Kubrick, working for Carson, directing a faked moon landing, but that’s about it. The storyline is disjointed and rushed, and at no point feels like one you care about the outcome of. The other annoyance is that some of the main characters are so visually similar to characters from other films; Carson is almost identical in mannerisms and looks to Syndrome from the Incredibles, Frank Goldwing is basically Professor Callaghan from Big Hero 6 and Mike Goldwing’s young sister is a lazily recreated version of Boo from Monsters Inc. It may seem fastidious to point out such similarities but it enhances the feeling of indolent character development that is such a persistent irritation throughout. Sometimes it feels harsh critiquing a film that is so obviously a throwaway movie directed at keeping kids vaguely amused for ninety minutes, but for all that Capture the Flag is a dull incidental movie that no-one will ever remotely remember. Want to read more film reviews? #Animation #ColinLomas #TheatricalReleases #filmreviews

★★★ Directed by Quentin Tarantino Starring Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tim Roth and Bruce Dern Film review by Alexander Halsall The Hateful Eight, the eighth film by Quentin Tarantino (If like Tarantino you count Kill Bill as a single piece) and the second foray into the western genre for the acclaimed filmmaker following the critical and commercial successes of Django Unchained. The film takes place in an intentionally vague amount of time not too long after the American civil war where a stagecoach carrying bounty hunter John Ruth (Kurt Russell, and his fantastic moustache), and his prisoner Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh) come across a stranded U.S Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson). Warren manages to secure passage with the pair to the stagecoach lodge ‘Minnie’s Haberdashery’ where a group of other various travelers have already sought refuge from an incoming blizzard. However not everyone may be as they seem. The Hateful Eight is blessed with stunning cinematography, with much having being made of the film being shot on 70mm film. Ralph Richardson makes the landscapes ooze off the screen and the intimate setting of the haberdashery becomes a grandiose atmospheric stage for our performers. Coupled with Ennio Morricone’s harrowingly stirring score, the end result is one of true cinematic beauty as the claustrophobic setting creates a powerfully unerring tension amongst the characters that echoes into the cinema itself. The aesthetic is the film’s greatest strength. However the film’s narrative is not as tight as its visuals. The slow build to Minnie’s haberdashery does not create enough interest through either dialogue (Tarantino’s heralded specialty) or character development. The narrative structure combined with some inconsistency in Tarantino’s usually infallible dialogue creates a somewhat uneven quality to the film. The inclusion of a somewhat indulgent and unnecessary narration sequence (voiced by Tarantino himself) was an unwelcome distraction and symptomatic of what the film’s main issue is. That it is too long and in need of a tighter cut version. Not to say the film doesn’t contain boisterous highlights at times, including a career reel monologue for Samuel L Jackson, who brings every inch of his incalculable charisma to the screen ably supported by Russell, Dern and Bichir in particular, amongst others. Despite its shortcomings The Hateful Eight is a worthwhile watch for its incredible atmosphere, and despite its flaws it remains an engaging, if sometimes frustrating, experience. With one of Jackson’s finest performances, and a beautiful score by the legendary Morricone I hope you find a lot to like in Tarantino’s Hateful Eight. Click here for more film reviews. #TheatricalReleases #AlexanderHalsall #filmreviews #QuentinTarantino #SamuelLJackson

★ Starring: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Toby Jones, Bill Nighy, Michael Gambon, Director: Oliver Parker Film review by Colin Lomas When news first emerged of a Dad’s Army film early last year, the main cry from the fans and general public alike was ‘but why?’. Unfortunately, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the end product does absolutely nothing to alter this. Beautiful German spy Rose Winters (Zeta-Jones) comes into a small town to gather information for the Nazis, blinds everyone with her looks, manipulates them to her bidding while everyone runs around suspecting everyone else but her of undercover nefariousness. Yes, it really is that derivative. It’s a plot that could have been lifted lock, stock from a hundred TV movies produced from 1960 until 1980, but tellingly probably none since. It’s obvious that a lot of thought has been put in to casting as every character is perfectly shaped to match his respective character from the original series, and every one really tries to do as good a job as possible. Admittedly Bill Nighy is incapable of playing anyone other than Bill Nighy but it works as bumbling Oxford boy Sergeant Wilson, Toby Jones is almost indistinguishable from Arthur Lowe as Captain Mainwaring, Tom Courtenay does a fair Clive Dunn impression and Gambon was born to play Godfrey. But casting alone does not a film make. At its core, the original Dad’s Army series was little more than a bunch of men in a church hall bickering with each other, the different character’s unique and exaggerated qualities carefully weaving a different angle into the argument and comedy as a whole. That can, and very successfully did, work for thirty minutes, but clearly it’s another thing entirely to treble the running time and expect it to still function at the desired level. So the writers, as is customary, took the whole thing out of its comfort zone with a more (supposedly) extensive plot. The problem is that the plot, script and dialogue are all utterly dreadful. It is simply not funny, nor is it interesting. At no point do you care one jot what happens to the characters or the storyline. Stir in a complete lack of humour and you’re left with a hollow shell of a movie that drags along and leaves you feeling utterly cheated. It manages to lack fun, pace, spirit and perhaps most surprisingly of all, nostalgia. It’s good that the home front’s respective wives get some screen-time, particularly Mrs Mainwaring who was never more than a sullen passing reference in the series, but it still doesn’t help. The film is littered with tired innuendos that are seemingly delivered at times with embarrassment, and the occasional poorly timed moments of slapstick are cringe worthy. It’s telling that the outtakes at the end of the movie are far funnier than anything in the film itself, although most of the audience will have rapidly headed for the exit by then like home fans fleeing a drubbing from a local rival. Is Dad’s Army a missed opportunity or an inevitable disappointment? It’s difficult to care. Either way it’s badly written, dull and simply not funny. Click here for more film reviews. #ColinLomas #TheatricalReleases #1Star #filmreviews #BillNighy #TobyJones #MichaelGambon #CatherineZetaJones #OliverParker

★★★★ CHESTER P FOR MAYOR: Hip Hop, Homelessness & the Housing Crisis Review Directed by Greg Hall Documentary review by Lorenzo Lombardi In London, England, there are over 70,000 homeless households. And even at that, over 2,500 people are sleeping rough each night on our pavements, benches and other such uncomfortable places. National services are available, but other than the occasional accommodation, not much light is at the end of the tunnel for these unfortunate masses. Sometimes, though, someone lends a caressing hand and informs us about these problems. That someone here is Joey Coombes, better known as rapper Chester P. CHESTER P FOR MAYOR: Hip Hop, Homelessness & the Housing Crisis is an effective documentary that follows the Task Force founder as he attempts to convey the truth about the effects of austerity and the housing crisis on the people of London. The self-named title is chosen after his campaign to help the homeless, and he does so by raising money from sales and subsequently buying necessities such as socks and sleeping bags. The titular rapper carries the documentary emotionally through his down-to-earth insights of the misfortunate and his personal experiences on the subject. Giving a heart-felt reflection, Chester tells us that his dad lived a life of vagrancy, which in turn makes him passionate about wanting to help these people. Like perusing a character study book, Chester P for Mayor invokes an increasing sense of sympathy for Chester as you relate to his layered search for reason behind the government’s apathy for the rough-sleepers and other unsheltered people occupying our streets. From the start of this documentary, a tone of revolution seems apparent. The introduction shows a montage activists holding banners, protestors burning things and other defiant images. When I first started watching this documentary, this introduction did not appeal to me, as it seemed to glorify anarchy, so it may drive away a number of viewers too. But, as you watch the documentary, you will fathom the extent of what people do when problems seemingly fester. Chester takes the viewer on an informative journey through themes mainly of injustice and hopelessness. These themes are solidified when unflinching interviews are undertaken of the people affected either physically or emotionally by the stark figures of the homeless. Interviewees include people who have taken a moral compass to act upon themselves through various methods. For example, a man by the alias of “DK” gives an anecdote revolving around him pouring concrete over a set of Tesco-owned “anti-homeless” spikes. Another interviewee, Jamie Mills, is part of a more legal group called “Lewisham Homeless Persons Union”, which are shown to be protesting outside a customer service centre. Some stridents I have with this film, though, are technical factors. While the film does well at conveying the subject matter, some audio production mishaps and abrupt editing moments bring the film down a notch. At one point, during an interview with a member of a group called Focus E15 discussing social housing. The problem is, you cannot hear half of what she is saying because of a song in the background and a decrease in sound quality. On the other hand, some of the editing is abrupt, as a scene sometimes opens to dialogue immediately without much respite. The documentary’s positives, however, outweigh the negatives. One of its positives is some of the deep, visceral images that are the focus in this documentary. A broken window is the subject of a shot before an interview starts, and a sequence of beautiful and heartfelt images show supplies arriving for the homeless, boosted by the consistently good, guitar-filled score. Its biggest positive, however, is Chester P and his approach to the subject matter. As suggested by my statement of his sympathy above, he is honest and wise when discussing the homeless, all while maintaining humility when discussing other matters like his music. The viewer is assured that they are put in firm hands with this documentary, as his passion and dedication to the subject is evident in every sentence he utters. Chester P’s urban documentary excels at both pertaining to the many aspects of the homeless problem in England, informing people about the myriad of problems in a relatable and often inexplicably verbal way. It also succeeds in giving the spotlight on the hip-hop artist’s selfless and benevolent personality. I did not fathom the extent of the homeless problem, but this dream mayor candidate has opened my mind. Want to read more film reviews? #LorenzoLombardi #Documentary #Urban #filmreviews