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Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo (Contains small spoilers) Hearing the news that the latest superhero franchise, Avengers: Infinity War, has broken the Box Office opening-weekend record, Avengers: Infinity War has clearly been a much highly anticipated movie for many, and with this comes the question on everyone’s lips; does this film live up to the hype? The Good: So many characters. With the majority of superheroes from different worlds appearing in this movie one would be bound to find joy in seeing their favourite character(s) work and interact alongside other heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and seeing how new relationships are quickly formed and developed. My particular favourite pairings were Iron Man and Spiderman teaming up with Dr. Strange, and Thor teaming up with The Guardians of the Galaxy. These interactions created many humorous moments, a necessity the audience needs for a broadly dire, tense situation. With so many heroes, one would assume that not everyone would play an important role. This was not the case. Although some characters had more screen time than others, the film made every role significant. Everyone had a part to play and every hero had their time to shine. As for the villains, well, maybe with the exception of Loki (Thor) and Eric Killmonger (Black Panther), Marvel has been accused of producing lacklustre ones, but here, Thanos‘ and his meddlesome crew make up for that. It is not necessarily their demeanour that is frightening, but their actions driven by their motives. They are deadly, and when Thanos says he wants to get rid of half the population in the entire universe, he means it. Fun and action packed. Right from the get-go, a real sense of urgency and danger was presented, and one could feel the impending threat upon the lives of all characters throughout the entirety of the film. The fighting and action scenes were fun and enthralling. From Wanda and Vision’s fight and flight, to Iron Man, Spiderman, Dr Strange and The Guardians of the Galaxy fighting Thanos, to the final Wakanda battle scenes, not one surpassed the other. One noteworthy scene was when Wanda, Black Widow and Okoye (Black Panther’s Bodyguard) teamed up to take on the only female villain.  This briefly evoked resonances and continued the actualisation of female empowerment that the “Black Panther” film successfully portrayed. Emotional. Accompanying the action were emotional character developments, particularly the relationship between Thanos and Gamora.  We learn a great deal about both their pasts and the events that drives them.  We are encouraged to understand their motives and state of mind, and thus, are more emotionally attached to them, though they are seen as evil and cold. Emotional scenes were few, but when they did occur, they were powerful. They pulled at the very heartstrings of what makes most of these characters so likeable, and it is these scenes that prevent this movie from being just a typical action flick. The Bad: Jump to the future. There were a few pieces missing, or at least part of the story we didn’t get to see. The biggest example occurs at the beginning.  We somewhat start from where Thor: Ragnorok left off. Thanos is aboard Thor’s ship trying to get to the Space gemstone Loki holds. We see dead bodies everywhere, so it is assumed that a battle of some sort has occurred.  But we didn’t get to see this, and so we did not get to see the characters we liked in Thor: Ragnorok, such as the humorous Korg, and the brave, yet drunkard, Valkerie. Another example is the fact that we see Thanos with the purple Power gemstone. The last time we saw this gemstone was in the safe hands of the Xandar government in The Guardians of the Galaxy, but we are only briefly told that “two weeks ago” Thanos stole the gemstone and, while he was at it, demolished the planet. One tiny part of the storyline which was overlooked was the love interest between Wanda and Vision.  Although emotionally rooting for the pair, not to actually see their relationship develop from the start made any feelings for them seem forced.  As someone who has developed a great interest in the MCU and its characters over the past decade, I want to see every important thing that happens to them, and I mean EVERYTHING. So not seeing Wanda and Vision throughout the course of their relationship meant that their fate at the end of the film had less of an emotional impact than it should have done.  Perhaps there will be more footage in an extended Blue Ray Disc, but one likely reason for the edits is because.... The Film is two and a half hours long. Understandably, because of the huge impact that forgoes in the storyline, and the involvement of so many superheroes, this film had to be enduring and expansive. For some, sitting through a two and a half hour film may be uncomfortable, and while I admit that the film dragged just a teeny tiny bit, I had so much fun with this film that the majority of the two and a half hours flew by. No Hulk. Technically they still had the Hulk, but it was in the form of Bruce Banner. Huge fans of Mark Ruffalo would be pleased to see more of him on screen, but for those who wanted to see the green skinned monster, disappointment. Furthermore, no Hawkeye or Antman. Their absence was briefly explained, but one would expect that during this universal annihilation they would turn up at some point. The ending is not the end. We all know that this is a two-parter, so we all have to wait another year for the conclusion. The consolation is that we have other superhero films to enjoy until then: Deadpool 2, Antman and The Wasp, and Captain Marvel (and to an extent The Incredibles 2). So did this film live up to the hype? For me, it did. Just about. With new and old characters intertwined, an immense storyline, big action sequences, all mixed with a drop of emotional nuance, this film will bring so much joy to young kids and make most adults feel like a kid again. Definitely go see it, but be warned; its a long rollercoaster ride.

Director: Ryan Coogler (Contains mild spoilers) In under one month Black Panther has taken over $1 Billion dollars at the International Box Office, a huge feat for an all black cast; Hollywood, in the recent past, would never have considered the idea that black people being represented on the big screen in such a way could ever grab the attention of a worldwide audience. It is old out-dated ideas like this (ironically, as will be discussed, the main theme of Black Panther) that make the success of the movie grab the headlines and the attention of the media as it did, which was equally matched by the huge hype and anticipation. Whatever the reasons for this global phenomenon, it should hopefully pave the wave to secure more diversity in an industry where diversity should have happened a long long time ago. A sidestep continuation to Captain America: Civil War, we see Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), AKA T'Challa, take on the throne of Wakanda, a fictional African nation invisible to the outside world. The film introduces a country that adhesively follows strong traditions (first notably seen by the incredible and colourful costume and set design), whilst possessing new, modern, highly-conceited alien technology (new to us anyway), and this visual concept becomes the overall theme of the movie - old ideas vs new ones. Whilst the first chapter of the film is sluggish with its introduction of Wakanda and its traditions (one notably being the coronation ceremony and the ritual combat that challenges the rule of the throne), as well as T'Challa, we get to know some of the lesser known characters of the Marvel Universe - in particularly the women. Not only can we see this as a film for black kids growing up with a hero to identify with, but another film (the other being Wonder Woman) where little girls (and boys) can be inspired. Black Panther has an array of bad-ass, strong female characters. Okoye, (Danai Gurira), is head of the Wakanda Special Forces, sworn to protect the king at all costs. At times, she and her soldiers seemingly took the form of an all Grace Jones’ army, an actress who many probably saw for the first time take on a strong black female role in Conan The Destroyer and A View To A Kill. Okoye becomes of great interest when her traditional values is challenged when the new king comes into power. She loves and respects T’Challa, but her love for him cannot overwrite the ways of Wakanda law, and thus, decides to make a heartbreaking choice to stay and protect and advice the new king. T'Challa's younger, humorous, very likeable sister, Shuri (Leitita Wright), is head of the alien technology progress, and brings a James ‘Bondesque’ sonority by providing her brother with new gadgets aiding his quest to take down Ulyssess Klau (Andy Serkis). Her demeanour and personality brings a necessary humour to a film that is driven by deep, serious, dark undertones. Opposing Okoye's traditional values is the restrained love interest of Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) who represents the template of what the future of Wakanda should be; a country that preserves its traditions, but looks outwardly to others in desperate need or to those who wish to establish a more unified international community. All women fight. All women protect the king. All women are women you do not want to mess with. In a time of The Harvey Weinstein scandal, its a message thats very well-timed and very much needed. In the middle of the film we learn through the main antagonist, Eric “Killmonger” Stevens (Michael B. Jordan), AKA N’Jadaka, that T’Challa’s father’s past decisions, which were based on old traditions, led to the uprising aggressions of Eric. T’Challa has to face the fact that his father made great consequential mistakes, and that it is Wakanda itself that has brought on its own destruction. This leads to questions about what sort of king T’Challa wants to be. On one hand, through tradition and keeping themselves to themselves, Wakanda has survived and prospered. On the other, with a fast changing world, new enemies and new forms of attack can not always be tackled alone. In general, the film is a great watch and a must see for reasons already stated. Chadwick Boseman, like his character T’Challa, had a heavy weight on his shoulders taking on a historic, highly anticipated role, who played it with great authentic regality. However, perhaps due to the amount of hype, the movie felt a little bit lacklustre (stressing a little bit). Furthermore, Marvel films have an infamous plague of lacklustre antagonists, something Black Panther is not immune to. Eric is an interesting character and we do identify and sympathise with his cause, but we only get to really meet him half way through the movie where most of his back story is explained rather than shown. For example, he makes a very compelling speech about how Wakanda has just stood by in its riches and prosperity whilst other black people all over the world have suffered. American Slavery, The Civil Rights Movement, #Black Lives Matter, Charlottesville, Rodney King, Stephen Lawrence, are just a few images that spring to mind. We do get a brief encounter in the beginning mirroring the kidnapping of Nigerian women by Boko Haram, but seeing more visuals like these would have helped the audience identify the drive and motive of Eric’s assailments even further. Eric also reveals that his scars - which lay inherent all over his body - symbolises every person that he has killed. Again, some form of visuals of his bloodshed would have helped enhance his ferocity and skill as a fighter and killer and make him seem even more deadly and threatening. Similar problems could also be said about Ulyssess Klau, the South African smuggler who was the first outsider to enter Wakanda and the first outsider to escape it. His likeable, animated, over-the-top character was somewhat problematic. As the main antagonist for the first part of the film, he inadvertently took away most of the ‘bad guy role’ time from Eric. At the same time, his departure half way in the film meant we didn’t really attach ourselves to his character, and thus, our time with him felt insignificant and ineffective. There is also the questionable role of Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman), a CIA agent previously seen in Captain America: Civil War. After being injured, the only way to save him was to take him to Wakanda. Okoye reminds the king that this practice is not the Wakanda way, but with opposing arguments from Nakia, T’Challa reluctantly brings him to his homeland. A character like Everett would have conventionally given exposition, helping the audience understand the world a lot better. But his introduction to Wakanda occurs more than half way through, and by this time we have seen most of Wakanda already. Everett does help in the final war scenes, but that did not help his role feel any less pointless. Most hardcore comic book fans will know that Everett was an important character and key ally to Black Panther in the novels. Everett’s creator, Christopher Priest, said to newsarama.com in 2015 “...in order for Black Panther to succeed, it needed a white male at the centre, and that white male had to give voice to the audience's misgivings or apprehensions or assumptions about this character... I think that his stream of conscious narrative is a window into things I imagine many whites say or at least think when no blacks are around; myths about black culture and behaviour.”. It is a shame that the film did not come anywhere close to functioning Everett’s character in such a way. Other characters like W’kabi and Zuri (played by Daniel Kaluuya and Forest Whittaker respectively) were fine in their roles, but their roles were too small for actors with such high authority and calibre. Special effects were a fairly disappointing spectacle. The final panther fight scene had a lot of problems with realism, whilst the vibranium nano bots that seemed to be the solution to all problems felt uninspired and unoriginal, failing to take advantage of an opportunity to create something different and out-of-this-world with the alien tech. Although the film does not quite live up to the hype, and despite some minor flaws, Black Panther proves to be a force of paving the way for other minority groups to break into the big Hollywood scene, and justifies the notion that more diversity in film can mean global success. With its underlining themes amalgamated with wonderful cinematography, colourful costume and set design, acting, compelling action scenes (those set in South Korea were highly entertaining), Black Panther makes a great watch and should bring some joy to those of all ages and especially to hard core Marvel fans. Not as good as some of its Marvel predecessors such as The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain America: Civil War, and even most recently Thor: Ragnorok, what the film does that the other Marvel films do not, is challenge Hollywood myths and ideology, inspiring and giving hope that a different, brighter, outward looking world is forthcoming. (Film Rating: 7/10)

Directed by the one and only Guillermo Del Toro, and starring Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Doug Jones, Richard Jenkins and Octavia Spencer. The Shape of Water is the story of a mute by the name of Eliza, who works as a janitor in a top secret facility in the 1960’s. Run by Strickland (Shannon), the government are harbouring something extraordinary that Eliza just happens to stumble across whilst cleaning in a certain area, when she realises what this creature is, she soon realises that love isn’t only a thing meant to be shared by two humans. Now this film sweeped up at the oscars, Taking best picture, best score, best production design and also best director. I was worried that this film would’ve been completely overhyped and disappointing to me. I’m so happy to say that I’ve completely eaten those words and this film is so so worthy of the Best Picture award. The Shape of Water is Del Toro’s best work in years. It’s an absolute spectacle to watch, every scene is just so scattered with little things here and there and all around the screen, and the deeper meaning behind the film is just gorgeous. I’ve never felt so emotionally connected to a mute and a monster, who also can’t talk. Acting wise, no surprises here that it’s acted superbly. Sally Hawkins is incredible, if it wasn’t for Francis McDormand, then I think Hawkins would’ve taken best actress, you feel every inch of emotion from her and she doesn’t speak a word throughout. You really feel her pain, or her happiness, or any emotion she’s feeling, and that’s just by facial expressions and hand gestures, and that just blew me away, I don’t think I’ve ever seen that done so well, Sally Hawkins take a bow, it’s an incredible performance. Michael Shannon was my personal standout though, he floored me as Strickland. He’s one of those proper All American, 1960s father figures who constantly needs to be in control, otherwise he gets all pissy and feels insecure in my opinion. Michael Shannon is always brilliant and always delivers, and this is no excuse, he’s fantastic in this, a truly villainous human who’ll stop at nothing to sabotage certain plans. The secondary characters are also really great, Richard Jenkins as Eliza’s friend and neighbour is also a real stand out, doing what he possibly can to help the one person in his life, you can see he loves her, not in the generic romantic way, but in a way that’s almost like family, a true friend, and you can tell he’d be lonelier than ever if he lost her. Octavia Spencer is also brilliant, but again, what isn’t she brilliant in at this point? If you can’t tell by now, I adored The Shape of Water, the pacing is perfect, every scene was fantastic, the meaning behind the film was emotional and I can see it hitting a few people emotionally harder than others. I don’t think this is a film for everyone, I don’t think all scenes are gonna mesh with everyone and I think some people are going to be confused with the visual imagery and possibly offended by certain scenes. But for me, this is a perfect, gorgeous and heartfelt film, and truly is a remarkable love story. I adore The Shape of Water.

Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to carry on reading this, about a film starring an absolute nutter, in which he tries to kill himself by jumping from helicopters and other modes of transport, to stop a nuclear bomb, but in all fairness, ends up being a being a pretty decent action film.  📷Originally posted by mastersofthe80s Yep, everyone’s favourite Scientologist returns as Ethan Hunt in film number 6 of Mission Impossible. It’s a very good film, I don’t remember seeing 5, these films just blend into one big mash up of Tom Cruise running around saving the day now. But you didn’t need to see 5 to see 6, it was pretty self-explanatory about the recent events, who the bad guys were, and there is a lot of exposition to give newer audiences an idea of what is going on. So the story itself was rather good, it didn’t feel dragged out (despite being nearly 2 and a half hour long) nor did it skip over the narrative and just get to the action. There were enough twists and turns to keep you guessing, although it is pretty obvious what the main reveal is.  The action scenes are very impressive. You know how you normally watch a film and you can pretty much guess that there is a stunt double or a huge green screen backdrop being filmed somewhere in Luton, well in Mission Impossible, I genuinely don’t have an idea anymore. I mean there’s no way that Tom Cruise, the actor, the megastar, the millionaire would willingly dangle from a helicopter by himself. I know there are supports and stuff (I think) but who knows what could happen. I know the man is absolutely nuts, and that Scientologists probably don’t believe in gravity or death but I was seriously impressed watching the stunts. Fair play to the guy. The epicness of each action scene was an improvement on the previous one, and technically it looked stunning. I don’t really get excited about stunts now because they are all pretty much the same, few booms and a bit of fire but this was another level of craziness.  📷Originally posted by gothamsreck0ning We have to talk about this guy. Firstly, look at all that masculinity. How incredible that the more masculine he is e.g. reloading his guns to punch someone, the more prominent his manly features are. LOOK AT THE BEARD! Honestly I’ve been looking at this for a solid 5 minutes and I can’t quite get over how hilarious this looks. How does the beard change like that? Could it be an accident with the lighting? Is it because he puffs out his cheeks therefore showing more beard from underneath? Who knows. But we do know that he doesn’t kill the guy, but his recent comments about the #metoo movement probably has killed his chances with women. Who am I kidding, look at the man, he looks like a bloody God. I feel sorry for him because he has come under a lot of stick with what he has said, it’s quite clear what he has meant to say but unfortunately it’s come across in a bad way. He’s worried about flirting with women in case they don’t want a flirt and it then makes him look like a bad guy. Look mate, just don’t be a creep with women, that’s all women want. Just respect them, talk to them without being weird, don’t grope. We all like a cheeky flirt Henry, especially me wink wink. Just kidding, I don’t fancy people who can magical grow a chest pocket out of thin air.  4/5 You know, I went into this film after an incredibly long, stressful and frustrating shift at the cinema where I work and I really wasn’t expecting a lot. I was hoping for some decent action film that has got some good moments, nothing special but something that passes the time. And I was pleasantly surprised that it had some very good moments that turned out to be a very good action film.

(MONDAY 23 MAY 2022 • 8:15pm • Prince Charles Cinema • 7 Leicester Pl, London WC2H 7BY, United Kingdom) https://princecharlescinema.com/PrinceCharlesCinema.dll/WhatsOn?f=16659095 "Boyhood" (2014) Filmed over 12 years with the same cast, "Boyhood" is a story of growing up as seen through the eyes of a child named Mason (Ellar Coltrane), who literally grows up on screen before our eyes. Single Mom Olivia (Patricia Arquette) and Dad Mason Sr. (Ethan Hawke) charts the rocky terrain of childhood. Snapshots of adolescence from road trips and family dinners to birthdays and graduations and all the moments in between become transcendent, set to a soundtrack spanning the years from Coldplay's 'Yellow' to Arcade 'Fire's Deep Blue'. "Boyhood" is both a nostalgic time capsule of the recent past and an ode to growing up and parenting. It's impossible to watch Mason and his family without thinking about our own journey. "Boyhood" takes a one-of-a-kind trip, at once epic and intimate, through the exhilaration of childhood, the seismic shifts of a modern family and the very passage of time. The film tracks 6 year-old Mason over life’s most radically fluctuating decade, through a familiar whirl of family moves, family controversies, faltering marriages, re-marriages, new schools, first loves, lost loves, good times, scary times and a constantly unfolding mix of heartbreak and wonder. But the results are unpredictable, as one moment braids into the next, entwining into a deeply personal experience of the incidents that shape us as we grow up and the ever-changing nature of our lives. As the story begins, dreamy-eyed grade-schooler Mason faces upheaval, his devoted, struggling single mom Olivia has decided to move him and older sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater) to Houston, just as their long-absent father Mason Sr. returns from Alaska to re-enter their world. Thus begins life’s non-stop flux. Yet through a tide of parents and stepparents, girls, teachers and bosses, dangers, yearnings and creative passions, Mason emerges to head down his own road. Who are you going to be when you grow up and what’s your life going to be like? As a kid, of course, everything feels much more simple and now there’s so much more that we can see now about how dense and complicated this family’s relationships are. Sister and brother is a really kind of awkward relationship when you’re a kid, and we've that in the beginning because we're more stand-offish with each other at first, and there's more a feeling of rivalry. But that changed a lot as we get older. A dynamic sense of motion underlies the structure of "Boyhood", allowing the audience to be acutely conscious of time’s trajectory and time’s pull, even as they are caught in the grip of the day-to-day events unfolding throughout Mason’s youth. There's a sense that Mason’s life could take any infinite number of turns from this point forward, but all we know for sure is where he has been. "Boyhood" is almost just as much a view of motherhood, as the dance between mother and son plays out while Mason begins in all kinds of ways to assert his independence. Olivia is flawed, and she could be seen as passive at times, but we also consider her a brave mom, a woman who's always trying to balance her own passions with doing the best that she could for her kids. For example, the scene late in the film where Olivia watches Mason going off to school is really quite the opposite of that same scene in our life when we went off to school, but we also remember it being very intense and heavy, and it seemed that Olivia’s is an equally human and valid kind of reaction. Olivia’s interactions with men, with her children’s father, Mason Sr., as well as a series of challenging, at times abusive, partners she takes up with along with the way, revealing as they do the way we all struggle to really see other people for who and what they're. With Mason Sr., she has sort of put him in this permanent box labeled irresponsible and she sees herself as the only one who has done the hard, day-to-day work of raising these kids. But, of course, she also never sees her ex when he's with the kids, or what kind of father he's really like. She thinks she’s doing what she should be doing for her kids, looking for a stable situation for them, but she can’t see, not the way we can looking back at it, that she's sometimes wearing blinders. Despite the blinders, despite the inevitable stumbles and dangers, Olivia is rewarded with two intriguingly strong, sensitive young adults who really do seem ready, as ready as any of us ever are, to take on the modern world. Movies have always been about playing with time , about trying to snatch the moments that relentlessly flow through our daily lives and etch them to where we can get some perspective; or about diving into the mythic, dream-like dimensions where time is put through the blender. Even so, nearly all fictional movies are, by practical necessity, made over a period of weeks or months. But could a contemporary drama be made over a far greater stretch, say in the time it takes for one little boy to evolve, year-by-year, shift-by-shift, into a young adult. It's a movie about the singularly private emotions and hard-to-describe experience of childhood, but childhood is such vast territory. It's like taking a great leap of faith into the future. Most artistic endeavors strive to have a certain amount of control but there are elements of this that would be out of anyone’s control. There are going to be physical and emotional changes and that's embraced. Over a very extended range, beyond the life of most stage, film and television characters, going further and further as they revisited them anew each year in shifting circumstances. It's not only about leaping, but also about staying patient, taking the long view, which is not Hollywood’s standard modus operandi. The "Before" series explored the impact of time on everyday lives,revisiting the same couple at three diverse junctures in their unfolding relationship, but it did so in a very different way from "Boyhood". Of course, one insurmountable problem of time is that it operates in concert with things like chance and uncertainty. People sometimes hear the idea and think ‘oh, it’s like a documentary’ or it’s similar to Michael Apted’s 7-UP. But this isn’t a documentary, it’s a narrative film made over 12 years, which is something quite different. It’s rare to see someone trying to use the medium in a new way, to explore time in a new way. Seeing the film for the first time is an emotional, even cathartic, experience. Written by Gregory Mann

He’s no longer dormant. He only knows how to keep moving and to keep killing. And he will kill again unless he’s captured. Exactly 40 years ago the film “Halloween“, directed by John Carpenter, was released. A milestone in the slasher genre. It was in this film that Laurie Strode (a very young Jamie Lee Curtis) escaped from the psychopath Michael Myers in the nick of time. And so the legend about Myers arose. And now, 40 years later, the follow-up appears. To my surprise, this is already the 11th movie in the “Halloween” universe. No idea what happened in the other episodes, because I never bothered to watch them. And even though I feared this would simply be a continuation of the same concept (and it sure is) and that I would have a “haven’t-I-seen-this-before” feeling, I have to admit it. I kind of liked this movie. Old skool horror. Maybe this has to do with the nostalgic value of this film. Everything feels like the original film. The same creepy soundtrack is used. Even the font used in the credits has a nice old-fashioned look. Jamie Lee Curtis is also back again. Again it takes place in the Halloween period. And the masked Michael Myers bumps into fresh meat once more. And he’s eager to plant his butcher’s knife in their body. It feels like old-fashioned, old skool horror, as they appeared in the 70s. He’s coming back for sure. I only wondered about one thing. Was it really necessary to make a sequel to the famous first film? After all, you’ll know in advance that they are going to continue on the same thing and you can already predict which direction it will take. What gives new impetus is the older Laurie who has withdrawn into a house in the forest, protected by ingeniously invented systems and strategically placed spotlights. A kind of fort equipped with all sorts of gadgets to keep unwanted intruders out. There’s even a panic-room with a food supply enough to survive a 3rd world war plus an arsenal of weapons with which you can eradicate a whole flock of zombies. The reason why Laurie has installed herself in this way is of course Myers. Her paranoia about this figure hasn’t disappeared over the years and she expects that he’ll show up again someday. Extremely dangerous. Minimum security is enough. Films of this genre are usually richly filled with illogical reasoning and stupid behavior. For example, the extremely dangerous Michael Myers has been locked up in a highly secure establishment for 40 years. And during all those years, this psychopath hasn’t uttered a single word. The fact that a bunch of amateur journalists can talk to him for a moment, wouldn’t be admitted without additional measures in reality. They would be thoroughly searched so they couldn’t smuggle prohibited articles inside (like a mask for instance). But especially the fact that this notorious murderer is treated as an average patient during a transfer, could be called hilarious. An ordinary orange school bus with a few other detainees is used for this purpose. If it were me, he’d be captured in a block of concrete and he’d be guarded by a whole battalion of guards. I wouldn’t take the risk. As always, you as a viewer know what is about to happen. Not them apparently. A nerve-racking slasher. Well, fortunately, because otherwise, the movie “Halloween” wouldn’t be what we expected. A nerve-racking slasher in which Myers scares everyone by standing motionless and emotionless somewhere in a dark corner while observing. And everyone who crosses his path gets acquainted with the razor-sharp knife he carries with him. And as always, housewives, babysitters, and teenagers will be the victims. Unfortunately, all this didn’t have the desired effect on me. It wasn’t scary. Only the inevitable final fight provides the necessary tension for a moment. 10 More sequels? Needless to say that only Jamie Lee Curtis excels here as the stressed out grandmother who has been preparing for this confrontation for 40 years. The rest of the cast is secondary and the only reason why they are present is to raise the total number of casualties. Some characters are even annoying. And actually, it makes you happy that they are being murdered (like the bickering policemen who discussing their sandwiches). Apparently, Jason Blum wants to make 10 sequels of “Halloween“. I guess Jamie Lee Curtis won’t be in it. Because even though she still has the perfect feminine curves, she starts to look like a painting by Rembrandt. She’s slightly cracked and a cultural heritage. My rating 7/10 Links: IMDB

(Release Info London schedule; July 3rd, 2019, Curzon Aldgate, 2 Goodman's Fields, Canter Way, Whitechapel, London E1 8PS, United Kingdom, 8:50pm) https://www.curzoncinemas.com/aldgate/film-info/midsommar "Midsommar" Dani Ardor (Florence Pugh) and Christian (Jack Reynar) are a young American couple with a relationship on the brink of falling apart. But after a family tragedy befalls Dani, grief keeps them together, and Dani invites herself to join Christian and his friends on a trip to a once-in-a-lifetime midsummer festival in a remote Swedish village. What begins as a carefree summer adventure in a land of eternal sunlight takes a sinister turn when the insular villagers invite their guests to partake in festivities that render the pastoral paradise increasingly unnerving and viscerally disturbing. From director Ari Aster comes a dread-soaked cinematic fairy tale where a world of darkness unfolds in broad daylight. Dani is a young American woman navigating personal loss as her relationship with her boyfriend Christian crumbles. At the outset of "Midsommar", Dani’s relationship is on the rocks, as Christian selfishly places his academic pursuits and male friendships before Dani’s emotional needs. Then tragedy strikes. She suffers a devastating loss and becomes orphaned, left with nothing in the way of family except Christian. The closest person to her is this guy who's on the brink of leaving her. He’s decent enough that he doesn’t leave, given the situation. But it’s a matter of duty for Christian, and Dani is well aware of not being embraced by his friends. Those friends include Josh (William Jackson Harper), a 'PhD' student whose interests lean toward anthropology and folklore; Mark (Will Poulter), a caustic and chauvinistic goofball with negligible boundaries; and Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren), a Swedish exchange student who has invited his friends on a summer trip to his ancestral home in remote Scandinavia. After initially concealing the trip from her, Christian feels pressured to invite her along, much to the chagrin of his close-knit boys club. Josh, Mark, and Pelle simply want to cut loose with their own kind, threatened by anything that will distract them from their personal and selfsh goals, whether it’s furthering their academic glory or getting laid in Sweden. Eventually Christian caves, inviting Dani on the trip. She accepts a false invitation, knowing Christian’s friends don’t like her, and from here the movie becomes a question of how this toxic dynamic will resolve itself. He’s staying in the relationship out of obligation, and she’s clinging to him as a result, sensing he wants to leave, but also knowing she can’t survive on her own. They’re at a standstill. Their relationship should have ended a long while ago. Despite circumstances and the need for comfort, it continues. Complicating the dynamic is an unspoken academic rivalry between Josh, a natural-born scholar utilizing the trip to do research for his 'PhD' thesis on Pelle’s ancestors, 'The Hårga', and Christian, who doesn’t seem to have a genuine affinity for academia. The film establishes a quiet tension between them that explodes when Christian decides he's also going to write his dissertation on the customs and rituals of 'The Hårga'. As multiple relationships unravel over the course of the film, it becomes clear that everyone in this boys club is just out for themselves; they’re not even true friends to each other. From it's inception "Midsommar" is a horror movie, instead viewing the project as an epic adventure unfolding in a strange hermetic world. When 'The Americans' enter this landscape, they walk through pearly gates into a new realm. Arriving in Sweden, Dani and company travel to remote 'Hälsingland', where Pelle’s tribe is in the midst of celebrating a purification ritual occurring once every 90 years. Joining 'The Americans' are Simon (Archie Madewke) and Connie (Ellora Torchia), British travelers of color, an important clue to one of "Midsommar’s" more sinister undercurrents. After consuming psychedelic mushrooms, the new arrivals journey into the forest, eventually wandering through a wooden portal into what appears to be a shimmering fantasy world. It's a journey into the heart of darkness as an American couple, Dani and Christian, find themselves unexpectedly drawn into the world of a mysterious and dangerous primeval cult during a vacation getaway with their friends in a bucolic, hidden Swedish village. As Dani journeys from emotional neediness to questionable empowerment, the film examines a rich array of ideas, from personal fidelity to social influence to cultural legacy. Lying at the heart of "Midsommar" is the ancestral 'Hårga' village, a series of rustic buildings including a bunkhouse, kitchen, and temple set across a vast field nestled beneath an idyllic tree-lined ridge. As the outsiders acclimate to their new surroundings, participating in meals, ceremonies, and dances with the sixty-odd members of the tribe, they come to discover a close-knit, seemingly benevolent and even jubilant cult of revelers, each clad in customized white linen uniforms bearing runic symbols. But amidst the glaring and relentless sunlight, things soon take a darker turn. A young woman who travels to the ends of the earth, only to find herself indoctrinated into a chilling pagan cult. What appears to be a sunny paradise populated with friendly villagers frolicking in nature quickly shifts towards something sinister. As Dani battles her own inner demons, and Christian plunges deeper into the mysteries of 'Hårga' in the hope of achieving academic glory, the couple find themselves submerged in values, traditions and rituals that are disturbingly different from their own. It's a story of a woman who's losing her mind and her bearings, and it's very interesting to put her in a stressful situation where the sun is always up, and there’s no distinguishing between night and day. There's thematic resonance, given that Dani is not really directly examining her situation. Arriving near the end of the film is another engrossing and evocative piece, depicting Dani as she participates in 'The May Queen' festivities, alongside young women from the village who compete for the honor of being crowned 'May Queen'. They dance in tandem until they collapse one by one from exhaustion, and only the winner remains. "Midsommar" has always been a kind of horror movie about codependence. A dark fairy tale about a grieving woman who becomes transformed in a landscape of ancient pagan rituals, "Midsommar" centers on Dani’s gradual indoctrination as she pulls away from Christian and the turmoil of her past, toward a new life in a new family, inside a distant tribe and culture that's distinctly matriarchal. The film begins in the world of men, as Christian and his fellow academics jockey for professional success while making crude sexual jokes about the women in their lives, Dani among them. But as it opens up into the world of 'The Hårga', the story becomes increasingly female-dominated, culminating in a fertility rite that's among the most powerful and timely screen images in recent memory, a defiant statement on female agency in a time when men still routinely attempt to control women’s bodies. There’s a balance between men and women in 'Hårga', but women clearly have more power. Some of the guys in the movie are jerks. That said, this eventually reveals itself to be a story of female empowerment, albeit one that's bittersweet and not exactly clear-cut. Dani is empowered; but she’s also not. As 'The Americans' are guided through the archaic customs of 'The Hårga', Dani receives acceptance, empowerment, and even deification among the people of Pelle’s tribe, finding herself reborn through their ancient rituals. She begins to allow herself to hurt and feel all the overwhelming emotions she has been suppressing. It’s the first time she listens to her pain, and accepts it. It’s a perverse wish fulfillment story. It’s like this warped, fantastical version of what you might see and hear in a rural 'Hälsingland' village during a midsummer festival. On the costumes you see a combination of 'The Runic Alphabet and 'The Affekt Alphabet'. As a character grows up in the cult, he or she's assigned a specific rune, which corresponds with their unique background. 'Hårga' swoops in to give Dani what she's missing in her life and also take away what she hasn’t had the courage to eliminate. Dani, gets a taste of 'The Hårga’s' true motives, to surreptitiously recruit select outsiders into their customs and way of life. It’s no coincidence that several characters, including Josh, Simon and Connie are people of color stumbling into the overwhelmingly white environment of 'Hälsingland'. But it’s Dani and Christian, white 'Anglo Saxon Protestant Americans', who are initiated into the darker mysteries of 'Hårga'. In "Midsommar", the true villain is not the villagers themselves, who are merely acting out the same rituals they've for centuries, but rather their ideas, values, and customs, which find a new home inside Dani as the story reaches it's incendiary climax. That Dani finds herself empowered and transformed by these outmoded traditions is what lends the film it's unique power and horror; we don’t often sense poisonous ideas circulating in the world until they're already planted inside us. Once they take root, it can be too late. This film is based on James George Frazer’s 'The Golden Bough', a globe-hopping anthropological study of paganism as it yielded to 'Christianity', to the spiritual traditions of philosophers such as 'Rudolf Steiner'. We get a grasp on how people in rural and religious Scandinavian communities lived, from 500 years ago up until the present day. The film looks at the natural elements, how people took care of nature, including plants and animals, as well as the structural elements and the art that surrounded them, including wall paintings. Culture is very strong in these parts, we get a sense of how they communicated, which is more often than not through music. As we move darker, we find ourselves immersed in more nefarious customs, including Viking torture methods. Juggling darkness and light. The screenplay inserts a group of modern young Americans into the alien environment of an eerie cult performing a once-in-a-millennium series of rituals during a summertime festival in remote northern Sweden. The film concocts a tale of escalating horror and dread that unfurls in glorious, unrepentant daylight, during a time of year in Sweden when nightfall never completely arrives, plunging the outsiders into an additional layer of disorientation that, as "Midsommar" reveals it's deeper mysteries, coalesces into a hallucinatory freak-out. We've to look at it like an anthropologist might approach 'Candy Land'. In "Midsommar", every shot is a puzzle, with all parts moving individually, eventually becoming an entire field of orchestrated parts. Being part of the imagination is terrifying, and just as exciting. The initial image that sort of catalyzed "Midsommar" involved the sacrificial burning of a temple. Fitting the ‘breakup movie’ into a new setting, putting an operatic spin on the rote sort of cathartic ending we’ve seen in those movies before, you know, where the jilted protagonist burns the box containing all the items Dani collects over the course of the relationship she’s finally liberated herself from. So that by the end, even though this tribe remains a mystery, it’s also intricately defined. "Midsommar" pushes the horror genre in new and unpredictable directions. An apocalyptic adventure on a grand scale. The film constructs mesmerizing and unique world from the ground up, replete with it's own language, history, mythology, and traditions. It's a dark and hallucinatory fairy tale that's as thought provoking as it's viscerally disquieting.

(Release Info London schedule; April 28th, 2019, Electric Cinema, Notting Hill 191 Portobello Road, Notting Hill, England, W11 2ED, 10:00 AM) "Woman At War" Halla (Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir) declares a one-woman-war on the aluminium industry. She's prepared to risk everything to protect the pristine 'Icelandic Highlands' she loves. Until an orphan unexpectedly enters her life. Halla is a fifty-year-old independent woman. But behind the scenes of a quiet routine, she leads a double life as a passionate environmental activist. Known to others only by her alias 'The Woman Of The Mountain', Halla secretly wages a one-woman-war on the local aluminium industry. As Halla’s actions grow bolder, from petty vandalism to outright industrial sabotage, she succeeds in pausing the negotiations between 'The Icelandic Government' and the corporation building a new aluminium smelter. But right as she begins planning her biggest and boldest operation yet, she receives an unexpected letter that changes everything. Her application to adopt a child has finally been accepted and there's a little girl waiting for her in Ukraine. As Halla prepares to abandon her role as saboteur and saviour of 'The Highlands' to fulfil her dream of becoming a mother, she decides to plot one final attack to deal the aluminium industry a crippling blow. "Woman At War" is a classic narrative film with a clear story-arc for the main character. Actually it almost irritates how politically correct everything seems today. But that could maybe change tomorrow. In this case, Halla’s character comes organically through the story and what the drama of telling that story demands. Halla is a common name in Iceland, and one that carries with it quite a lot of historical and cultural reference. Halla and Eyvindur were the last outlaws in Iceland’s history, who are still famous for surviving on the run in the highlands for over 20 years back in 'The Seventeenth Century'. They're real mountain people, sheep thieves and rebels, and many stories have been told about their exploits and struggles. Around a century ago 'The Icelandic' poet and playwright Jóhann Sigurjónsson wrote a play about them, 'Eyvindur Of The Mountains' that reached the international stage and toured successfully in several countries. And exactly 100 years ago in 1918 Victor Sjöström, a Swedish filmmaker. made a film out of the legend called "The Outlaw And His Wife", in which he played the lead role himself. So the name 'Halla' does come with some nice baggage, at least for Icelandic audiences. This movie is meant to be a heroic tale set in a world of imminent threat. A heroic tale told as an adventure. A serious fairy tale told with a smile. The hero serves in this world as a kind of 'Artemis', the protector of the untouched and wild. Alone, facing a quickly changing planet, she assumes the role of saving mother earth and it's future generations. The point of view is very close to the hero’s, which is how and why we access her inner life. The hero is a musician. The hero is saving the world. The film has music. The musicians performing the music are visible. They're the inner forces that are battling within the hero’s soul. But there are certain things you've to do, even if they're dificult and dangerous. Otherwise you're not really a person, just a little shit. This is a film about a woman striving to be a real person. The ancient Greeks believed that creative individuals were possessed by a demon or rather that they're followed by a demon who inspired them with good ideas. That’s why Socrates genius was down to his good demon. A daimon could therefore be a muse of sorts, whispering good advice into the hero’s ear. In Rome this idea was transferred to the genius, which each individual had as a kind of guardian angel, following him from the cradle to the grave. Some Romans were less fortunate than others when it came to their genius and would blame it for their mishaps and bitter fates. And just like a Greek chorus they can address the hero as well as the audience, and emphasise important decisions with a powerful dance act. But there's another reason why to make the performance of the music visible, and that has to do with the idea of alienation. This idea goes back a long way in the history of theatre and show business. You could say that every time a musician is on camera playing the score, the film puts inverted commas around the scene, reminding us that we're right in the middle of a fiction and that behind all the pretence is some message or conclusion that the audience member must come to based on the spectacle. You could say that through this device comes to an agreement with the audience about what sort of film this is and what laws it abides by. Perhaps we need a creative helping hand to be willing to submit ourself to that sort of a tale. "Woman At War" shows humanity on the losing end of an efort to tame or dominate nature. It's a radical failure or foolishness. It’s very clear that nature’s rights should in fact be considered on the same level as human rights, and that’s a thread runs through the film. It seems evident that nature’s rights should be strongly protected in all constitutions and by local and international laws. We need to collectively realize that untouched naturehas an intrinsic right and necessity to exist, regardless of our human needs or our economic system. A more rational system in which we humans, if we wanted to spoil or use unblemished 'Nature' for our own needs, we would need to go through a process, maybe something like a trial, in order to be allowed to do that. These issues are really about the common good and the long-term interests of our existence as a whole. Just like the ability to take a person’s freedom away and keep them inside a prison for life. Now is the right time to look at this kind of approach. Add to this the strange paradox in some of our societies, 'The State', which in democratic countries is an instrument created by the people for the people, can be so easily manipulated by special interests and against what’s obviously the common welfare. When we look at the big, existential environmental challenge we face, and what has been happening, this becomes crystal clear. It can also sometimes be a good breeding ground for comedy, but in many other countries there's only tragedy. It even seems that state-power in certain countries is actively fighting for the other side. Until we come to the situation where the environmentalist becomes an enemy of the state.

(Release Info London schedule; October 18th, 2020) (Curzon Victoria, 58 Victoria Street, LONDON SW1E 6QW, United Kingdom 14:00) (ODEON Covent Garden, 135 Shaftesbury Avenue, LONDON WC2H 8AH, United Kingdom, 14:30●17:30) (Vue Cinema London - West End (Leicester Square), Leicester Square, 3 Cranbourn Street, LONDON WC2H 7AL, United Kingdom, 15:00) (Curzon Soho, 99 Shaftesbury Avenue, LONDON W1D 5DY, United Kingdom, 15:00) (ODEON Luxe Haymarket, 11/18 Panton Street, LONDON SW1Y 4DP, United Kingdom, 15:30) "I AM Greta" The story of teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg is told through compelling, never before-seen footage in this documentary following her rise to prominence and her global impact as she sparks school strikes and protests around the world. Starting with her one-person school strike for climate action outside 'The Swedish Parliament', the film follows Greta, a shy student with Asperger’, in her rise to prominence and her galvanizing global impact as she sparks school strikes around the world. The film culminates with her extraordinary wind-powered voyage across 'The Atlantic Ocean' to speak at 'The UN Climate Action Summit' in New York City. In 2018, 15-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg held a school strike outside her country’s 'Parliament' building in Stockholm. At first she sat alone, handing out information and answering questions from passersby. Slowly, others began to join her, and within months she had sparked a worldwide movement. "I AM Greta" offers a personal and inspiring glimpse inside Greta’s path to becoming an internationally known environmental activist. Shot in the style of cinéma vérité and with support from 'The Thunberg' family, cameras capture Greta’s meetings with government leaders, headline-making public appearances, and global protests. But they also depict Greta’s life outside of the moments visible on news channels worldwide; laughing at home with her family, writing impassioned speeches, and trying to handle the mounting stress of nonstop travel, public scrutiny and becoming the face of the climate change cause. Greta, who has 'Asperger’s Syndrome', impresses everyone from 'UN' delegates, to 'Pope Francis', to 'Hollywood A-listers' with her intricate knowledge of climate issues and unwavering dedication. However, as Greta’s celebrity grows, so does her frustration with politicians who don’t heed her warnings about climate change. As someone who thrives on routines and appreciates solitude, the unpredictable schedule and global visibility takes it's toll. Greta’s father, Svante, travels alongside his daughter and becomes deeply concerned by the hateful words, and even death threats, aimed at her by pundits, politicians and climate-change deniers. The film culminates with Greta’s arduous two-week journey by sailboat to 'The UN Climate Action Summit' in New York City, where she’s greeted by crowds chanting her name. Today, her 'Fridays For Future' movement has organized climate strikes on every continent except 'Antarctica'. When we first meet Greta, she's plans to do a sit-down strike to protest for the climate because she feels that no one is doing anything. The national election is coming up in Sweden and she wants to show how important this issue is. People start to stop by and ask questions, and she's very articulate. After three weeks, she decides to continue past the election, striking every Friday. Suddenly, the movement is starting to spread to other parts of Sweden. In the beginning, it's so hard to know. Is Greta going to be a lead figure in this movement, or is this film going to be more about the movement? She has this special perspective on the world. She isn't interested in always framing things nicely and being polite. Some moments aren’t easy to watch, like when Greta is having a tough time toward the end of the boat trip or when she’s reading hateful comments made about her on social media. The film captures the fullness of how it feels being Greta and being an activist dealing with this very hard issue. It’s incredible to see Greta evolve from her one-person protests in Sweden into a global icon. It’s timing, in the sense that the world has waited for someone to express frustration on the topic of climate change for a long time now. Nothing has happened, this panic is rising. And as you see in the film, she has this way to express it that just syncs with where climate change is at the moment. The years of constructive, creative, happy thinking, we’ve those years, and we’ve those figures. Now we’re moving into a period when the situation doesn’t look like that anymore. Anyone who watches the film can understand that young people aren't school striking just for fun. They're protesting because we don't have a choice, but sadly we're still stuck on square one. The changes and the level of awareness needed are nowhere to be seen today. All that we ask for is for our society to treat the climate crisis as a crisis, and give us a safe future. The film shows just how far that's from happening right now. It shows that the urgency of the scientific message isn't getting through. The world is waking up, and change is coming whether you like it or not. It’s a movie which brings you into the eye of the storm. Of course the movement has been affected by not being able to strike, Greta and her peers are very keen on following the scientific advice and have thus not done physical demonstrations. However we believe that the long term effect of what we now see with the response to 'Covid' is that young people will find that suddenly there's a crisis reaction and billions of euros and dollars available but for years they have been told that the climate crisis is too expensive and hard to deal with. Again the political system shows that it works short term and betrays future generations which can lead to even stronger reactions from activists in the future. Sometimes it’s good to see the world in black and white, because that’s how you can really see what’s uncomfortable. After seeing this movie, people get some extra respect for people that are different and people that have that style of saying what they think and pointing at problems instead of just shoving them under the carpet. We should embrace these people, because we need them to show what’s wrong. Also, the film highlights the growing gap between worsening climate impacts and warnings from scientists on the one hand, and the words and actions of world leaders on the other.

(Release Info UK schedule; Leeds International Film Festival, November 10th, 2019, Hyde Park Picture House, 73 Brudenell Rd, Leeds LS6 1JD, UK, 3:45 pm) https://hydeparkpicturehouse.co.uk/film/greener-grass?screeningID=1924 "Greener Grass" Jill (Jocelyn DeBoer) and Lisa (Dawn Luebbe) live in their perfect homes in their idyllic suburban community with their happy families. Their days are spent in the grocery store exchanging fashion tips and at birthday parties complimenting their neighbor's potluck dips. In this dark comedy of manners, soccer moms Jill and Lisa seek the approval of their friends; at all costs. This surreal world is just on the edge of consciousness; suburbia through the looking glass. Every adult wears painful braces on their straight teeth, couples coordinate meticulously pressed outfits, and coveted family members become pawns in this competition for acceptance. In a day-glo-colored, bizarro version of suburbia where adults wear braces on their already-straight teeth, everyone drives golf carts, and children magically turn into golden retrievers, Jill and Lisa are locked in a passive aggressive battle-of-the-wills that takes a turn into the sinister when Lisa systematically taking over every aspect of Jill’s life. As the women desperately vie for validation, they struggle to maintain pleasantry and normalcy, even when things get weird. And they do get weird. When Jill gifts Lisa her newborn baby in an altruistic gesture, paranoia overwhelms Jill while her fears and anxieties quickly unravel. Meanwhile, The Ref (Londale Theus Jr.), a psycho yoga teacher killer, is on the loose and Jill’s husband Nick (Beck Bennett) has developed a curious taste for pool water. That’s just the tip of the gloriously weird iceberg, a hilariously demented, 'Stepford Wives'-on-acid satire destined to be an instant cult classic. These girls are idiots! They might not have seemed like your typical baseball-cap-wearing, video-village-lurking characters. Jill, in head-to-toe pink with her son Dan (Sutton Johnston) by her side, a golden-retriever wearing khakis and a 'Purple Heart' pinned to his polo. Lisa, with a soccer ball pregnancy tucked up under lavender tulle, both of them wearing braces on their teeth. Years ago, they're put on a house team together at 'The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre' in New York. They bonded one chilly night when all 'The East' coasters had left early and the two girls are putting the chairs away. There was one piece of a black-and-white cookie left and, like an overplayed 'My Fair Lady' CD skipping, they entered a loop of 'No, please, you've it' and so on. Neither of them ate that piece of cookie that night. And after only a few short half-hours, they threw it away together. And it was at that moment the girls would be incredibly productive working together. Now, Earth to Little Helen (Dot Marie Jones). Would a couple of idiots choose to triple-threat their future? A movie that stars children, a baby, and a seven-month-old puppy. A movie where we chose not to show any vehicles other than golf carts. A movie that co-stars a soccer ball with half a dozen costume changes. And most importantly, a movie featuring so many of our aging friends that we've to make a 'Hail Mary' decision to give every adult in the damn thing braces to look younger. But, alas. Dot Jones can say whatever she wants because she’s a 15-time world arm wrestling champion and we've delicate elbows. But just like non-idiots George R.R. Martin, JK Rowling, and Rand McNally before, they've created a world with it's own logic, hand-drawn maps, and board games based off it. This world is a demented version of suburbia. And who better to satirize oh-so idyllic, polite America than these two Midwestern middle girls? Suburbia has never been so hilariously absurd as it's in "Greener Grass", where two eccentric housewifes are driven by her eagerness to please. In a residential suburb with a killer on the loose, the two housewives compete to have the best children, the best husband and, above all, the most beautiful teeth. In this stinging satire on 'The WASP Community', a baby is given away like a piece of clothing and a child morphs into a dog without anyone being shocked. Politeness is taken to extremes and the realm of appearances reaches the point of lunacy. An overly colorful, deliciously warped version of suburban America that feels like 'The Stepford Wives' at a lawn party and then snuck off to do acid, the film plays soccer-mom frenemies in deranged competition with one another. Golf carts, braces, golden retrievers, soccer balls, and yoga teachers all play way bigger roles than you’d expect. This 'Desperate Housewives' on acid throws a nasty blow at the clichéd image of American suburbia. "Greener Grass" fully commits to a demented version of suburbia as the film scrutinizes the willingness to endure extreme discomfort in exchange for conformity. A deliciously twisted comedy set in a demented, timeless suburbia where every adult wears braces on their straight teeth, couples coordinate meticulously pressed outfits, and coveted family members are swapped in more ways than one in this competition for acceptance. "Greener Grass" explores one’s willingness to endure present pain in exchange for future validation; or at least a perfect smile. The film confirms a gift for outrageous absurdity in this impressive dark comedy full of unsettling behavior.

(Release Info London schedule; July 6th, 2018, Curzon Cinemas) "Mary Shelley" "Mary Shelley" tells the story of Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (Elle Fanning), author of one of the world’s most famous Gothic novels ‘Frankenstein’, and her fiery, tempestuous relationship with renowned romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (Douglas Booth.) The pair are two outsiders constrained by polite society but bound together by a natural chemistry and progressive ideas that are beyond the boundaries of their age and time. Mary and Percy declare their love for each other and much to her family's horror they run away together, joined by Mary's half-sister Claire (Bel Powley.) In the midst of growing tension within their relationship during their stay at Lord Byron's (Tom Sturridge) house at Lake Geneva, the idea of 'Frankenstein' is conceived when a challenge is put to all houseguests to write a ghost story. An incredible character is created, which will loom large in popular culture for centuries to come, but society at the time puts little value in female authors. At the tender age of 18, Mary is forced to challenge these preconceptions, to protect her work and to forge her own identity. This film is about the arc of Mary’s journey transitioning from a young girl into an adult and a creator in her own right, saying; it’s a story of a girl growing up and finding her voice and stepping out of the shadows of her family. She's a free spirit, powerful and very attentive, she picks up on all things, she's curious and very observant. It goes from Mary being essentially a teenager to stepping into womanhood and standing for something that she has created, bucking the conventional norms of her society. Mary is not perfect, and makes questionable choices and mistakes throughout her journey. But she does not give in to disappointment or the agony of loss, she just pushes forward. She's an example of someone who takes the weight of misery and transforms it into a personal and profound work of art. It would have been very easy for her to give up at any point along the way, or to defer to her accomplished parents or brilliant husband, but she decided ultimately to find her own voice.     Percy Shelley is a complex character, a strange blend of charismatic genius, romantic poet, scandalous rebel and wildly irresponsible maverick. Percy Shelley is an anarchist; he wants to be a revolutionary. He’s much more than just this lover, this romantic poet, he's a flawed character. He has so many traits that are wonderful but there are so many that are just devastating for the people around him. He's constantly pursued by his demons and his desire to live a life that's so unconventional in those days. Percy is a man who walks into a room and women swooned. There's a scene between Mary and Percy when first she confronts him about his potential infidelity, it’s the moment in the story where Mary grows up. Lord Byron is broke and brave, unpredictable and passionate. He's an astonishing historical figure. These women, Claire and Mary, are incredibly forward thinking for their age and their time. They're like hippies in the sixties, they're ahead of their time. Relationships are the foundation of "Mary Shelley", providing a framework within which Mary craves out her own identity, pushing back against the expectations of society, the legacy of her parents and the overshadowing prowess of her partner. The various relationships that exist throughout this film, between Mary and her father William Godwin (Stephen Dillane), Mary and her sister Claire, the relationship between Mary and Percy, Claire and Lord Byron, Lord Byron and Percy, Lord Byron and John Polidori (Ben Hardy), Polidori and Mary and finally the interconnecting relationships between all the main characters Mary, Claire, Percy and Byron, underpin this film. Claire’s relationship with Mary is complicated. Perhaps Claire wants to be Mary. She's not jealous of her but she tried to emulate her. If Mary gets Shelley, then Claire will get Byron! But they love each other unconditionally even though they're half-sisters. She's in awe of Mary but she loves and adores her. They're ying and yang. In life and the reality of them is that one is a bit more elegant and erudite and educated and the other is more wild and frivolous but together they created a specific energy. Claire is not as formidable as Mary but without a doubt there's real love between these two half-sisters, they protect one another. The only parental figure in Mary’s life is her father, so when he dismisses all her writing it’s like a dagger to her heart. A man who's so respected in his field not believing in his daughter is so hard for her to take. All she wants is recognition from him. Percy is the one for her. With him she feels that they can take on the world and all that it throws at them, and they will be okay because they've each other. There are times she certainly questions her beliefs. But ultimately, she knows their love, this mad, huge crazy love story, is strong enough to withstand what's thrown at them. Being with Mary is for Percy a challenge, he challenges her to live this life with him. She's incredibly smart, had this fresh sexuality, she has a cheekiness to her and so he fell in love with this vision. Percy looks up to Byron; he's in awe of him. Byron is a star and at the time Percy really respected him and the way he's and what he stands for. Their relationship, if indeed you can call it that, is relatively complicated and quite unbalanced. Claire’s perceptions of it are potentially very different to Byron’s. Claire is a very determined woman, she doesn’t take no for an answer, she knows what she wants and it's Byron and even though it ends badly for her she believes in herself. Claire is not the bimbo of the trio; she's not a dumb little sister, she's very smart and she's fighting to make her mark in this trio. Their's an unconventional relationship, they live as a unit and there's clearly a close-ness between all three of them. Polidori’s relationship with Mary is kind of the antithesis of her relationship with Percy. He's the bad guy.     "Mary Shelley" is an English period film about the story of a young girl growing up who's trying to find her voice, surrounded by superstition that she wants to break free of. Mary was only 18 when she created and wrote 'Frankenstein'. The story essentially subverts everything that we think we know about the early 1800’s in England. We're blown away by the strength and fight that this extremely young woman found within her, and that the life of "Mary Shelley" is a powerful story that feels very relevant right now. Although set in the 1800’s, her journey is so modern and relevant to today’s world. Mary has a story to tell but society is not letting her tell it. Mary is the center of the piece and she's such a strong feminine force within a community. heavily dominated by men. It's split into two facets, Mary and 'The Monster'. Within Mary there's the love story with Percy, her strengths, her disappointments her huge loss and her inspiration. 'The Monster' theme is more about the ghost stories Mary herself is obsessed with, the otherworldliness and ultimately the darkness that 'The Monster' in-habits within her. She grows up in this very conservative culture, where women’s roles were much more rigid and opportunities were extremely limited. But she rose above it, and wrote a story that continues to capture the imagination of readers to this day. She chose to write a book that's so outside of the acceptable realms of literature for women, and created a genre that continues to be dominated by male voices. She writes a book that challenged religious doctrine and raised new ethical questions about the impact of uninhibited scientific experimentation would have on a society. Although they're set in two different times and worlds, Mary’s story does have some very interesting parallels to "Wadjda’s". Both young women were struggling against conservative social structures in order to pursue the lives they wanted to live. They're both women who unapologetically follow their hearts, against the norms and expectations of their societies, without compromise to achieve a personal triumph. What's interesting about this film is that you’re dealing with people who very much rebelled against and revolted against the kind of conformity of the period; these guys were free. Although the film is a period drama set in the 1800’s "Mary Shelley" has a very modern message. It’s about the emancipation of a young girl’s soul and that whatever period you're in you can recognize that desire for freedom. It’s a coming of age story about a girl who through her own life experience is able to express through her writing how the various conflicts and de-mons that she has to deal with comes to the fore. A young woman trying to find and own her voice, and that’s massively universal whether it takes place 200 years ago or two weeks ago. And you know 'Frankenstein' is also the precursor to all of science fiction and was written by a woman. The film is in a period of time of a couple of hundred years ago but you can relate to it now. They're pushing boundaries, take away the costumes and there's something in the film that every 18 or 19- year-old will relate to. Her life story is an important aspect of 'The Frankenstein' legacy, and it's a beloved work to so many people for so many different reasons. The film focuses on aspects of her personal journey that may not be that well known but are key to truly understanding everything that went into her writing. The journey of Frankenstein’s monster reflects many of the tragic events of her own life.     "Mary Shelley" is the remarkable true story of a woman who railed against the constraints of her society to create a story that would outlive the work of her contemporaries, including her brilliant parents and husband, to influence generations of writers and dreamers with an entirely new genre; science fiction. Her own story feels so strangely familiar because so much of it ended up allegorically in 'Frankenstein'. We all know the basic story, but her journey reveals so many layers and deeper philosophical elements that help explain the work’s appeal. A modern-day example is J.K. Rowling. Many of the problem’s that Mary Shelley faced continue to challenge women today. Philosophically the way in which Mary went after what she wanted in her life, without regard to moral or societal limitations, was extremely shocking to the public in her time. Whereas the same behavior would perhaps be more acceptable for a man, public pressure to be chaste and morally pure is still something that women struggle with today. Sadly, even her struggles to publish her book under her own name show a societal reluctance to embrace works of science, horror, or other traditionally ‘masculine’ themes from a female writer that continue to this day. Look at a book like 'The Outsiders'. Sarah Hinton had to abbreviate her name to S.E. Hinton so readers wouldn't know her gender just by looking at the cover. Whenever women write something out-side of the realm of acceptable topics for the gender-romance, cook books, children’s books, we see that there's still a long way to go in unrestricting the potential of the female voice in our society.    

(Release Info London schedule; August 25th, 2019, Cineworld Leicester Square, 5-6 Leicester Square, London WC2H 7NA, United Kingdom, 6:30 pm) http://www.frightfest.co.uk/2019films/index.html#sunday "Ready Or Not" "Ready Or Not" follows Grace (Samara Weaving), a young bride, as she joins her new husband’s Alex Le Domas (Mark O’Brien) rich, eccentric family in a time-honored tradition that turns into a lethal game with everyone fighting for their survival.   In "Ready Or Not", the stakes are high as a newlywed literally fights for her life, trying to survive her in-laws in a deadly game of hide and seek on her wedding night. Grace is a spirited young woman from modest beginnings who has been wooed by wealthy Alex. Their 18-month courtship is culminating in a marriage ceremony at his family estate, where the mansion is imposing and so is 'The Le Domas Clan', headed by Alex’s parents Tony (Henry Czerny) and Becky (Andie MacDowell). With a fortune built on board games, this eccentric family is bound by time-honored traditions. The rich really are different, Alex’s brother Daniel (Adam Brody) cautions Grace before she heads down the aisle. The wedding goes off without a hitch, but the carefully planned celebration has a detour mapped out for the bride. Grace, still in her wedding dress, unsuspectingly joins her new husband and in-laws for a midnight gathering to play what they describe as a traditional family game. As a new member of the family, she must draw a card from a deck to determine which game they will all play, as danger lingers in the air, Grace unsuspectingly chooses the rare 'Hide And Seek' card. With only a few moments head start, Grace is to leave Alex behind and stay hidden and quiet somewhere on the premises. The others fan out to find her before sunrise. Soon Grace makes the terrifying discovery that she's being hunted in lethal blood sport. Pushed to her limits physically and emotionally, Grace becomes hellbent on not only staying alive, but attempts to change the game forever by fighting back in any way she can. 'The Le Domas Family' is dysfunctional and deadly. On day one, with a bow-and-arrow being pointed at you, followed by a face being bashed in. Nice to meet you! The film places a young woman into next-level conflict with her new in-laws, a nocturnal fight for survival. Grace is the bride whose shocking discoveries about her new in-laws galvanize her into action. The weapon of choice for Grace in this scenario is, whatever she can get her hands on; yielding some nasty and funny surprises. The audience’s entry into the family’s bizarre backroom rituals comes through the story’s fish out of water heroine, Grace, whose unfortunate destiny is to play the family game to determine her fate. You pick the card and that's your fate, but the card also picks you. There’s a little underlying message that the devil is seeking out people who are pure of heart, and Grace is just that. He can’t wait to get rid of her. But the devil didn’t count on Grace fighting back. There's a fearlessness to the way that she approaches all of her performances, and this movie is going to live or die. With Grace we're turning on it's head the horror genre trope of the final girl; where in many horror films, you've a cast of innocents stalked by one psycho and one final girl remaining to challenge the killer. But in "Ready Or Not" Grace is the only intended victim, one whom several people are hunting. In a lot of horror films women in danger are crying or screaming. This film turns that on it's head and make Grace a bad-ass. What drives her to fight back to survive until the sun rises isn’t fear, although that definitely enters into it. Her fighting back has to be part of her personality as well as her actions. Even when Grace is in her most vulnerable and scared moments, there’s a confidence in the way that she approaches it which maintains believability. She has a choice to make. Is she going to be able to rise to the occasion? Is she going to be able to survive? The journey that Grace goes on pulls you in. Filthy rich and fully loaded, Becky is the matriarch of 'The Le Domas Clan' dominant and willing to pack a punch. She has a cool head and is able to keep things on track as things horribly spiral out of control. She’s very determined to see this through and also try to reestablish a relationship with her son, Alex. She's devoted to her family 100 percent, and they're who they're. She’s very protective of her family and wants things to work out; there's a deep love that she has for her son Alex, which grounds the story. Becky has a dark wit, but she's also the responsible one. No one plays dirtier than the ridiculously rich, and Tony Le Domas is no exception. He's the patriarch of 'The Le Domas Family'. Tony and Becky’s relationship is, he’s a little bit of a hothead and she’s constantly trying to keep him on track. There are things he will not let go. The camera might not be on Tony, and we might not have conversations with him, but he brings things to Tony in the background of a scene; it's so clear to him what the character called for. While 'The Le Domas' parents are reasonably secure in their perches, the next generation has to be a more conflicted group. Daniel is a dark and twisted son, who still carries with him childhood traumas from a previous family game gathering. Daniel brings a sense of humor to the story, so it isn't just darkness; he's very aware of not being one-note. The question within Daniel is there a good person in there? In "Ready Or Not", there’s a nice blend of what’s said and what’s not said. Alex is Grace’s newly minted husband. He's a prodigal son. He’s torn between his love for his family, his love for Grace and this horrible deal with the devil his family has made. Alex is the most complicated character in the story. He’s a man who thinks he can have everything without sacrificing anything. Alex definitely has his own moral compass. He's already conflicted when we meet him because he doesn’t really know how to broach the subject of his family’s traditions to Grace. Also, he’s used to the lifestyle that his family has provided for him even though at the same time he shuns it. There are moments where you see him fighting what’s underneath what he’s presenting. Emilie (Melanie Scrofano) is Daniel's over-energetic and deadly sister. Her character is a combination of clenched jaw and wide-eyed drug-fueled hyperactivity who has the heart of a sparrow. She's sort of the black sheep of the family. She tries her best and fails spectacularly; that’s why she’s turned to drugs. She’s married to Fitch Bradley and they've two children who are little brats. But she still wants to do right by her family. Charity (Elyse Levesque) is Daniel's wife. In this family game, tradition calls the shots, and Charity doesn’t fit into any one genre. Fitch (Kristian Bruun) is Emilie’s husband. He's a former frat boy, a little bit past his prime, who's very happy to be part of a very, very rich family. But he's not necessarily willing to make sacrifices. When he’s assigned an old-fashioned crossbow as his weapon, it’s, who’s supposed to be able to do anything with this? Proving that some family traditions are deadlier than others, Aunt Helene (Nicky Guadagni) is bloodthirsty and vengeful. She's a very bitter older woman; Aunt Helene is frustrated because she feels she could have been head honcho of the family. But when she was a young woman, she was led by her heart instead of by loyalty to her family. It’s not every movie you get to have a battle axe on set. Stevens (John Ralston) is the sinister head butler. He's an expert cleaner; in more ways than one. Stevens runs the show and is well aware of 'The Le Domas Family’s' idiosyncrasies. Once the wedding night doesn’t go as planned, he will go to any length to protect the household. Every character has a very fun death. Everyone getting bloody and there’s blood everywhere. All the deaths are devilishly put together. It’s absolutely disgusting. The kills encapsulate the tone of "Ready Or Not". They’re brutal and violent; yet at the same time you can’t help but giggle a little bit. Another iconic character is Grace's wedding dress. More than any other costume in the film, Grace’s wedding dress externalizes and expresses all that she fights through on this night of fright. The dress represents the course of the movie as a whole; we've always discuss how "Ready Or Not" starts grand and classical before it degrades and degrades. The camera moves get quicker and the music gets crazier. The dress is gorgeous at the start, but by the end? In watching the dress devolve and break down with Grace, audiences will see the garment mimic other memorable, and malleable costumes for genre movie heroines such as Carrie White’s prom dress in "Carrie; Tree Gelbman’s long-sleeved T-shirt in "Happy Death Day"; and 'The Bride' track suit and violently disrupted wedding dress in "Kill Bill". When you see Grace for the first time, you see the dress, and in it she ends up going to extremes. In the movie, there are 15-17 different looks all with the same dress in various stages of disrepair for Grace. Since Grace is, as she readily admits, a woman from humble beginnings marrying into a wealthy family, she has grown up idolizing someone like Kate Middleton, and now dresses as who she thinks the family would want to see. The dress needs to have a rich undertone and not be the classic off-white movie white. It's a warm cream color, almost yellow. The dress is a road map of what transpires with Grace. Grace sneaker shoes area sort of reference to her past life, and to show how down-to-earth and casual she's. It's also the color of optimism, which Grace must keep within her. As the night darkens and Grace is plunged into kill-or-be-killed violence, the dress itself takes on darker hues. She's got the same thing on, but it’s gotten tattered and bloody and so has the corset she wears underneath. Grounding this fantastical story of a devil-worshipping family can only be done with perfectly ominous and creepy locations. To cement an authenticity to the film,"Ready Or Not" uses practical locations and physical effects. By not relying on typical visual effects. A lot of what you’ll see in the movie is done practically, which is fun to kind of roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty, literally, on this movie. The requirements of the action-packed and highly physicalized script necessitated that not one, but three locations be pressed into service to embody 'The Le Domas Estate'. Oshawa, 'Ontario’s Parkwood Estates' is one of Canada’s last remaining grand estates and was once the private residence of 'General Motors Of Canada' founder R.S. McLaughlin. The film uses 'Parkwood’s' surrounding lands for the wedding ceremony sequences, and a number of it's 55 rooms are given over for filming "Ready Or Not" interior scenes. The historic 'Casa Loma'; the only full-sized castle within range of 'North America', was built in 1911 at a cost of some $3.5 million and remains a top destination for visitors to the city. 'Casa Loma' afforded the "Ready Or Not" troupe winding and ornate interiors for deadly pursuits; and the family’s board games ethos can be seen as further manifesting in the form of 'The Clue-Style' trappings. The camera moves around and follow characters, fast!, through hallways and into rooms. So even though you don’t have the comfort and the control of being on a soundstage, there’s a lot of creativity that results. “Ready Or Not" is a little bit outside the box. This film has an unique blending of comedy, adventure, and horror, with an eye for original screenplays that are comparably distinctive. It's about the idea of taking a conventional story to the extreme. You take something that’s as familiar and relatable as marrying into a family and give it a genre bend in a playful way, but also in a dangerous and extreme way. The stakes are deadly in "Ready Or Not". It's very character-driven. The movie is terrifying but there’s also a hint of mischief in it and a hint of the absurd. It's a female-driven thriller, both contemporary and timeless. It's difficult to understand the tone of this movie and know to balance the irony and comedy with horror. Crafting a good scare is actually similar to crafting a good joke. You set it up and there's a punchline. The look and feel of the family’s classic board games, and the sinister backstory of 'The Le Domas Dynasty' is the extra touch the film needs. The film responds to the classic games feel dating back to carnivals, with a sense of history. There are secret passageways. The rumor is that there’s a ghost. It’s beyond opulent. Many body bags and many blood bags. Keeping the physical element of props and stunts raises the stakes a bit more, when you actually have the blood there. It puts you more into the world you’re playing. There's a light version make of rubber, and a much heavier version make out of metal. You can use mop oil, shaving cream, your own saliva; that’s the magic trifecta. But she cautions that when making a genre movie. Don't send things to dry cleaners. It never goes over well; they will get freaked out, no matter how well you know them. This movie is such a mix of gags, and great character stuff and that’s what makes the movie so exciting.