Tag: film
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The Wicker Man (1973).
It is a rare and beautiful thing when everything that is wrong with a movie is everything you love about it. It usually happens with bad films but Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man is made great by all of its problems. Last year, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this British horror staple, I attended a…
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The Wicker Man (2006).
There is something majestically terrible about Neil LaBute’s The Wicker Man. It is undoubtedly the worst American horror-remake to ever be made, making a conscious effort to highlight references to Robin Hardy’s sensational original but simultaneously pushing aside everything that made its predecessor so unique and artistic. The action is moved from rural Scotland to a…
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Gone Girl.
David Fincher, with all his versatility and boldness, demonstrates his cinematic mastery in his perfectly paced and equally eerie thriller, Gone Girl. Fincher’s return to the screen seems to have come out of nowhere. Gone Girl is one of those triumphant and surprising gems that often arrives unexpectedly in October, getting us all in the mood for…
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Seven.
David Fincher’s career has been a diverse and admirable one. His movies vary in style and purpose but, for the most part, remain ambitious and impressive. His portfolio isn’t perfect but it reflects a director who has explored many avenues of cinema, transforming and growing as a film-maker as a result. Many would argue that…
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Pride.
Political, hysterical and downright ruddy fun, Pride is brimming over with heart and soul. The film opens and closes at two consecutive London Pride marches. The year in between each event makes up the film’s narrative. When the unions refuse to accept donations from the gay community in support of the miners, the LGSM are…
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Magic in the Moonlight.
Throughout his body of work, Woody Allen has always dabbled with magic. There is something about the impossible and the mystical that seems to fascinate a man so obsessed with his own mortality. The common consensus seems to be that, these days, Allen’s movies rise and fall in a natural motion. His last six or…
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The Ides of March.
George Clooney’s intense political drama explores the sinister underbelly of a campaign between two presidential candidates. The Ides of March takes place in Ohio, a crucial destination to the campaign that could determine which side takes the lead and ultimately wins. With this knowledge in the minds of all those involved in the battle, tensions couldn’t…
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Melinda and Melinda.
Woody Allen’s Melinda and Melinda opened to mixed reviews ten years ago. The film’s main narrative is split between two stories which both revolve around a character called Melinda. These two stories are merely the fabrications of two friends discussing the comedy and tragedy of life over a meal and a glass of wine. Allen handles…
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Another Woman.
It’s my strong belief that Woody Allen’s work is at its best when he is doing two particular things – engaging in philosophical debate and writing for women. His masterful 1988 feature, Another Woman, shows glimmers of philosophy but primarily demonstrates just how well Allen knows women and their complexities. To enhance his insight into the female…
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Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call – New Orleans.
It makes a lot of sense that Nicolas Cage and Werner Herzog should collaborate. Both men have a diverse cinematic portfolio that contain several real gems alongside many more absurd and questionable entries. However dubious their past work may have occasionally been, there is no denying that both men are courageous in their art…
Hannah McHaffie 