Tag: Film Review
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Chappie.
The best thing about Chappie is Chappie himself. The first A.I with consciousness – he begins life like a human baby; learning rapidly about the world around him. Chappie is a part of the mechanised police force that patrol the streets of Johannesburg in Neill Blomkamp’s muddled, futuristic action-thriller. Crime rates are down and Johannesburg…
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Ex Machina.
What begins as the trip of a lifetime soon becomes a twisted, creepy exploration into human capability for young computer programmer Caleb. When he wins first prize in a company competition he is taken swiftly, by helicopter, to meet a mysterious man; a software genius who founded the company Caleb works for. In the film’s…
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Shaun the Sheep Movie.
There has been some speculation and concern about whether or not Shaun the Sheep could translate to the big screen. I can only assume the concern was about the television programme of the same title and not the bleating beauty himself. Of course, Shaun was born on the big screen. He made the unconventional transition…
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It Follows.
American suburbs and crunchy autumn leaves set the scene for David Robert Mitchell’s second feature film. Like so many great stalker horrors before it, the film opens with a teen girl bursting from her house onto the street. She’s being followed but it is not apparent by who or what. The camera pans around the street…
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Ida.
At one point in the movie Ida a young woman preparing to take her vows and commit to a life as a nun is asked about what it means to sacrifice a life of carnal love and sin when she has never experienced it. If one does not have thoughts of the flesh than surely that…
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Wild.
What has to happen in a person’s life in order for them to feel the need to walk 1000 miles in search of redemption, forgiveness and understanding? In 1995, Cheryl Strayed put herself through this gruelling ordeal in order to repent and recover from the miserable experiences she’d had, and the choices and mistakes she’d…
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Inherent Vice.
What makes a good movie? Perhaps the more appropriate question is who gets to dictate what is or isn’t a good movie? You can jokingly sort films into amusing categories such as “guilty pleasures” or “childhood favourites” – we do this as a way of justifying why we like a movie if it doesn’t typically…
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Whiplash.
Blood, sweat and tears are ever present in Damien Chazelle’s raucous drama about a painstaking search for genius. The innovative camera movements and invasive shots allow us to experience the anguish of every drum beat and each cymbal clash – making Whiplash the most satisfying movie I’ve seen in months. Nominated for five Academy Awards,…
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The Theory of Everything.
It’s the combination of disability, biography, physical transformation and British pride that makes me nervous about films like The Theory of Everything. More often than not, a film possessing roughly this mixture of ingredients appears at this time of year. It’s no surprise that this is the formula for award season success. Only four years…
Hannah McHaffie 