Tag: Movie
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They Eat Culture: Cinema and Community.
Since finishing my post graduate study in Edinburgh, I have moved back home to Preston, Lancashire. A year in Scotland’s capital meant a year of being spoilt for choice in regards to independent cinemas and movies. Coming back home to Preston always has one huge negative factor – there are no great cinemas. At this…
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The Book of Life.
Now and again, amidst the mounds of garbage that studios churn out for children, films like The Book of Life appear. A film about bravery and love, The Book of Life is rich in aesthetic, witty in dialogue and enchanting in story. The film has layers which it glides back and forth between throughout its hour and a half…
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Nightcrawler.
As Dan Gilroy’s cinematic debut opens, our protagonist is stealing metal fencing – only to be interrupted and questioned by an officer. We will never know what happened to the man who confronts our lead character, Lou Bloom, in the opening moments of Nightcrawler. The only glaring clue as to his fate is clasped around Bloom’s…
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The Judge.
When charismatic lawyer Hank Palmer learns of his mother’s passing, he finds himself back in the town in which he grew up. Hank seems haunted by the town’s simplistic nature and its lack of change. He has happy memories of this place but they are overshadowed by his broken relationship with his father. Hank has…
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Fury.
War is ghastly. We already know this but Fury is determined to drive the message home. Its grizzly depiction of life for American soldiers fighting in Nazi controlled Germany in 1945 reaffirms the horror of war and the unfathomable trauma it leaves on those “lucky” enough to survive it. Fury continues to portray the violence and…
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’71.
Set amidst The Troubles, ’71 is a tale of survival. What begins as a story about a platoon, who are posted to Belfast in an attempt to support the people living on some of the effected streets of Northern Ireland, soon turns into the story of one individual and his struggle to survive on the…
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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…
Hannah McHaffie 