Days of Heaven is an immense, impressive picture. Only Terrence Malick’s second full-length, the plot would seem to lend itself to the easy naturalism of his debut, Badlands. A young woman named Abby (Brooke Adams), her boyfriend Bill (Richard Gere) and his sister Linda (Linda Manz) travel to a Texan farm to work on the…
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been demonstrating a gentle incline over the last four episodes, progressing step-by-step from “okay” to “good.” Unfortunately, “Girl in the Flower Dress” warrants an underwhelming shrug of one’s shoulders. The early scenes are promising, with Renshu Tseng (later known as “Scorch”) and Raina (the girl in the flower dress) demonstrating more…
It’s difficult to find one redeeming quality in I Spit On Your Grave 2, sequel to the 2010 remake of the controversial, memorably-titled 1978 film. The original wasn’t a “good film,” but it did have a savage relentlessness to it that left an impact. The remake’s modifications to the original were limited to a grimier…
Chris Lilley’s latest series sees him take on the role of Jamie – sorry, Ja’mie – King (she added the apostrophe in Grade Eight). Ja’mie first appeared in Lilley’s outstanding We Can Be Heroes, but anyone outside Australia might be unfamiliar with Lilley’s early work and a little puzzled at the notion of a thirty-nine…
This review is much later than usual. At least that delay gave me the opportunity to put the episode in the context of Alex Gansa’s recent interview (one I wouldn’t recommend reading – note the interviewer’s description of Carrie as “slutty”). Beforehand, my review would have touched on the beautiful, dreamy unreality of Carrie’s post-asylum…
On paper, Prisoners seems like its destined to be forgotten as yet another unremarkable thriller. The film concerns the abduction of two young girls and focuses its attention on two men searching for them; Hugh Jackman as Keller Dover – zealous carpenter and father of one of the girls – and Jake Gyllenhaal as Detective…
Woody Allen’s Manhattan is a dark mirror image of his Oscar-winning triumph Annie Hall. Both are romantic comedies set in New York and both feature Allen and Diane Keaton delivering hyper-literate and observational one-liners. Manhattan is filmed in black-and-white (unlike Annie Hall) and it suits the disparity between the two; Annie Hall is colourful, idiosyncratic…
“Eye Spy” is the strongest episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. so far. It’s not without its problems, but it largely succeeds by avoiding the pitfalls that earlier episodes had recklessly tumbled into. The ensemble’s dynamic may not be all there yet, but that’s not necessarily a problem when the players are separated. The humour…
I expected to hate Cinema Paradiso a few minutes in. I’m not sure what it was. Perhaps the “ain’t-I-a-stinker” grin of Salvatore Cascio, playing young ‘Toto,’ the film’s protagonist? Or maybe it was the syrupy silliness of early scenes involving an exasperated priest censoring films of any “pornographic” kissing scenes. Little by little, the film…
As a way to reintroduce Nicholas Brody into the series, dragging his grievously wounded body through a decrepit urban landscape is a memorable choice. The shots of Damian Lewis gasping for breath, his pale blue eyes surveying the concrete canopy are already ingrained in my memory. Brody’s storyline was great in some ways. The character…
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