Before ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ , another film looked at an intelligent young lady willing to sell her soul to capitalism: Funny Face. Despite its feel -good posturing, there lies a deeply problematic film. Stanley Donen was considered a Hollywood great, a director of great elan with the wit to back it up. This film,Continue reading “Vintage Film Review: Funny Face”
Tag Archives: Film review
Film Review : Billy Idol Should Be Dead
When I was a kid, Billy Idol epitomised the naughty boy we all fancied. He was always a bit cheeky, but we knew that. What we didn’t know was that he was also a heroin addict. Jonas Akerlund’s documentary about the former William Broad, who grew up in Bromley and reinvented himself as “punk” singerContinue reading “Film Review : Billy Idol Should Be Dead”
Vintage Film Review: How To Marry A Millionaire (1953)
On the surface, the classic 1953 Hollywood comedy How To Marry A Millionaire directed by Jean Negulesco, is the usual sexist nonsense, very much of its time, focusing as the title suggests on three models each of whose sole purpose in life is to be an attractive gold digger, dedicating all their time to seekingContinue reading “Vintage Film Review: How To Marry A Millionaire (1953)”
Overlooked Classic: Hedwig and the Angry Inch
There had been much speculation around the titular character of Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Who was she based on? Jayne County was mooted, and indeed she herself , having seen the premise, thought the story was hers. Indeed, other lesser known artists also saw themselves in Hedwig. But according to the film’s creator andContinue reading “Overlooked Classic: Hedwig and the Angry Inch”
Film Review : Pavements
When is a biopic about Pavement not a biopic about Pavement? When it’s Pavements. This film, written and directed by Alex Ross Perry eschews a linear rock doc narrative, exactly as you’d expect for an American indie band who are a mass of contradictions: with a sound forever torn between sleepy and frenetic; loose andContinue reading “Film Review : Pavements”
Overlooked Classic: Young Adult (2011)
“She wears denim wherever she goes/Says she’s gonna get some records by The Status Quo/Oh, yeah”… You’ve got to love a film which begins with Teenage Fanclub’s ‘The Concept’ blasting out on an old car tape deck. So begins Diablo Cody’s masterful Young Adult, starring Charlize Thereon as the particularly vituperative Mavis Gray, a (barely)Continue reading “Overlooked Classic: Young Adult (2011)”
Film Review: Days Of The Bagnold Summer
If this was an American film, lessons would be learned and resentment eased, in a neat “I was never the same after that summer” trope. But it’s not: it’s British, full of warm days and familial complications. Effortlessly directed by comic actor Simon Bird, it’s a little like Mike Leigh, if lighter and more incidentalContinue reading “Film Review: Days Of The Bagnold Summer”
Overrated Crap: Moulin Rouge!
I absolutely hate this film. I saw it with some girlfriends at the cinema and seemed to be the lone naysayer. I don’t hang out with those women anymore. Baz Luhrmann’s fin de siecle “spectacular” is like Cirque De Soleil for pre-teens who’ve never seen films-or the circus- before. It’s an absolute disaster.Worse yet, itContinue reading “Overrated Crap: Moulin Rouge!”
Vintage Film Review: A Place In The Sun
George Stevens’ 1951 film eschews his usual screwball comedy genre for a melodrama focusing on an extremely toxic love triangle. Montgomery Clift is George Eastman, a social climber who dates Alice Tripp (Shelley Winters) a dowdy co-worker in a local factory. But when he discovers the beautiful Angela Vickers (Elizabeth Taylor) a society lady, heContinue reading “Vintage Film Review: A Place In The Sun”
Archive Film Review: Machine
thetempohouse GFF Review: Machine March 7, 2020 • Spoilt Victorian Child Photo: GFF Part of Glasgow Film Festival 2020. Machine, directed by Justin Krook, posits where we are in an era of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in this insightful, if flawed, documentary. Using a vast array of talking heads such as roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, and fighter pilot, now autonomousContinue reading “Archive Film Review: Machine”
Hit The North 