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Last King Of Scotland
*****
Brilliant film starring Forest Whitaker
and James McAvoy. It’s 1970 and newly qualified Scottish doctor Nicholas
Garrigan (McAvoy) decides to see a bit of the world and do some humanitarian work.
He lands in Uganda just as Idi Amin takes over as president and fortuitously gets to mend the sprained wrist of
the new leader. Impressed by Garrigan’s enthusiasm and especially his
Scottishness, the charismatic Amin (Whitaker) asks him to be his personal physician and eventually, chief advisor. The young and idealistic Garrigan is initially taken in by Amin’s generosity and larger-than-life
personality till he gradually becomes aware that anyone who speaks out against the President seems to “disappear”. Mistakenly causing one such “disappearance” and an ill-advised affair
with one of Amin’s wives later, Garrigan’s UK passport is confiscated and he is on the wanted list. But does he escape from this appalling dictatorship?
The Last King Of Scotland is an excellent, very
well made film with a fine performance from McAvoy who is fast becoming one of the World’s best up-and-coming actors. The supporting cast including Gillian Anderson and David Oyelowo are also excellent
but it is Forest Whitaker who steals the film with his totally believable portrayal of the flamboyant but deeply paranoid
Amin. A stunning, performance which has deservedly won Whitaker the Best
Actor awards at both the Oscars and BAFTAs. The film itself also won a few awards
though maybe not as many as deserved – a brilliant, compelling picture.
Released:
2006
Seen by me: 16.1.07 (with
Naomi)
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
**
Incoherent,
unmemorable adventure film where the giants of Victoria literature join together to try to save the world. Starring Sean Connery as Alan Quartermain (from King Solomon’s Mines), this motley crew also includes
Captain Nemo, The Invisible Man, Tom Sawyer, Dr Jekyll (and Mr Hyde) and Mina Harker (from Dracula). Very much a case of style over substance, the effects in League of Extraordinary Gentlemen are good but
the story and plot are a forgettable mess. Disappointing.
Released –
2003
Seen by me: 20.2.05 (with Naomi)
Les Miserables
****
Venturing into the cinema to see one of the
most highly regarded films of the last year, I was clearly something of a minority. Many others there had seen the West End
play. Most others knew something of the story. But not me! So, as a Les Mis virgin what did I think of my first time...
Very
good actually. Les Miserables the film is a bold and epic spectacle based around a main story lasting over most of an adult
lifetime and many clever sub-plots. It has some fine performances by the main cast- Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and the award-winning
Anne Hathaway - as well as fine support throughout, most notably by young Daniel Huttlestone and Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena
Bonham Carter as the perfectly cast comedy couple. Light relief from an intricate, complicated set of stories putting the
film at over two-and-a-half hours which is perhaps a little too long. Nevertheless all loose ends are tied up for a strong
finale to this impressive, musical adaptation which is well worth seeing.
Seen by me: 19.2.13 (with Naomi - at cinema)
Let Him
Have It
****1/2
Powerful film about one of the greatest
miscarriages of justice in modern British history – the hanging of Derek Bentley.
It’s 1952 and the easily-led 19-year-old Bentley has fallen in with 16 year old Christopher Craig and his south
London hoodlums. The pair rather haphazardly decide to rob a local butchers
but are apprehended by the police. Bentley immediately gives himself up but
Craig, full of anger after his brother’s recent imprisonment, pulls out a gun and starts firing at the officers. The captured Bentley screams “let him have it Chris” but is he imploring
Craig to hand over his gun or continue shooting? Craig fires the gun seriously
wounding one officer and half-an-hour later kills another policeman before his capture.
Cue to the trial, Christopher Craig
is found guilty of murder but is too young to hang whereas Bentley is astonishingly found guilty for his “let him have
it” plea and a capital sentence is passed. Despite the jury’s recommendation
for leniency and a massive public outcry, the 19 year old with the IQ of a boy of 11 is sent to the gallows just one month later at Wandsworth prison.
Let Him Have It powerfully tells the story of this terrible
travesty with a young Christopher Eccleston in the lead role. Some of the acting
is a bit hammy but this doesn’t really matter when the main purpose of the film is its message. The film also
presents an interesting historical picture of life in urban Britain in the rationing years after the Second World War.
Derek Bentley’s parents campaigned for his official pardon till their deaths
in the 70s and, at the time of the movie’s release in 1991, this still wasn’t forthcoming. Finally Derek’s beloved sister Iris received the state’s acceptance of the mistake which
she had fought all her life for in the 2000s, at last bringing to a close one of the greatest miscarriages
of justice in the UK in the 20th Century.
Let Him Have It is a strong, well-produced, issues-led narrative and is
well worth seeing.
Released: 1991
Seen by me: 22.12.06 (with Naomi & Amy)
Life of Pi ****
An excellent film version of an award-winning
book which many would deem unfilmable. Although the movie shows a bit more "before and after" than the novel, the majority
of the film still features the outer and inner struggles of a young man shipwrecked on a life raft with (seemingly?) just
a fully-grown tiger for company.
The Life Of Pi contains some excellent, (what appear to be) effortless special effects
in a fine adaptation of a surprisingly successful modern literary phenomenon - one which now has a equally unexpected, highly
spiritual, slow-moving celluloid companion. Seen
by me: 8.15 (with Naomi)
Lion King
****
Made in 1994, The Lion King
is arguably the last great old-style animation film before the arrival of more edgy, in your face computer-designed animations
such as Shrek and Madagascar. It’s an epic story of love and betrayal
in a grand setting of the African plains. Although The Lion King is mainly based
around the central plot there is some side humour, especially from Timon (a meerkat) and Pumbaa (warthog) companions to the
main lion Simba during his isolation as a young adult. An immense epic animation,
which is well worth seeing.
Released: 1994
Seen by me: 16.7.05 (with Naomi)
Little Voice
****
Story about a mute withdrawn young lady who stays
in her bedroom listening to her beloved records but has an incredible ability to mimic the singing of her idols. She is persuaded
to sing live and is transformed once she begins her one stunning performance but then refuses to sing live again or seek fame
but ultimately finds some kind of salvation through the whole experience. Although the plot is inconsistent, the 3 central
performances are brilliant - Jane Horrocks is astonishing as Little Voice with Michael Caine excellent as the spiv who tries
to exploit her talent and Brenda Blethyn superb as her fat, tarty and ultimately very sad mother. A very good film with some
superb performances.
Released - 1998
Seen by me: 2.1.03
Lord Of The Rings - The Fellowship Of The Ring
***½
Epic three hour film with hugely impressive battle scenes, scenery and effects but not really my sort of thing. The story
of a 9-man "army" crossing the lands and winning battles against armies of hundreds is incredibly far fetched, boys' own stuff
and I also couldn't see the depths which Tolkein fans claim are included in what to me was a pretty basic adventure story.
Having said this, Lord Of The Rings was visually stunning and for this, well worth seeing on the big screen. An experience.
Released
- 2001
Seen by me: 21.1.02 (with James)
Lost In Translation
*****
Excellent arty film about the unlikely attraction between Bob Harris (Bill Murray) a washed-up-actor
reduced to filming tacky commercials in Japan and Charlotte (Scarlet Johansson) a bored young wife stuck in the land of the
rising sun whilst her husband is out on business. Bob and Charlotte are gradually drawn together in something of a sad, old-fashioned
love story – old-fashioned in that there is no physical relationship. Both
are going through a crisis of sorts with Charlotte not knowing what to do with her life as she visits Japanese temples looking
for spiritual enlightenment. Bob meanwhile spends most of his spare time in
the hotel bar, undergoing a mid-life crisis with his formulaic marriage.
Lost In Translation brilliantly captures the
sense of dislocation felt when spending time alone “trapped” in hotel rooms in a totally foreign culture. Superbly directed by Sofia Copolla, it is also brilliantly
edited to create a vague atmosphere which encapsulates the isolation of the two leads who are both brilliant. It deservedly
won three BAFTAs (including Best Actor and Actress), three Golden Globes (including Best Film) and was nominated for four
Academy Awards.
Although it has a lot
of sadness Lost In Translation is also not without its humour. Bob’s communications with his wife form some of the films
laughs in an aspect of the film I didn’t really notice on my first viewing. Some
of the other comedy however is more a point of contention for some critics with it being a gentle poke at the characteristics
and habits of the Japanese. I can see these detractors’ argument but don’t
really buy it.
Lost
In Translation is a brilliant and strangely beautiful film which is even better on its second viewing. A more coherent counterpart to Krzysztof Kieslowski’s alluring art-house romances made in the 80s
and early 90s. Very highly recommended.
Released: 2004
Seen by me: 10.6.05 (with Naomi) & 28.7.06
(with Naomi)
Love Actually
****1/2
Feel-good comedy written by Richard Curtis and starring Hugh Grant, Martine McCutcheon,
Colin Firth, Emma Thompson and many others. More Four Weddings & A Funeral rather than Notting Hill in that there are
about a dozen main characters and many sub-plots - mostly about love. These
interweaving plots hold good with repeated viewings of the film which I now consider the best of the Curtis / Grant romantic
comedies.
How much you like Love Actually depends on your approach to it. With a cynical hat on, it can be viewed as a
safe, mainstream, sure-fire hit, full of the archetypal English characters which Americans love. On the other hand, it can
be viewed as a life and love affirming comedy, clever and intricate. I prefer to go for the latter view. A superb, modern, feel-good Christmasy film with some excellent performances.
Released - 2003
Seen
by me: 28.11.03 & 24.12.05 (both with Naomi)
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