Tag Archives: British Cinema

Tetris – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An absolute fun blast of a film that might not match entirely with history, but it wears all of its influences on its sleeve.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service that viewed this film.

Soviet Military Parade.

Tetris Review –

I think, like most people, I rolled my eyes when I heard that there was going to be a Tetris film. That is because I thought they were going to try and turn it into some sort of Battleship situation. I am not sure that we were ready for a dramatized retelling of how the worldwide video game rights made it out of the Soviet Union or for how good the story would be.  

So to set the scene, it is 1988, a precarious time in world history. The Cold War was rapidly coming to a peaceful end, and the first big computer boom was in full swing. It is in this world that Henk Rogers (Taron Egerton) of Bullet-Proof Software sees someone selling Tetris at the Consumer Electronics Expo in Las Vegas. The problem is that Henk does not have the money to buy the game, let alone license it for Japan, which means that he must sweat-talk his Banker (Rick Yune) into letting him do what he has already done. Because a deal with Nintendo only comes around once in a blue moon, all he must do is bet the house … literally.   

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Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While it does not quite hit the heights of the first film, it is still a fun time.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

The many faces of Mrs Tweedy.

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget Review –

Well, if there has been something I have been waiting for an age for, it is a dive back into the world of Chicken Run. The original film was such a delight that it still sits in my Top 10 Animation Films of All Time list. However, after some understandable voice cast changes and some less understandable changes, some concerns did slip in. Thus, it is time to see if lighting can strike twice in the world of clay animation.

So to set the scene, it has been some time since Ginger (Thandiwe Newton), Rocky (Zachary Levi), Bunty (Imelda Staunton), Mac (Lynn Ferguson), Babs (Jane Horrocks), and Fowler (David Bradley) escaped from Mrs Tweedy’s (Miranda Richardson) farm and landed in the bird sanctuary. Since then, they have founded a new society, built houses, planted all sorts of crops, and started having chicks. Well, Ginger and Rocky’s daughter Molly (Bella Ramsey) is at that age where she wants to understand the world outside of their little island, with all the drive of her mother. But when a new road is built, and the danger of humans reappears, the chickens decide to hide rather than fight, which is when Molly decides to sneak out in the middle of the night.

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Wonka – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful romp through Wonka’s past, full of musical energy and more than a few full-belly laughs.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

An overhead shot of dancers making a W out of umbrellas.

Wonka Review –

I am going to be perfectly honest with you from the start, when I heard that there was going to be a prequel based on the back story of Willy Wonka, I could not help but roll my eyes. The constant francisation of the cinema landscape has led to many of these projects that just feel like they are going through the motions rather than having anything interesting to say. However, now that I have seen it, I am glad to say that I was wrong.

So to set the scene, we open as Willy Wonka (Timothée Chalamet) arrives in a mysteriously unnamed European City. He has spent the past few years sailing around the globe, finding the best combinations for chocolates, and he is now ready to share them with the work at the famous Galleries Gourmet. But Wonka has a kind view of the world and is not prepared to be crushed by the Chocolate Cartel run by Slugworth (Paterson Joseph), Prodnose (Matt Lucas), and Fickelgruber (Mathew Baynton). Nor does he read the small print before taking a room in Scrubbit’s (Olivia Colman) Laundry as recommended by Bleacher (Tom Davis), a less-than-savoury individual. However, just when things are at their lowest is when you can really shine, and his new friend Noodle (Calah Lane) helps him find that.

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Polite Society – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A blast of fun from start to finish, even before the wirework starts flipping people through the air.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

The sisters.

Polite Society Review –

During the year, there were those films that I meant to see, but circumstances always got in the way of screening or sessions. For me this year, one of the ones that slipped away was the fascinating Polite Society. Well, it has now dropped on streaming, so I can see if it holds up as well as I hope.

So to set the scene, Ria (Priya Kansara) has had one dream all her life: to become a stuntwoman. She films herself on YouTube, trying to break into her future, and she usually drags her sister, Lena Khan (Ritu Arya), to film. But she can’t master the flying reverse spin kick no matter how much she practices. However, Ria has a crisis of faith when her sister decides to get married to Salim Shah (Akshay Khanna) rather than go back to art school. He is a smarmy wanker, or so Ria feels, but as her life starts to unravel, her future starts looking equally fraught.  

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Saltburn – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A torrid and often shocking affair, but one you have trouble looking away from.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Warning – Contains scenes with prolonged flashing lights.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film

Oliver reflected in the table.

Saltburn Review –

There can be a multitude of emotions that can wash over you when the end credits roll. Disbelief, boredom, shock, sadness, horror, resignation, frustration, and even anger. However, never in my time reviewing films have I ever had this particular set of emotions permeating through my mind. A combination of revelation, horror, shock, and sheer amazement. It is this film that we explore today.

So to set the scene, it is 2006, and Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) has made it into Oxford, but he didn’t have wealthy parents. He got in on a scholarship, which immediately set him apart from everyone else there. He longs to be part of the group, and being friends with local heartthrob Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi) is the best way to do it. It is a tumultuous relationship, but when Oliver’s dad dies and he has nowhere to go over the summer, Felix invites him back to his family’s estate, Saltburn. A place where wealth is in excess and lives can be changed.  

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The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A fascinating literary turducken that captivates you.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

A writers writing room.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar Review –

In the last week, we have looked at first The Rat Catcherand thenPoison, two fascinating adaptations of Roald Dahl’s short stories by Wes Anderson. It was at this point that I discovered that they were from a group of four that were released, and I had missed the first two. Well, that can not do, so we got back to the start with The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, which may have given some critical context for the ones that followed.

So to set the scene, we open with ‘a writer’ (Ralph Fiennes) explaining their process of getting ready to write when he introduces us to Henry Sugar (Benedict Cumberbatch). Henry is a rich man and one of the many useless rich people floating around like seaweed in the world. But Henry liked to bet. So, on one wet and dreary day, he drifted through a grand house till he came across a peculiar book in the library, A Report on Imdad Khan: The Man Who Sees Without His Eyes by Dr. Z.Z. Chatterjee, dated December 1935, Calcutta. Henry was immediately engrossed with the tale.  

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Poison – Movie Review

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TL;DR – Tense, engaging, and captivating.    

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

the bungalow.

Poison Review –

After watching The Rat Catcher last night, I discovered it was not just a one-off, with Wes Anderson producing several of Roald Dahl’s short stories. With that in mind, I needed to see if they were all as absurdly compelling as the first, and I jumped into Poison.  
                          
It was midnight when Timber Woods (Dev Patel) drove home, trying not to wake his roommate. He should not have bothered because Harry (Benedict Cumberbatch) was still awake. Perplexed, Woods stuck his head in to see how he was when a barely audible whisper sang out ‘Help!‘.  

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The Rat Catcher – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An uncomfortable tale that draws you in, holds you captive, and then leaves you thinking.    

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

Richard Ayoade

The Rat Catcher Review –

As I sat down to wonder what I would watch as the weather wandered by and the well-lit day wound to a weary – what the word for end is that starts with a w would be that I can’t think of at the moment even though I scoured my mind looking for one. I looked at Netflix to discover that there is a Wes Anderson production of a Roald Dahl short story, and that is a combination you don’t say no to.

So to set the scene, one morning, an editor (Richard Ayoade) tells us of the life of a Rat Man (Ralph Fiennes) who has come on behalf of the town to a local garage run by Claud (Rupert Friend). He is a peculiar man who looks much like the prey he hunts. But then you see, rats are clever prey, as they are watching you as you pursue them.    

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Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre – Movie Review

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TL;DR – It never reaches the heights it is aiming for, but it is deeply entertaining in parts.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime service that viewed this film.

A car chase.

Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre Review –

I love spy films. I like it when they play them seriously and when they are more whimsical. When it comes to Guy Ritchie, you could get either or both. Add a cast you know can deliver and even a comeback or two, and you have a premise I want to see.

So to set the scene, it is a lovely Sunday morning when Nathan (Cary Elwes) is summoned to the intelligence headquarters in London by Knighton (Eddie Marsan). For you see, something just got robbed from a facility in Odessa. What no one knows, but the wrong people are interested in it, so that makes it a top target. Knowing traditional intelligence apparatuses would be too slow, they bring in the team that you need for cases like this, led by Orson Fortune (Jason Statham), who is now rudely having his Moroccan holiday interrupted, and worse, they will need the famous movie star Danny Francesco (Josh Hartnett) to pull it off.

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Aftersun – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An emotional whirlwind – Stunning, Beautiful, and Heartbreaking.     

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene

Disclosure – I paid to see this film

Warning – This film contains a lot of flashing lights.

An image of Sophie pixelated by the old camera

Aftersun Review –

If one film has been bubbling away in my subconscious since last October, it was Aftersun. Everyone who had seen it spoke of it almost like a transcendent experience, but it has taken a long time to make it down to my realm and longer for me to make it to the cinema. However, if the saying all good things come to those who wait had a physical manifestation, it would be Aftersun.

So to set the scene, it is sometime in the past [I think the late 1990s before everyone had mobile phones], and Calum (Paul Mescal) goes on a family trip to Turkey with his daughter Sophie (Frankie Corio). Sophie lives with her mother, which is a chance for them to bond, but there is some apparent awkwardness for all. Calum is trying to build a relationship, while Sophie is at the age where she is finding her independence. Is this trip the start of something better or the beginning of the end?

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