Peter Greenaway directs Anthony Higgins, Janet Suzman and Anne-Louise Lambert in this Restoration period British arthouse gem where a much-requested draughtsman is hired to make drawings of a country estate and his fee includes full sexual access to the lady of the house.

Gloriously unconventional. I did prefer it when it was flat, passion-free sex comedy told in a series of still tableaux. A criminal intrigue is introduced and lives are destroyed. That comes a little left of field. Much like life. Memorably idiosyncratic.

7

Perfect Double Bill: The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)

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Jeff Baena directs Alison Brie, Alessandro Nivola and Aubrey Plaza in this dark comedy where a chain restaurant star employee wins a corporate retreat to Italy.

Two of the foxiest, funniest comedic actresses currently working in an undefinable throwaway nothing. I’ve seen middling reviews and low averages for this and I can only assume that is because Spin Me Around is sold as a romantic comedy but really is nothing of the sort. It is funny, there are relationships you invest in and want to see consummated but the main target seems to aim at constant feeling of unease. Squirm and cringe. Part mystery, part broad comedy it plays out like a budget White Lotus season crammed into a sprightly unpredictable low key 90 minutes. Almost exactly the kinda film that if it came out in 1987 you might record it off the telly as the third selection on a long play stretched blank tape. The unknowable, unresolved quality of it making you revisit Spin Me Round more often than The Naked Gun and Dragnet. The ensemble make it. What does the title even mean? Surely not just the fate of a microwaved meal? A fantasy during a work lunch break while your food reheats?

7

Perfect Double Bill: Horse Girl (2019)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/

Cameron and Colin Cairnes direct David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon and Ingrid Torelli in this period horror purporting to be the broadcast of a Seventies late night chat show where the devil appears, intermixed with behind the scenes footage.

One of the best acted horror flicks in a long old time. Dastmalchian and newcomer Torelli both put in gorgeously enigmatic performances that invite rewatches. The tone and look of the studio set are spot on. Slow burn with a sense of humour. When the shocks come they are full fat. The Cairnes Brothers do show us a little too much after a simple cut to commercial would have done the trick but as breakout calling cards go, I’m eager to see what they do next.

8

Perfect Double Bill: The Sacrament (2013)

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Adam Wingard directs Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry and Dan Stevens in this Monsterverse franchise fantasy adventure where our two ancient titans clash in an epic battle as humans unravel the mysteries of the Hollow Earth kingdom.

Bursting with personality, and out Cameron-ing Avatar in terms of immersive fake spectacle. This is 80% mega budget Saturday morning kids cartoon with occasional inserts to live action humans. I came for big Kong and even bigger Godzilla and they fight and we care and our retinas explode. Tickled every mindless entertainment receptor I have. This franchise is consistently the goofy tits!

7

Perfect Double Bill: Kong: Skull Island (2017)

I write regular features about live comedy for British Comedy Guide here https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/bobby_carroll/features/

Gil Keenan directs Mckenna Grace, Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon in this sequel to the legacy sequel to the greatest supernatural comedy film ever.

A frosty prologue with a decent shock, a chaotic Ecto-1 chase and then… not really enough ghostbusting comedy or action. Everything that happens is adequate, mainly as an exercise in refurbished nostalgia. One that circles a convoluted narrative with little urgency or organic set-pieces. There are far too many characters (legacy / returning / new), often with nothing to do. Two of my all time favourite stand-up comedians have prominent roles both of which are essentially there to splurge out exposition. Ray Stanz is still the heart and soul of the Ghostbusters. Ultimately a fine one-watcher with a memorable, if underexploited, villain god monster final boss. Still it is the first Ghostbusters movie I wouldn’t chose to revisit. Even the hated-on Answer The Call had more spectral FX and laughter points than this.

6

Perfect Double Bill: Ghostbusters II (1989)

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