Ti West directs Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan and Greta Gerwig in this 1980s set horror movie where a down-on-her-luck student gets a paid gig staying the evening in a creepy house.
A loving tribute, patient as fuck, ratchets up the tension while having fun, well cast and the ending has the goods. Chef’s kiss.
Jean-Pierre Melville directs Howard Vernon, Jean-Marie Robain and Nicole Stéphane in this WWII drama where a German officer is billeted to a French country house who resist him by completely ignoring him.
A very simple drama that mainly takes place in one room. A film about the myth of national character and the needs for art and interaction over rigid control. Based on a novel written and published during occupation as an act of resistance. Resistance doesn’t take the form of bombs and assassinations as it does in other Melville thrillers. Here it is a family ignoring the presence of their unwanted invader. He comes down each evening, well mannered and trying to be unobtrusive, he talks in monologues that are intelligent, cultured, confessional but never risk asking a direct question that will be rebuffed. He makes small overtures to try and integrate himself into the home where he is unwelcome. And while we know from the elderly father’s narration he becomes an unexpectedly enjoyed presence, one they are sorely tempted to respond to, it also becomes subtlety clear that there is a burgeoning attraction between the stoic daughter and the complex, polite man of honour. All this remains unspoken but it is palpably there by the end. The final act is heartbreaking as a crushing choice is made by one character, whose eyes are opened to the realities of Nazi occupation. This is a small film, but artful, beautiful – fully transcending its stagey structure. Howard Vernon gives a superb performance as “the good German” charmingly pushing back against the silence, against the assigned hostilities. Yet it is the dowdy yet stunningly pretty Nicole Stéphane, lit by firelight, knitting without ever opening her mouth to speak, who sticks in the memory. Small flinches on her face, a head turned nearly always away from camera, we fill our own thoughts and desires into her vacant yet alluring profile.
Domee Shi directs Rosalie Chiang, Sandra Oh and Ava Morse in this Pixar animated comedy where a teenager turns into a giant red panda whenever she has a strong emotion.
Fluffy, cute. I preferred when Pixar used to make adventure sitcoms involving insects or race cars but I guess you can’t fault the intentions here. Or the execution. Very middle class. Why is it set in 2004 though?
Rob Zombie directs Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Mosely and Richard Brake in this horror threequel where those murderous Fireflys escape death row and go south of the border… down Mexico way.
Sid Haig is irreplaceable so let’s just call Richard Brake a welcome late addition to the clan. As with all previous parts in this cult trilogy, 3 From Hell is tonally all over the shop and certain sequences are grindingly indulgent. But I get the feeling one man’s clown murder is another lady’s midget romance subplot. Let call this a Mexican brothel bar and say there’s something malformed yet attractive for everyone. My personal favourite sequences is the trippy multi-colour dance freak out sequence. You ain’t seeing that hot unforgettable stuff in even the top drawer Blumhouse release, now are ya? Cruel and silly, hyper and nasty this is the work of a now well established auteur. Rob Zombie’s made enough of these that it is up to us the audience to put up or shut up. You either bend to his long established will or these releases never ever will be to your taste. Sheri Moon is such a unique screen presence that she is now an endeared figure in our household. More filmmakers should be using her, that spry, girlish sicko powerhouse shouldn’t just be seen in her lovin’ husband’s projects. Cast her as a Marvel villain. Get some demented flavour in that taco. “Look, suit; I gotta do what I gotta do. It’s my rules or the Grim Reaper comes a-rollin’ thru in a big black Cadillac; “Hey, bitch; hop in!” You dig?”
Nicholas Kazan directs James Spader, Mädchen Amick and Larry Miller in this erotic thriller where a smitten architect keeps ignoring the warning signs that his beautiful new girl might be up to something nasty.
Under-cranked erotic thriller punctuated with wobbly fun fair dream sequences. Amick gets some strong looks, both dressed and undressed. Spader only comes alive in the bonkers conclusion.
Otto Preminger directs Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews and Vincent Price in this early noir where a detective falls for the mysterious, beautiful girl whose murder he is investigating.
A bit too stagey and talky – the vibe is intriguing but the execution ages this. Runs out of pep when the flashbacks dry up. Tierney looks swell, decent support.
Thomas Bezucha directs Diane Lane, Kevin Costner and Lesley Manville in this neo-Western drama where a retired sheriff and his resolute wife try to track down their grandson who has been taken from them.
Slow burn for the first hour but leaps to a level of shock and threat that nobody would predict by the thrilling finale. The Weboy Clan (headed by an excellent Manville and pleasurably rotten Jeffrey Donovan) are not messing – a particularly nasty, gothic set of antagonists who pull no punches. You genuinely fear for the romantic, creaky Lane and Costner as they continue their quest against this bunch of scumbags. This is a well made, small film that eventually really delivers in terms of drama, tension and star power. An overlooked gem.
Zack Snyder directs Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames and Mekhi Phifer in this action horror remake of George A. Romero’s zombies-in-a-shopping-mall classic.
A rare mainstream lead outing for the always welcome Sarah Polley. Slick – probably the neatest, cleanest movie Snyder has ever made. The intensity is absorbing, the performances fun. It feels like a backhanded compliment but the credit sequence are the highlights. In the 00s there were a lot of remakes of videoshop cult classic that merely smoothed over and glossed out everything exciting about their original counterparts… this is the rare outlier of the Platinum Dunes era in that it often thumps to its own gory beat.
Terence Young directs Sean Connery, Robert Shaw and Daniela Bianchi in this OO7 thriller where Bond is pulled into a triple cross involving an unwitting yet sexy Soviet defector.
The Bond movie with the most old school spy craft. One of the most romantic Bonds. Exoticism… gypsy fights and continental train journeys. That gripping final act – an extended face off between Connery and a winning Shaw – is the closest the series gets to pure Hitchcock. Every element chimes here. It is a more relaxed adventure, the formula is not quite set yet… and all the better for it. Looked glorious on the big screen too.
Bobby Carroll's Movie Diary 