Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows : The End of Our Journey

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 is the seventh part of the Harry Potter saga, and is currently the only film in this series that i haven't reviewed yet. The film is the first part of the two part finale detailing the seventh year of Harry and his friend's schooling. This is the first and only film not to feature any action at Hogwarts. The film features the wizarding world torn apart by war, its inhabitants living in fear of Voldemort and his death eaters.

The film begins with the order of the phoenix attempting to remove Harry from Privet Drive to a safe house, and features the wedding of Fleur and Bill Weasley. The remainder of the film recounts the story of Harry Ron and Hermione looking for Horcruxes, after realizing the locket they found in the previous film is a fake, they look for the real one, and upon finding it, they search for a way to destroy it, the film then shows their destruction of the locket and their search for the others, in addition to Harry finding out more about Dumbledore thanks in part to Rita Skeeter's tell all exposé.

The problem with splitting the final book into two films, is that while it pays off in the next film, creating a climax that is thrilling and frenetic, it leaves this film a little redundant, and while filling all the action into a single film would have been difficult and would have resulting in the omission of many important details, it leaves this film without much of a climax, while the skirmish at Malfoy Manor is used as the ending of the film, it fails to provide a satisfying conclusion, and is highly unsatisfactory.

Deathly Hallows was written as one novel, and there is really no suitable break point in the story without ruining the balance of the films, the final film of the series is really full with action and yet this film feels a little empty and unnecessary. The novel as it was planned by Rowling starts of slowly and builds momentum as it reaches a zenith with a satisfying climax, this film is only successful if viewed as the first part of a two part film, much in the same way as Kill Bill is, as otherwise, it is a little boring as a stand alone film. Deathly Hallows Part 1 is by far the least satisfying of the films, however it is saved somewhat by it's sequel. Rating: C+

Harry Potter is a fantastic and wonderfully complete adaptation of one of the most beloved literary series of british fiction, and so it only seems fitting to end this series of eight posts with a quite from the sorceress herself:

The stories we love best do live in us forever. So, whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.- J.K. Rowling

Julia - A Review by P M Josse

Julia is a 2008 thriller film directed by Erik Zonca, starring Tilda Swinton in the title role. the film was loosely inspired by the John Cassavetes film Gloria, and is a thriller based in california and mexico, Swinton stars as the eponymous Julia, an alcoholic who goes to desperate measures to find money.

Swinton plays Julia, an alcoholic, whose partying lifestyle has cost her job and means she is rapidly running out of money. She agrees to go to AA meetings where she meets a mexican immigrant named Elena, who wants Gloria to kidnap her son from her ex-husband. Julia after much coercion agrees to partake in the plan, she kidnaps the son, and decides to force Elena's ex-husband in order to extort him for money, while she is with the son, she experiences a spiritual rebirth, finally ending up in mexico, where she will have a final showdown.

The film is much buoyed by Swinton's performance, in her role as Julia, Swinton is brash, visceral and real. The role is much removed from Swinton's other roles, especially at the beginning, we are presented to Julia as a woman who is not unattractive, and who certainly lives a superficially glamorous life. Her appearance is utterly transgressive and differs wildly from her other roles, her hair is red and buoyant and her clothing is showy and glamorous.

Her acting in this film is tense and often terrifying, she shows a level of commitment to her character which is admirable, and which is of benefit to this movie. The film however is troubling towards the end, firstly the film is overly long, clocking in at well over two hours, for a character driven drama, this is a little long to spend with one person. The film also has an unsurprising twist at the end, that is utterly too convenient, the character features a turnaround that it too handy, and which belies the action that came before.

Despite its flaws and it's bloated running time, Julia nonetheless features a superb performance by Tilda Swinton, in one of her best roles to date (which is saying something) in this superb character study. Rating: B-

Julia: Well, I'm not really down with the good neighbor shit.

Starring Scarlett Johansson

Lucy is a 2014 action film starring Scarlett Johansson and directed by Luc Besson. The film is about an american expat living in Taiwan called Lucy, she is kidnapped by drug dealers and has a bag placed in her stomach, when the bag starts leaking, Lucy is able to access more of her mind, over the 10% humans currently use (according to the film), when she is able to access other reaches of her mind she is able to do other things such as telekinesis, telepathy and the ability to change her appearance and metabolism at will.

The film's logic is not infallible, firstly the film's entire premise is based on little more than an urban myth, we now know that we use far more than 10% or our brain's capacity, and that defining it in percentage terms is illogical. Nonetheless the film takes this concept and applies it entirely literally. Secondly the film's ending, whilst poetic and beautiful, is never really explained, and the details of why Lucy's body starts to self destruct make little sense. Despite the film being slightly illogical, Lucy believes so wholeheartedly in it's concept that this matters little.

The film is enthusiastically and almost aggressively silly, currently, thanks in no small part to Christopher Nolan, modern blockbusters always take themselves far too seriously, and it is refreshingly to see a film that, if anything, doesn't take itself seriously enough, the film is content to be no more than a dumb action film, but if anything, it doesn't take itself seriously enough, this is a film that really has something to say about evolution and the future of mankind, but i am grateful that a Luc Besson film didn't try to be anything too paradigmatic.

The main character of Lucy is interesting, and hopefully the films success with Johansson above the marquee will finally convince Marvel Studios to greenlight a Scarlett Widow solo film. As lucy becomes more and more powerful, she becomes less empathetic and less human, this is perhaps intentional, but we reach a point when we can no longer view her as human, Lucy becomes almost invincible in the film's third act, and this is a problem as we the film eventually becomes less and less thrilling, because we are no longer scared about the safety of our heroine, Lucy also never interracts with her enemies, and although it is pretty cool to see Taiwanese gangsters fighting thin air, it would have been nice to have seen a true fist to fist fight scene.

Lucy is an oddly refreshing film, though it is riddled with logical gaps and pseudoscience, it is great to finally see a summer blockbuster that doesn't take itself  too seriously, that powers through it's ridiculousness with fun and thrills, and which is actually rather well made, Johansson provides a suitably gonzo performance in the title role, and despite being highly silly, Lucy is actually a lot of fun, provided one doesn't attempt to take it too seriously. Rating: B-

Lucy: Life was given to us a billion years ago. Now you know what you can do with it.

The Philosophers Stone

Yes, i will be using the original novels english title as the title of this post, sorry sorcerers stone, you just don't cut it. This post will be the first in a series of seven posts, where i will review the first seven Harry Potter films in order of their release (i already reviewed the eight, and my review can be found HERE).

Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone was released in 2001 and kick started what would go on to become the highest grossing franchise of all time with over $7.7 billion in box office receipts. The film introduced the three lead child actors who would later incarnate these characters for the remainder of the series. The three actors were incredibly young, and their lack of comfort with acting on a film set is noticeable mainly in this film.The film set a precedent for the British film industry, as JK Rowling insisted that the entirety of the cast be either British or Irish, and that the films be made in their entirety in Britain. Despite the film having an American director, Chris Columbus, the films are inherently British in their execution, and they remain unusually faithful to the source material.

The film was instrumental in the success of the rest of the trilogy, Columbus was responsible for establishing the look of the wizarding world, the layout and appearance of Hogwarts and the feel of the school, an inherently difficult task, as the books set no precedent for the appearance of this magical castle, and it is an environment that every fan of the books has imagined over and over in their minds, Columbus is successful in crafting a magical environment which is grand and impressive without appearing ominous or brooding. Hogwarts is simply an architectural masterpiece.

The casting of the film is also superb, and the use of Richard Harris, Maggie Smith, Robbie Coltraine and Alan Rickman is of huge benefit to this adaptation, the young and inexperienced thespians may struggle and lack charisma, but with such a fine cast supporting them, the film just about manages to limp along. Although Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone is a reasonably successful and certainly faithful adaptation of the source novel, the whole spectacle is a little bland for my liking, and the film lacks character or spectacle. Nonetheless the film acts as a successful springboard, and provides the appropriate elements for later adaptations to use to a greater effect. Rating: B-

Hagrid: You're a wizard, Harry!

Factory Girl

Factory Girl is a 2006 biopic of actress, model and muse Edie Sedgewick, and her relationship with Andy Warhol. Sedgewick first met Warhol whilst working as an art student in cambridge, she moves to New York City in order to pursue her career as an artist, she ended up appearing is a number of his films during the 1960's and became his muse for a while. Her relationship with Warhol led to her becoming a worldwide celebrity and icon, and she tragically passed away in 1971 at the age of 28.

The film is shot very much like a documentary, the camera, whilst always being in the right place at the right time, is never flashy, and never overbearing, this gives the whole film a cinema verité feel, where the camera is simply observing, and is never a feature of the film. The narrative of the film is also documentary like, as in Grey Gardens, the cameras simply roll and watch the drama play out, there is no attempt to streamline the film into a distinct and linear narrative, whilst the action is all chronological, there are huge jumps in time and narrative and the film takes place over an indeterminate period of time.

The film features undeniably fine performances, and Sienna Miller is surprisingly good in the leading role, i will admit to not having seen a lot of her work, and knowing of her largely from her relationship with Jude Law, her affair with Daniel Craig and her featuring in The September Issue, however she is oddly perfect in the role of Edie Sedgewick, a woman who is fragile, vapid and foolish, who places all her trust in Warhol at the begining of the film, and whose blind faith will ultimately lead to her being cast off and left for ruin. Despite the film being filmed and told in a cinema verité style, the film is nonetheless very much told from Edie's point of view, the audience is expected to understand and empathize with her despite the carelessness of her actions, and we are supposed to blame her entourage for her situation, and her subsequent decay.

However the real star of this picture is Guy Pearce, who plays Andy Warhol, few actors have the confidence to take on such a hugely iconic and challenging role, and yet Pearce pulls it off with style and panache. What is so impressive about his performance is that we really feel like we know him, despite the fact that he rarely, if ever takes off his sunglasses, Pearce's performance is so deft and powerful that he takes an icon down from his pedestal, and makes him human, he penetrates the sunglasses and the wigs, the blind stares and ironic glazed voice and makes a real character whilst remaining faithful to the status of such a powerful and influential artists.

Factory Girl is a film which succeeds on the strength of it's performances and its visual pastiche, whilst the story suffers, and is reduced to a mere series of vignettes, the lack of narrative is interesting to follow and gives the film an interesting flair, however the film is simply unable to craft a convincing or understandable story from it's wonky narrative. Rating: C+

Edie Sedgwick: To me, New York was Jackson Pollock sipping vodka and dripping paint onto a raw canvas.

W.E. - A love story

W.E. is a 2011 film, written and directed by Madonna, not word's anyone interested in cinema is ever ford of hearing. W.E. is the story of Edward VII of England, who fell in love with an American woman named Wallis Simpson, and who abdicated the throne to be with her. The film draws parallels between this story, and that of a wealthy socialite living in New York in 2001, Wally Winthrop, a woman obsessed with the story of Wallis Simpson, and whose life carries certain parallels with that of Wallis.

I have in the past expressed a loathing for films that feel the need to use multiple storylines, as it often feels redundant and over complicated, W.E. is no exception, the love story between Wallis and Edward is fascinating, and not something i know a huge amount about, the story featuring Wally Winthrop on the other hand is trite, melodramatic and boorish, much of it's story involves Wally obsessively musing over the life of the Duke and Duchess, her story with her abusive husband is not much more interesting either, and the story doesn't carry the affecting weight that it is supposed to, by the end of the story, there simply isn't the emotional payoff that is required.

The film looks fantastic, and Madonna clearly spared no expense, the parts featuring Wallis and Edward are particularly beautiful. Wallis Simpson was known for her sense of style and is today seen as a fashion icon. The clothes were partially recreated from old patterns found in archives of clothes actually worn by the Duchess. What is clear from the film is that Wallis Simpson had fun with fashion, she was unafraid to wear clothes that were extravagant and fun. Her fashion legacy is suitably portrayed in this film, and the costuming is beautiful and detailed Also fantastic is the music of the film, the score, composed by Abel Korzeniowski is harrowing and ethereal, mysterious and beautiful.

This part of the film is also reasonably well acted, Andrea Riseborough is fantastic as the Duchess, she gives a realistic harrowing performance, Riseborough successfully penetrates the iconography of and manages to find the human inside the portrait of a woman vilified and despised by the British public, and manages to create something somewhat resembling a person. The Wallis Simpson created by this film is a woman who is fragile and delicate, and who never intended to hurt anyone, she is portrayed as being fun, loud and with a wicked humor.

Despite being a fairly well handled film, W.E. is also a highly frustrating film, as it never reaches it's full potential, the scenes featuring Wallis and Edward are fantastically acted and visually lavish, however the whole spectacle which should be allowed to soar, is instead caged in a drearily dull modern retelling that is mostly histrionic melodrama and partially hysteria. W.E. whilst being a visual treat, never reaches it's full potential, and it's a shame that so much which is good got clouded in so much that is bad. Rating: B-

Wallis Simpson: Attractive, my dear, is a polite way of saying a woman's made the most of what she's got.

LOOKING - A New Comedy

Often described as the gay comedy for the new generation, LOOKING is the new series on HBO, which debuted on sunday. I know that it may seem like i'm writing a lot of TV reviews at the moment, but what can i say, i'm feeling inspired. LOOKING is a show about three gay friends living in San Francisco, each at a crossroads in their lives, and looking for something new. The series stars Jonathon Groff as Patrick a man with a successful career as a video game developer looking for love.

This show is perhaps best describes as being to Queer As Folk what Girls is to Sex And The City, the show in a sense shares much with its older, maturer, camper predecessor. The show feels fresh, and modern, and speaks to a younger audience than Queer As Folk. I think that the younger parts of the gay community are much less overt than the older parts, they are less segregated and tend to blend in more easily, the show reflects this. Looking is essentially a show like any other, its about dating and life, the only quirk is that the characters are gay, but it doesn't speak only to that group, it speaks to anyone of this age.

The show feels well written and well plotted, the characters seem well rounded and don't often fall back on stereotypes, the characters interactions seem realistic and there is little of the 'meeting up for cocktails' that so often featured on Sex And The City, instead this show is more likely to feature smoking a joint in the park or going cruising on the subway, which perhaps speaks to our generation.

Overall i was fairly impressed by LOOKING, the show feels fresh and modern, and adds to HBO's already impressive comedy roster. The show is unpretentious and realistic, and the shows leads seem competent, so despite not being flabbergasted by this show, i feel that there is promise for the rest of the season, and it is finally nice to have a show in TV that speaks to people like me, a demographic that feels poorly represented. Rating: B-

The 71st Golden Globe Awards

The Golden Globes telecast took place on the 12th of January, and despite the telecast for the most part going off without a hitch, there are a few issues that i would like to address, overall the biggest problem is NOT it's hosts, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are slick, smart and funny, and manage to tread a fine line between offensive and acceptable, for the most part, the people they are making fun of, seem to be in on the joke. Overall our hosts, like last year, did a fantastic job, and seemed to be present, only when it was appropriate, however, despite their effectiveness, this years telecast seemed a little fraught, and i have just a few comments about the ceremony in general:

• First of all, the thing that really irked me was the music that played people off, it came in way too soon, i understand that NBC and the HFPA need to keep to a schedule, but if anything needs cutting it is either the introductions, of the president of the HFPA's speech, not the winners, no one actually made it through their speech entirely without being cutoff, and to tell the truth it was a little awkward. 

• Secondly, they need to do something to reduce the time it takes people to get to the stage, Jacqueline Bisset took a few hours to reach the stage and Robin Wright had to flat out run in order to make it, the amount of time it takes someone to reach the stage has become a sort of barometer of how famous a person is, and this has to be rectified, whether that means moving nominees closer to the front or allowing more space for people to move freely between the tables, something needs to be don, because in some cases it took more time for people to get to their table than their actual speech lasted

• Next, i was fed up by people standing up in front of the camera man, and the shot being ruined, this happened multiple times, when someone won a globe, and there was a shot of their reaction, like clockwork someone stands up and all i can see is black suit jacket. This is very frustrating, and can simply be solved by moving the tables slightly further apart, so that people don't have to stand up, it sounds like i'm being picky, but this was really really irritating after a while.

Well the Golden Globes have always been a little more relaxed than other award shows, they've always been a little more of a party atmosphere, however this show just felt sloppy, and overall the whole show just needs tightening up, and too much time was spent with not enough happening. The shows producers saved on time by attempting to shorten the speeches, which just made the entire show feel a little rushed, overall a well hosted show, but with only mediocre production values.Rating: C+

"To the Rayons of the world, thank you for the inspiration"

 

THE IMMIGRANT - A Review By Philip Josse

The immigrant is a 2013 film directed by James Gray and starring Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix and Jeremy Renner. The film tells of the hard life of a polish immigrant, arriving on Ellis Island in the 1920's with her sister. Upon arrival Ewa meets Bruno, played by Joaquin Phoenix, and is drawn into a web of lies, magic and prostitution.

The film features a talented and charismatic cast, Marion Cotillard is perfectly cast as the vulnerable and beautiful Ewa, who is caught up in world in which she is too young, and too innocent. Joaquin Phoenix plays Bruno, a troubled and damaged man who uses a combination of charm, money and lust to draw women in, and finally Jeremy Renner plays Orlando, a magician who offers Ewa an escape from her situation.

I wanted to like this film, i really tried, but The Immigrant has an uneven script and poor character development. The biggest problem with this film is that it is too damn attractive, the film wants to be gritty and real, and wants to present a realistic view of the hardships of being an immmigrant in 1920's New York, and Ewa towards the end of the film sees herself as a disgraced woman. The film never allows the audience to see Ewa in the way she sees herself, and thus we are confused by the image other characters have of her. Bruno is also a confused character, he is never as nasty as he really could be, and thus Ewa's fear of him appears irrational, the audience never really sees him as she does, and for me this is a big problem.

That said the film does look beautiful, Gray does a fantastic job of recreating 1920's New York, and the cinematography is lovely, the costumes are vibrant and tactile, and the characters feel real, however overall The Immigrant is too uneven, too long, and just too dower to bee a successful motion picture, however Marion Cotillard is effervescent as ever, and perfectly cast as the fragile Ewa. Rating: C

Ewa: I just want to be happy

Prisoners

Prisoners is a 2013 thriller film by Dennis Villeneuve, starring Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal. The film is about two friends whose children are abducted, and the attempt to find them. The supporting cast is filled out by Viola Davis, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo and Paul Dano. The film details the day before and the week after the girls are taken. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a police detective, who is charged with finding the missing girls, and Hugh Jackman plays one of the girls father who feels an intense guilt for being partially responsible, and who takes the law into his own hands.

The film is a thriller, and thus the first part of the movie is highly strung, tense and atmospheric. Unfortunately the second half of the film can't match up, and thus overall the film feels overlong, bloated and self indulgent. I don't think ive ever sceen a film be so good in it's first half, only to become unfortunate going into the final act, Prisoners shuns the traditional three act structure for a laborious 5 act structure. Unfortunately the last 2 acts feel completely unnecessary, as the plot has already been mostly tied up, and the film ends with a ridiculous plot twist.

The films dialogue is mostly rather stilted, and despite a good plot the films dialogue is at times rather painful. Despite this the film does feature some quality performances, the films leads are solid, and Jackman gives an emotional and subtle performance as a man dealing with grief and guilt. Jyllenhaal is solid too, however both of the films leads are outshone by Paul Dano as  Alex Jones, a complex young man with severe developmental problems and the mental age of a ten year old, Dano's performance is understated and believable.

The film deals mainly with themes of guilt, and duty. Hugh Jackman feels incredibly guilty for the part he played in the disappearance of his daughter, and his intense guilt leads him to unspeakable acts, all committed in the name of his daughter. Jake Gyllenhaal's character feels a profound sense of duty, he feels that he must find the girls, and that if they end up dead that it is his fault, and it is this duty that will drive him mad. The film deals with how we deal with guilt, how we react to it and the actions it will drive us to commit. It questions whether the end really justifies the means and whether we can still be considered good people if we do unspeakable things.

Overall i was disappointed by Prisoners, the film is so good, so suspenseful and thrilling at the beginning, and yet so disappointing, bloated and masturbatory at the end, never have i seen a film that had all the right ingredients, but which failed to put them together correctly. Rating: C+

Keller Dover: Pray for the best, but prepare for the worst.

The To Do List

The To Do List is a 2013 comedy directed by Maggie Carey and produced by CBS Films. The film stars Aubrey Plaza of Parks and Recreation fame as Brandy Klark, a girl graduating high school and who attempts to get more sexual experience before going to college. Brandy Klark is organized, bright and socially awkward, in addition to being sexually inexperienced and overachieving. The film is set during the summer of 1993, incidentally three months before i was born.

Brandy decides that she needs to get more sexual experience before she leaves for college, true to form she makes a list of all the vaguely sexual acts she can find, attempts to define them, and attempts to achieve them all by the end of the summer. Brandy also works as a lifeguard at the public poo, and the subplot of the movie involves Brandy being hazed by the employees of the pool.

The To Do List is surprisingly funny, and there were many moments in which i laughed out loud, this overall is due to the films fun script and talented cast. I make no secret of my love of Aubrey Plaza, and i watch Parks and Recreation, in part for her performance, it is great to see her in another leading role, and this role strays far from her usual slacker roles. The rest of the cast is also bright and charismatic, and i am also a fan of Alia Shawkat, and it's great to see her outside of Arrested Development.

I also like the film's amorality, the characters have an open and liberal attitude to sex, and by the end of the film, neither their opinions nor their perspectives haven't really changed, and Brandy gets to the end realizing in fact that sex still really isn't that big of a deal - for her at least. Brandy ends the film with a no regrets perspective, regretting nothing and having enjoyed the experience. The only place that the film fails is that there is relatively little character development, and we get to the end knowing little more about Brandy than we did at the beginning, and there are various points in the film where it feels the need to resort to gross out humor that tends to cheapen the film.

Overall, despite not being a great film, The To Do List is a funny and poignant film, the kind of sexual freedom shown in the film is rare, and Brandy's character makes the straight up decision to have sex without the film needing to slut-shame her or regard her decisions with scorn or disdain. The To Do List is an entertaining way to spend a few hours, and raises some interesting points about female sexuality. Rating:B-

Fiona: Hello, welcome to big bun. Brandy: I’ve decided to lose my virginity to Rusty Waters. Fiona: Would you like fries with that?

I Love You Mommie Dearest

Mommie Dearest is a 1981biopic, detailing the later years of famed screen siren Joan Crawford, and her troubled relationship with her adopted daughter, actress Christina Crawford. The film is an adaptation of Christina Crawfords memoir of the same name. The film stars Faye Dunaway as Crawford, in a truly chameleonic performance. The film received mixed reviews upon release and won the razzie award for worst picture, the film has since however gone one to become a cult classic.

The film, much like the novel, uses a cinematic form of first person narrative. The novel is a memoir, and is thus neither a factual account nor an unbiased documentary, the film is instead a work of fiction which is based upon one persons account of events, which do not claim to be unbiased or balanced. The problem with this is that it makes the film seem over the top and a little camp, whereas in the novel, the scene of Joan attacking her daughter for using a wire hanger and morphing into a complete monster may work in a novel using first person narrative. In film, despite many attempts to subvert this, narrative is nearly always third person, as most of the time we are watching the film as an outsider, and thus the gloriously over the top performance by Faye Dunaway whilst perhaps being appropriate to the character described in the novel, needed to be toned down for the film.

The film describes the period from Crawford's adoption of Christina, until Crawford's death. The film shows Crawford to be a rigorous and almost pathologically disciplined person, she rises at dawn to perform a precise beauty regimen, has a crippling exercise regime and peruses scripts with a highlighter, the character's career is shown to be steadily on the decline, and her companion notes that she is getting older. Her films are grossing less and less money and she is becoming known as box office poison, she is released from her contract at metro, a grievance which she unabashedly takes out on her children, who are now about ten. She then attempts to make a comeback, campaigning and auditioning for the part of Mildred Pearce, the role that would eventually win her an Oscar.

The latter part of the film details her declining relationship with her daughter, now a young woman, and aspiring actress, and her declining health, this part of the film is considerably less camp than the first part, and despite being perhaps less salacious, it is considerably more interesting, as it is an intense study of the terse relationship between mother and daughter, and offers much more in the way of real information than the shrill first half of the film.

Faye Dunaway is fantastic as Joan Crawford, it is never easy to impersonate another, particularly someone as iconic and beloved as Joan Crawford, what is impressive is not only her metamorphosis into Crawford, but the way she manages to present a rounded view of a truly horrific woman. Despite Crawford being unabashedly the villain in this film, Dunaway plays her in such a way that we understand her as a person, and she does not become two-dimensional.

As i mentioned before, this film is incredibly camp, Dunaways performance is, at times gloriously over the top and sometimes plain daft, she has emotional depth and manages to steal every scene in which she sets foot. The film also suffers from pacing issues, and various moments in the film (mostly when Dunaway is offscreen) can seem a little dull, the film also feels the need at times to resort to bitchy salaciousness, which does often feel unnecessary, and cheapens the whole film.

Overall Mommie Dearest is a perfectly enjoyable, and rether watchable film, featuring a strong lead performance from Dunaway as Crawford. Despite the film not providing any real insight into the private life of such a regimented woman, it is an entertaining watch none the less. Rating: B

Joan Crawford: No wire hangers, EVER!

An English Rose

Diana is a 2013 english language film detailing the final years of The Princess Of Wales' life, focusing mainly on her relationship with heart surgeon Hasnat Khan. The film stars Naomi Watts as Lady Di, and begins with her split from Charles, The Prince of Wales. The film focuses exclusively on Diana, and the royal family is never featured, save for a single shot of the princes, though they are discussed extensively.

The film does have a rather melodramatic tone, which led many reviewers to write the film of as being histrionic melodrama, however given that the film is unabashedly from Diana's point of view, and that we do tend to dramatize events in our life, seeing the film entirely through her eyes, allows some dramatization of events, we believe entirely in her actions, and her actions require no justification. Part of what makes this film so successful is that whilst watching the movie, we never doubt our heroine's actions, and the film never attempts to justify them, it is only upon reflection that we realize how painfully flawed she is.

Naomi Watts is fantastic in the title role, and really is a doppleganger for Lady Di herself, Watts has to carry the entire bulk of the film, and is literally in every scene, she has to be respectful of the beloved princess, whilst also presenting her as a real person. What angered the british public about this film is that it shows the Princess' flaws, which some found tacky, what makes this film a success is conversely that it refuses to place it's lead on a pedestal, and that instead of giving us a cardboard-cutout for a heroine, we are given a real human being. This film does have a lot of flaws, but Watts isn't one of them.

The film doesn't have quite enough storyline for it's two hour running time, the film really could be a half hour shorter. After a while the film does start to feel a little episodic, and Diana and Khan break up so many times that the film does start to feel a little been there, done that. The film does however do a great job of showing the person behind the legend.

Overall Diana, despite not being perfect, is simply not the turkey that many wrote it off as, Watts gives a fantastic and complex performance of a complicated and troubled princess. The film gives us an interesting insight into the life of a woman everyone thought they knew, and who was loved intensely by the British public. The film is an emotional roller-coaster, yet is sometimes painfully flawed, much like the princess herself. Rating: B

Ain't Them Bodies Saints

Ain't Them Bodies Saints is a 2013 crime drama film starring Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck as star crossed outlaws, living in Texas, they are caught and Affleck's character Bob is put in jail just as his wife Ruth falls pregnant with their first child, a daughter. Years later Bob makes a daring escape from prison to be reunited with his wife and daughter, who he has never seen.

The film stars Rooney Mara as Ruth Guthrie and Casey Affleck as Bob Muldoon, star crossed lovers and outlaws. During a shootout Ruth shoots a police officer, and Bob takes the fall for it. Ruth has his child and then waits for him, all the wile pondering on the state of their relationship and what to do with her life. The film features a fantastic cast, Rooney Mara gives a dense, complex and conflicted performance as a woman raising her child as a single mother, and struggling to deal with her guilt, her loneliness and her conflicted feelings about her husband. Ben Forter also stands out as Patrick Wheeler, a sheriff who hunts for Bob, and who has to deal with his feelings for Ruth.

The film, despite featuring fantastic performances, suffers from a thin script a wanting plot. Much of the story of the film involves Bob trying to get back to his wife, and Ruth trying to reconcile her feelings for her husband. Despite this being a rather interesting premise, it wears thin after a while, and the film starts to become melodramatic, and only really regains any momentum during the final half hour, the problem is that the film features various characters talking about going places, and leaving Texas, however ironically the film never really seems to go anywhere, and there is very little emotional progression throughout the movie.

The film is undeniably beautiful, and won the best cinematography award at Sundance. The film features beautiful Terrence Malick imagery of sunsets and clouds, and is yet another American film in the style of Mud or Upstream Color featuring beautiful imagery and cinematography. Overall Ain't Them Bodies Saints, despite featuring beautiful cinematography and fantastic performances from it's leads, has a plot which ultimately wears thin and descends into melodrama after the first hour. Rating: B-

Bob Muldoon: Every day I wake up thinking today’s the day I’m gonna see you. And one of those days it will be so. And then we can ride off to somewhere, somewhere far away.