I watched all of the ceremony, conveniently having today off.

There were no major surprises, though while Lily Gladstone was favourite to win Best Leading Actress for Killers Of The Flower Moon (which I haven't yet seen), she was pipped at the post by Emma Stone for her remarkable performance in Poor Things.

It was a good night for British talent in major and technical categories and a not so good night for Barbie (a single Oscar for Best Song).

As to the ceremony: well, that was a mixed bag - host Jimmy Kimmel was very hit and miss, with gags ranging from semi-decent to toe-curling, with an early gentle "roast" of Robert Downey Jnr particularly mis-judged and cringeworthy.

However, there were no moments of real controversy and they rattled through the twenty-plus awards with little fuss.

I must see Killers Of The Flower Moon, The Holdovers and Godzilla Minus One, which won Best Special Effects despite a relatively modest budget.

It was all just about worth staying up for.

Despite infrequent and inconvenient show times for this seemingly within a 20-mile radius, I managed to catch a late screening at the nearest Showcase Lux, with three other punters.

Whatever awards this receives - and it seems there'll be many - it thoroughly deserves them.

This is a profoundly affecting and disturbing portrayal of the callous nonchalance of which humans can be capable toward those suffering incomprehensible cruelty, set of course during the Holocaust.

The horrors are not portrayed visually, but through sound - and the effect is as devastating as anything you actually see in, say, Schindler's List.

There is only one scene that appears to take place inside the concentration camp, and it is very brief, and visually innocuous - however, what can be heard, from just out of shot, makes it unforgettably harrowing.

Highly recommended - but prepare for an ordeal.

Rating: ****

Saw this in a very sparsely attended screening at the Showcase.

Greek writer/director Yorgos Lanthimos turns his signature bizarro style to this adapted tale of a woman (Emma Stone) who has committed suicide being reanimated (although the premise is a fair bit more complicated and darker than that).

With obvious parallels to Frankenstein, this explores various ethical and philosophical themes, a fair portion of which concerns the voracious sexual appetite of Stone's lead character; these scenes leave virtually nothing to the imagination, so earning the 18 rating from the BBFC (which made cuts on the technicality that it showed minors in the same frame as adults who are performing sexually explicit acts (context is everything)).

This has often deliciously funny dialogue, remarkable production design and an outstanding, deservedly Oscar-nominated performance from Emma Stone.  Mark Ruffalo is also highly impressive in a scenery-chewing support role (also Oscar-nominated) and I'll always have time for Willem Defoe no matter what he's in.

So, it's all very impressive and admirable on many levels - yet I couldn't love it.  It's long at 140 minutes and seems it; despite the film's many qualities, it does drag a little, and I felt it was trying to cram in too many ideas at times - sometimes, less is more.

However, this hasn't been festooned with award nominations for nothing, and if you don't mind something a bit different, I'd recommend it.

Rating: ***

New year, new thread... 

Fri 9th Feb
STEWART LEE, Leeds Playhouse
Sat 23rd Mar
MOVING PICTURES, Huddersfield The Parish
Sat 13th Apr
PAUL FOOT, Halifax Square Chapel
Thu 18th Apr
STEWART LEE, Bradford St George's Hall
Sun 5th May
FM, Leeds Brudenell
Wed 22nd May
RICHARD MARX, London Royal Albert Hall
Thu 23rd May
YES, Manchester Bridgewater Hall
Thu 13th Jun
SHERYL CROW, Halifax Piece Hall
Sun 16th Jun
NILE RODGERS & CHIC, Halifax Piece Hall
Fri 21st Jun
THE KILLERS, Manchester Co-op Arena
Sat 31st Aug
BRAVADO, Sheffield City Hall

Just back from a promo showing at Elland Rex (unadvertised, free entry by voucher, free popcorn and drinks for the kids) and this is one of the better family films I've seen this year.

Director/co-writer Paul King (he who gave us both Paddington films) ensures things breeze along during its near two-hour running time that establishes an origin story of the titular character.

Timothee Chalamet is a fine choice for the leading role and well supported by game turns from familiar British comedy faces, the standouts being Hugh Grant as a hilariously snooty Oompah Loompah, and Olivia Colman, who throws herself into a villainous role with relish.

While it doesn't quite hit the considerable heights of the Paddington films this is good, solid, family fun that kids of all ages will enjoy.

Rating: ***

It's arrived!

First listen, here goes... 

This likely needs no introduction, so I'll dive right in.

I thoroughly enjoyed this and it kept me engrossed throughout its 3-hour running time; Cillian Murphy is very good indeed as you'd expect, while Robert Downey Jnr shows he can still deliver a great performance in serious movies.

Christopher Nolan's dialogue fizzes and crackles resulting in some terrific scenes of verbal sparring; the first meeting between Oppenheimer and Brigadier General Groves (an excellent Matt Damon) being a standout.

And one of the best scenes Nolan has directed appears toward the end as Oppenheimer delivers a rousing speech while internally being wracked by the consequences of what he was instrumental in creating.

So this is certainly deserving of all the critical and commercial success since its release several weeks ago now; the only slight and very forgivable reservation I had was that because there are so many characters involved with the story it results in some pivotal figures relegated to near-cameo roles, even with the lengthy running time.

But overall, this is a bona fide epic on multiple levels which I firmly expect to sweep the board at the next Oscars.

Rating: ****

Footnote: I saw this in an otherwise empty auditorium during a lunchtime showing at the nearest Showcase - as the credits rolled, the usher came in to tidy up, despite there being no need; as I left I said to him, "Thanks for the private screening!"  But he didn't seem to get it. 🙄

Time to start a thread for this upcoming album: a second track, Push, has dropped on YouTube; a near seven minutes of proggy pop-rock and my initial impressions are very, very favourable indeed.

This follows the excellent radio rocker Big Mistakes, so this album is shaping up to meet all my high expectations.

And, sorry, I can't help comparing Trevor's new output to Steve Wilson's here; it strikes me as being on a completely different level in terms of songcraft and musicianship. And everything else for that matter.

(First off, apologies for the long review).

Finally got round to seeing this at the local Vue, now that all the "culture war" hullabaloo that surrounded its release has subsided.

This film has of course been effusively lauded as an astute, nerve-striking satire of "patriarchy" by the "progressive left" and viciously criticised as nakedly misandrist by the "anti-woke", as it rather unsurprisingly (and tediously) became subject of a loud, raging tennis match of discourse between the loud extremes of both camps.

So I was determined to go into this with a clean slate, but have to say that it didn't take long at all before it was clear things tended toward the latter accusation. 

However, that wasn't my biggest "takeaway" from Barbie - which is a film that really does demand you have a "takeaway" from it, albeit for me it wasn't the one it intended.

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions and I think that's very appropriate for this film; it is so consumed with delivering a biting satirical message, that it forgets it is often actually stating the bleedin' obvious, and hence is way behind the curve of where the discourse on female empowerment actually is. So this film ends up patronising everyone, no matter where they stand politically - it's almost 2 hours of the old bigotry of low expectations.

Even worse, it's all threaded through with an air of conceited self-congratulation, and worse still, writer/director Greta Gerwig even fancies her writing of the frequent monologues as tear-jerkingly profound, when in fact they're cringeworthily clunky.

Gerwig presents a crass false dichotomy of women and men being in some kind of inevitable, interminable conflict simply because of the way they're made and, in the end, they might be able to make compromises and tolerate each other, but they don't need each other.  Well, here I'm reminded of Konstantin Kisin's excellent review on YouTube, where he comprehensively dismantles this point.

While the film is a bit of a clanger, then, it's not a stinker: it's partially redeemed by very impressive technical accomplishments in production design, costume design, hair and make-up etc. - I strongly suspect Oscar nominations are forthcoming.  There are a couple of neat, deftly executed "meta" gags.   And Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling are of course perfectly cast and carry the film expertly.

The problem is really that it's, perhaps ironically, somewhat behind the times.

Rating: **

Some films that aren't new cinema releases deserve their own thread, and this 'Midnight Movie Club' watch has to be one of them.

The first point to make is this is an 18-rated film and is so for very good reasons; for instance, I thought that graphic depictions of fellatio were technically confined to 'R18' rated pornos, but this hasn't actually been the case for the best part of 25 years.

Anyway, I don't want to make too much of a very brief sequence which is in a very particular and justifiable context: a prostitute trying to make ends meet in Iran, of course one of the most oppressive countries in the world for women.  But that's theocracies for you.

There is so much to say about this film that it's difficult to know where to start - or finish; so I'll just try to summarise in bullet points:

- directed by Iranian filmmaker Ali Abbasi, and based on actual events, the story follows a female journalist on the trail of a serial killer of female sex workers in the Iranian holy city of Mashhad (it was actually filmed in Jordan for obvious reasons);

- the killer is revealed early on as a family man seemingly suffering some form of PTSD and guilt at not being martyred along with his fellow soldiers during a tour of duty, hence he embarks on a divinely-inspired murder spree to rid the streets of corrupt women (echoes of 'Yorkshire Ripper' Peter Sutcliffe here);

- there are various themes brilliantly explored by Abbasi, chiefly how religious jurisprudence in an Islamic theocracy can appear to favour male murderers rather than their female victims, especially in the 'court of public opinion';

- Mehdi Bajestani's performance as the killer is remarkable; it's chillingly 'normal' and naturalistic;

- there is an extraordinary coda which is probably one the most emotionally gut-punching scenes I've witnessed since I saw the unrelentingly grim and harrowing film The Painted Bird.

This is highly, highly recommended - but prepare yourself accordingly.

Rating: ****

More apocalyptic news and panic porn reporting about wildfires; direct quote from ITV News: "As Southern Europe burns..".

FFS. No.

Isolated parts of Rhodes have seen fires, yes, and tour operators have evacuated holidaymakers as a precaution - not because they're in any immediate danger as heavily implied by MSM news reports.  Some of the evacuees have had their holiday curtailed, but many others have gone back to their resorts, as they have been declared safe by the Greek authorities.

In the south east of the island, Pefkos (where we had a wonderful holiday last year), and its main street's bars and restaurants has seen normal, bustling activity over the last couple of nights.

But all these pertinent facts are conveniently missing from the MSM's hysterical takes, which would have you think the infernal pits of Hades are engulfing the Dodecanese.

It's back!  The almost annual gathering of champagne anti-capitalist environmentalists who have driven tens of thousands of cumulative miles convene once again to spaff £12 per glass of fizz via their Amex cards, generate 500 tons of pollution and leave waste of biblical proportions behind them.

Headlining tonight are South Yorkshire's own not-at-all-performatively-thickly-regional-accented indie-rock cheeky chappies Arctic Monkeys.  Again.

Meanwhile, in an absolute scandal of broadcasting schedule ineptitude, one of my beloved, favourite ever bands, The Saw Doctors, will NOT be broadcast by the BBC as they are not covering the Acoustic Stage.  Unforgivable - why do I bother paying a licence fee?

Anyway, roast away...

Apparently due to a particular burst of solar activity the northern lights have been seen as far south as Norfolk.

The display is set to continue the next few nights so hopefully it's visible from my patch in Yorkshire; it will be a first for me.

I must first fully disclose that I only watch this acclaimed series kind of casually out of curiosity for location-spotting purposes, as it is filmed in the borough in which I live.

Indeed, I remember some years ago when I worked in an office overlooking part of the canal basin in Sowerby Bridge, turning up in my car one morning as usual and unexpectedly finding myself being waved past The Moorings pub - steps from my parking spot - by a film crew, so I literally drove through where a scene was being prepped, Sarah Lancashire in full police uniform in conversation with some crew member mere feet away from me.

So, I had to smile at the first episode of this, particularly at the scene with a "Yorkshire Police" station, which I immediately recognised as Halifax town centre's council swimming baths repurposed.

Even more so during the (very brief) scene when the "villain" is transferred as part of a convoy of police vehicles into the rear entrance of the "police station" (the rear entrance of Halifax town centre's repurposed swimming baths); about 12 hours before I saw this sequence tonight, I had parked my car at a car park literally 50 yards away from that very spot, ahead of a Halifax Town match at the nearby Shay Stadium.

And here's another reason why I can't watch this extremely well made drama without not falling under its spell: I'm sorry but, no matter how profoundly dramatic and gritty the scene might be, I cannot see George Costigan and Siobhan Finneran without thinking of the timelessly hilarious Rita, Sue & Bob Too and laughing my nads off.

So: are there any actual fans here who can offer the serious appraisal it deserves..?

Just read the sad news of the passing of Angelo Badalamenti, composer of the music for most of the films of David Lynch, with whom he shared a long-standing working relationship and friendship.

Other projects on which he worked include National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, with collaborations with musicians such as David Bowie and Tim Booth.

Probably Badalamenti's best known work is the iconic, eerily beautiful theme from Twin Peaks, for which he won a Grammy award.

R.I.P.

One of the best films of 2022.

Full review to follow.

I seem to remember TNMS having a spoiler facility, at least at one time - was wondering if this is a possibility here, James?

Thanks either way! 

In the same way that pretty much every household is perceived to have in its music collection certain mandatory, iconic titles, then surely Top Gun is a film that you will almost certainly find sitting in cabinets stuffed full of DVDs and blu-rays in any given film-loving home.

Now, one the reasons I hadn't seen this up to now was that I'd simply never got round to borrowing it or buying it. But with the release of the must-see, ludicrously overdue sequel, I had to see this - and fast; so, what were my options?

Well, the film collection in my household is - apart from the entire feature filmography by David Lynch which is always kept in chronological order - a bit of a mish-mash of my stuff, and my co-habitee's stuff; was Top Gun part of her collection? Maybe I should check? Would it vindicate the theory that, chances are, any given household has it?

So I looked, and, lo and behold, I found it within about 20 seconds; a DVD probably unopened in years.

So in it went, into my 21st century Blu-ray player, and for a few moments there was a whirring and click-clacking as if it had ingested a foreign object. But once it settled down, we were ready for take off...

I think there are two essential elements to this film's success and status.  The first is obvious: Tom Cruise, here establishing his mega-stardom that of course lasts to this day. There isn't actually much he does, or even has to do, because his looks and charm are enough to carry this superficial 80s hokum.

The second factor for me is the late, lamented Tony Scott (brother of Ridley, of course), whose eye for a great shot and sense of kinetic energy often elevates this above the over-blown cheese topping that was shovelled on the script - though, in fairness, that was 80s scripts for you.

So, yes, I can completely understand why this has a special place in many people's hearts; and while - of course! - I enjoyed it, maybe if I'd actually watched it around the time of its original release I'd treasure it as much as many of my vintage seem to do?

Not to worry - there's the sequel to watch now, in IMAX.

Rating: ***

Another chalked off my list of "I Can't Believe You Haven't Seen That!" (see the thread on that theme elsewhere on the forum ).

Of all the Disney/Pixar films that have won the Best Animated Feature Oscar, I think that this is probably the most deserving (this won in 2005).  I also think, of those I've seen, this is the best Pixar film of all.

It has so many wonderful qualities, so beautifully executed and so perfectly pitched, that it's difficult to know where to start.

The high concept of "family try to deal with their super-hero powers" obviously will require an engaging and authentic balance of domestic comedy-drama and kinetic action, but fortunately writer/director Brad Bird oversees this all with a virtuoso hand.

There is a quite brilliant little "grace note" that has become lodged in my mind (I don't think this is a spoiler): an astonishing jump cut from a scene where Mr Incredible is doing his super-hero thing in a glamorous, exotic location, to his super-hero wife (not knowing what he's up to) back home, stressed and hands full with domestic chores.

There's so much that's great about this, so much going on, so much crackling invention, wit and astuteness in the themes and the direction and the script.  It's the also the most cinematic Pixar film I've seen and while there aren't that many laugh-out-loud moments, there's a vein of clever, knowing and irreverent humour running all the way through it, even in tiny moments like when it's inferred the villain is running partly on marching powder.

I had to think about my rating, because I'll only give full marks to something truly exceptional.  But, on reflection, I believe this really is.

Rating: *****

What cracking fun this is for its 2 hours or so!

The Ghostbusters legacy is wonderfully taken up by Ivan Reitman's son Jason here, delivering a beautifully executed mix of fan service, nostalgia, laughs and easter eggs (some obvious, some contrived, some obscure, but all zipped through in a featurette on the blu ray).

It has the added bonus of getting right all the many things that were very wrong in the dreadful 2016 movie, even if that one isn't strictly canon; for a start, there are no hints of clanging, over-compensatory identitarian agenda in Afterlife, which almost certainly explains why a curiously niche but loud section of critics panned this.

As usual, they have missed the point colossally: this is quite simply a beautiful, heartfelt, perfectly-pitched and deftly executed love letter to the original 80s film and to the late Harold Ramis.  And its damn fine entertainment along the way - right to the very, very end of its running time.

Rating: ****