Average Rating:

.

Doomsday [2008]

starring: Sean Pertwee, Adrian Lester, Bob Hoskins, MyAnna Buring, Rhona Mitra
directed by: Neil Marshall

September 01, 2008
Yes, this writer/director has been responsible for two of the best low budget horror movies of recent years. In Dog Soldiers, he melded the combat film with the werewolf movie and came out with something startlingly good. In The Descent, he crafted what was quite simply one of the scariest films of all time. So what then are we to make of Doomsday? This futuristic shocker features an amalgam of scenes lifted wholesale from other (frankly better) films -to be specific, 28 Days Later, Aliens, Escape From New York, Army of Darkness and Mad Max 2;The Road Warrior. They're all here and all of them are instantly recognizable, so much so that you cannot pass it off as coincidence. Some viewers will utter the word 'homage,' but the less charitable among ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Special Edition) [1988]

starring: Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Joanna Cassidy, Charles Fleischer, Stubby Kaye
directed by: Robert Zemeckis

September 08, 2003
This is a very inventive, technically brilliant cartoon. It has a lot of incredibly funny scenes and a great many superb comic in jokes.

For the time this was made, the special effects are stunning. This is a great piece of entertainment.

Average Rating:

.

Paris, Je T'Aime [2007]

starring: Steve Buscemi, Natalie Portman, Gerard Depardieu, Bob Hoskins, Nick Nolte
directed by: Gus Van Sant, Isabel Coixet, Wes Craven, Christopher Doyle, Vincenzo Natali

February 04, 2008
I am not usually a fan of short films, but Paris Je T'aime is a surprisingly good collection of *very* short (about five minutes each!) films about life in Paris. There are eighteen films in all, and, predictably enough, some are better than others. Yet the overall quality was very good, and a few were outstanding. Most of them have something to do with romance or love, but other than that the collection is diverse. There is comedy, tragedy and even horror. Most of these films manage to actually tell complete stories in a mere five minutes.

I especially enjoyed Steve Buscemi (in a non-speaking role) as a pathetic tourist who makes the mistake of staring at an arguing couple in a Metro station. Also very good was a tale of vampire love. ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Brazil [1985]

starring: Jonathan Pryce, Jim Broadbent, Barbara Hicks, Robert De Niro, Katherine Helmond
directed by: Terry Gilliam

May 19, 2003
Genius.

Don't know what films you one-starers saw or what world you live in.

Average Rating:

.

A Room For Romeo Brass [2000]

starring: Andrew Shim, Ben Marshall, Paddy Considine, Bob Hoskins, Frank Harper
directed by: Shane Meadows

March 25, 2002
When you watch a Shane Meadows film you expect natural performances and housing estate based drama - and it's all here in a fantastically realistic package.

This film is essentially the story of Romeo and Gavin, two schoolboy friends whose friendship is threatened when a third member joins the tight group. The 'third member'; Morell, a twenty-something man seems like a nice-enough guy though a bit socially awkward and perhaps a bit slow. He divides the two friends after becoming obsessed by Romeo's sister and his darker side starts to expose the unhinged aspect of his personality.

Meadows' demonstrates his abilities to present the emotional aspects of men in his films. Be it a broken father trying to wriggle back into the lives of his ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

The Charles Dickens BBC Collection: The Pickwick Papers / Oliver Twist / A Christmas Carol / Martin Chuzzlewit / David Copperfield / Tale Of Two Cities / Great Expectations / Our Mutual Friend

starring: Michael Hordern, Ian McKellen, Charlotte Rampling, Paul Scofield, Maggie Smith

October 24, 2005
Although I have only just bought this and haven't even seen one programme yet I can remember some of the adaptations.
Martin Cuzzzlewit and Our Mutual Friend were good but the David Copperfield is far too short. I can remember the version from the 1970's featuring the brilliant Arthur Lowe as a memorable Micawber - a part he was born to play. Surely this more comprehensively faithful version should have been featured rather than the abridged more recent one? Also why not include Nicholas Nickleby and Bleak House, two of Dicken's major novels which are unaccountably omitted. I realise this collection came out too early to feature the recent excellent adaptation of Bleak House, but surely they could have included the fine version from the 1980's. It would have ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Pink Floyd - The Wall [1982]

starring: Bob Geldof, Christine Hargreaves, James Laurenson, Eleanor David, Kevin McKeon
directed by: Alan Parker

February 07, 2000
Memory told me this was a dissappointment, many criticise Geldorf's performance - well what else was he supposed to do except act like a screwed up depressed individual, which I think he did well (no offence Bob - I'm backing you on this). I really enjoyed this film after a break of numerous years, some excellent moments visually and aurally, well packaged, and the soundtrack is to dream for - wonderful sound. I found this a satisfying disc and probably now prefer it to the CD. One gripe - the repackaging suggests that the Limited Edition disc is an improvement on the standard version, it isn't ! They seem to me exactly the same - but the packaging in the Limited Edition is much superior and just about justifies buying it.

Average Rating:

.

Hook [1992]

starring: Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith
directed by: Steven Spielberg

April 24, 2000
This film is an insult to the British. A terrible performance by Dustin Hoffman, one of Hollywood's "got lucky" boys. If he wants to ham it up, the local Pantomime would be more appropriate. I can't believe Speilberg did this. A complete waste of money and Bob Hoskins. A lifelong fan of Julia Roberts, I can't see any point in casting her. Surely Roberts and Hoskins must cringe at showings of this crass presentation. As for Dustin Hoffman, bring back Mrs. Robinson, he needs some more luck.

Average Rating:

.

Outlaw [2007]

starring: Sean Bean, Danny Dyer, Bob Hoskins, Lennie James, Rupert Friend
directed by: Nick Love

July 09, 2007
'Outlaw' started out looking very promising with a good premise and cast. Sadly by the end it has descended into farce and strayed away from the themes of the film, namely that of a fractured society and a vigilante group fighting back against injustice. If it had stuck to this then this film may well have impressed me more. It moved from a wider dissatisfaction and fighting back against wayward society, to a personal vendetta against one mans criminal activities. Never-the-less it is pretty well acted, shot and directed and it managed to keep my interest for most of the film. The violence is pretty shocking in places but is integral to the themes in the film. Sean Bean is good as you would expect and the other actors hold up their end well. Overall this is a good film, ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Shane Meadow's Collection (Twenty Four Seven, A Room for Romeo Brass, Dead Man's Shoes, This Is England) [1997]

starring: Vicky McClure, Frank Harper, Andrew Shim, Stephen Graham, Paddy Considine
directed by: Shane Meadows

September 03, 2007
Dubbed the `Scorcese of the Midlands', Shane Meadows is one of the UK's brightest modern filmmaking talents. This fantastic four-disk set includes all Meadows' full-length film work bar `Once Upon A Time in the Midlands', a critical and commercial failure that the director has since distanced himself from. The four films are unified by their stark Midlands settings, non-professional actors and a liberal use of improvisation - harking back to kitchen sink dramas of the British New Wave in the 1960s. But while Meadows belongs to a similar tradition to Ken Loach and Mike Leigh, he is also arguably closer to his subjects, having the empirical eye of a man who has lived the life firsthand. Moreover, the raw approach to filmmaking, coupled with the director's handpicked indie, pop and reggae soundtracks, ... Read More: