Less one big plot than a series of minor inconveniences dressed up as one (though you could argue that for the rich, a minor inconvenience is a great big plot), the only internationally important event that takes place in Downton Abbey is then treated as a minor inconvenience. Sumptuous though the film is to look at, Julian Fellowes' script is also painfully, ... Downton Abbey Read More
Featured review
Freaks 3.5 stars
Freaks is a neat little sci fi thriller, heavy on allegory but satisfyingly self-contained – answering all the questions it sets up. My life is a search for ... Freaks Read More
Reviews by kids
The Witches (kids’ review!) 5 stars
I don't believe in witches and I don't believe in ghosts. The Tooth Fairy is real though. People say she uses the children's teeth to build a castle of teeth but I ... The Witches (kids’ review!) Read More
Film Articles & News
Podcast: me and my favourite movie
The man, the myth, the legend... Yes I'm talking about Tom Beasley: super-knowledgable film journalist and host of Flickering Myth's weekly podcast Pick of the Flicks, where critics and movie industry people discuss their favourite film. It was my first ... Podcast: me and my favourite movie Read More
“I’m not a career elf!” – the Last Christmas international trailer is here
And this one goes in much more heavily on the dark side of the festive season. In this case it's the illness Kate (Emilia Clarke) suffered the previous Christmas, which left her near death. 12 months on, the experience still has her in its grip and she ... “I’m not a career elf!” – the Last Christmas international trailer is here Read More
“ANIARA” INTERVIEW: directors Pella Kågerman and Hugo Lilja on updating a Swedish sci fi classic for the 21st century
"What I never understood before meeting Hugo is that sci-fi, it's a lot about philosophy." Pella Kågerman Swedish sci fi film Aniara is based on a well-known poem written in the 1950s by Harry Martinson, who later went on to become Sweden's poet laureate. ... “ANIARA” INTERVIEW: directors Pella Kågerman and Hugo Lilja on updating a Swedish sci fi classic for the 21st century Read More
Director Mark Jenkin on “Bait”, his black and white Cornish classic-in-the-making
"There are shots in the film that I know were taken from rolls of film that I must have been processing when I was wearing a woolly jumper, because I can see the little bits of fibres." Mark Jenkin on his film-making process. Bait, Jenkin’s beautiful and ... Director Mark Jenkin on “Bait”, his black and white Cornish classic-in-the-making Read More
The final Joker trailer is here…
...and it's all I can do not to add a "The" to the front of every mention of that title. I like to find laughter in everything but even I was hard pushed with this one, a standalone origins story about failed comic Arthur Fleck turning to the dark side in ... The final Joker trailer is here… Read More
Gerard Butler’s ‘Fallen’ Oeuvre
Less a deep dive, and more – considering the less than philosophical subtexts to the three Has Fallen movies – a shallow bellyflop, it's time to look back at Butler's battles as Mike Banning. You can see on this site I refer to myself as a Gerard Butler ... Gerard Butler’s ‘Fallen’ Oeuvre Read More
Hal yeah! “The King” offers a new Henry V
UPDATE 27 Aug: NEW poster and teaser trailer The King, a Netflix Original Film starring Timothée Chalamet, will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival 2019. It's a new-look Henry V, his new look being Season 1 of The Black Adder, and so far ... Hal yeah! “The King” offers a new Henry V Read More
The Isle: Tori and Matthew Butler-Hart on their spooky, siren drama…
"On the island... when something like a force nine gale hit, or a beach disappeared due to a storm, we couldn’t just stop filming, we didn’t have the luxury of time." Three sailors, the sole survivors of a shipwreck on the rocks, find their way to shore ... The Isle: Tori and Matthew Butler-Hart on their spooky, siren drama… Read More
INTERVIEW: Stephen Koepfer, Sambo expert on John Wick: Parabellum
"The notion that Wick is a Sambo guy is super cool. Sambo players around the globe should be jazzed about that!" Stephen Koepfer The John Wick franchise is known for its creation of an underground world of assassins and fighters, an off-kilter parallel ... INTERVIEW: Stephen Koepfer, Sambo expert on John Wick: Parabellum Read More
Director Matt Wells on Kubrick, comedy in catastrophe and bringing Dr Strangelove’s chilling absurdities to a new audience
"Kubrick says it in the film, it's an abstraction and people don't process it. How do you deal with the idea that the world could end?" Matt Wells has just made his second short film about Stanley Kubrick: Stanley Kubrick Considers The Bomb. You can see ... Director Matt Wells on Kubrick, comedy in catastrophe and bringing Dr Strangelove’s chilling absurdities to a new audience Read More
INTERVIEW: Oscar-winning costume director Michael O’Connor
"During the preparation of it I thought I'll never work again. This is never ever going to happen, this is never going to be ready..." Costume director Michael O'Connor on his Oscar-winning work for The Duchess. Hearing first-hand from award-winning costume ... INTERVIEW: Oscar-winning costume director Michael O’Connor Read More
Surfacing Now – Seven Submarine Movies To Dive Into
The red posters. The blue boilersuits. A tagline with a water-related pun. The phrase "cat and mouse". The seawater squirting into the missile room when the boat suffers a mild tap. You can't beat a good submarine movie. I'll admit I'm conflicted now. On ... Surfacing Now – Seven Submarine Movies To Dive Into Read More