Check out my current competitions below: Mrs Lowry & Son, about the tangled relationship between Lancashire painter WS Lowry and his mother, and The Courier, a low budget actioner starring Olga Kurylenko and Gary Oldman as an eye patch-wearing gangster. And scroll down for how to enter and T&Cs. Mrs Lowry & Son Directed by… COMPETITION TIME! DVDs up for grabs Read More
Lowry and me: a match(stick) made in heaven?
LS Lowry: Northern, trained artist, famous for his scenes of Lancastrian industrial life, modest (he turned down a knighthood), paintings now selling for millions. Me: Northern, got a C for Art O’Level in 1987, famous for making scenes, likes to blow my own trumpet, I put my painting on social media and let’s be honest,… Lowry and me: a match(stick) made in heaven? Read More
Golden Globes: more frocks than shocks
The Golden Globes took place last night, though I couldn’t find any way to watch them from the UK so I just critiqued the dresses online instead, and as it’s now 2020 I’m simply going to assume that every single one had pockets. It was therefore vaguely exciting waking up this morning to find out who… Golden Globes: more frocks than shocks Read More
2020 vision – 2019 in review
I’ll be making that joke all year so you’d better get used to it. But what a year it’s been! (It’s actually the law that all annual round-up articles start like that so don’t email me.) During 2019 several things happened: Like, you know, stuff. But most importantly, I was in the same room as… 2020 vision – 2019 in review Read More
The 225 Film Club – short film round-up Short Film
The 225 Film Club recently held its third programme of short films by women filmmakers. Curated again by director, writer and producer Rita Osei, the event, held at London venue The Wing, showcased some of the best in short filmmaking from women directors over the past few years. Rita created the 225 Film Club in… The 225 Film Club – short film round-up Read More
INTERVIEW: “Harpoon” director Rob Grant on his bloody brilliant lost-at-sea horror comedy
Writer-director Rob Grant’s viciously funny horror comedy Harpoon, about three “friends” marooned on a drifting yacht with no food or water, explores the toxic relationships between the wealthy Richie, his girlfriend Sasha, and their friend Jonah. With a dispassionate narrator to push the story forward, the film’s characters are both relatable and authors of their own… INTERVIEW: “Harpoon” director Rob Grant on his bloody brilliant lost-at-sea horror comedy Read More
“All this, because of a puppy?” Me to me, after writing 4,000 words on the John Wick trilogy…
“You dip so much as a pinky back into this pond, you may well find something reaches out and drags you back into its depths”, says Winston to John in the first John Wick film, but he ignored the warning and so will we. It’s going to be a bumpy, rain-soaked night… Since the first film,… “All this, because of a puppy?” Me to me, after writing 4,000 words on the John Wick trilogy… 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 jolting film, looks at the gentrification of a… Director Mark Jenkin on “Bait”, his black and white Cornish classic-in-the-making 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 apologist, and I make no apologies for… Gerard Butler’s ‘Fallen’ Oeuvre 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 universe that carries on around us, occasionally bumping our lives. John Wick 3, as well… INTERVIEW: Stephen Koepfer, Sambo expert on John Wick: Parabellum 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 the one hand you’re isolated and no one can get to… Surfacing Now – Seven Submarine Movies To Dive Into Read More
Kean-Who? The Doctor Will See You Now
Cleverer than all of us put together. Immortal. Millions of fans around the world. Immortal. Time travel in a phone box. Immortal. Loves dogs. Immortal. I grew up on Doctor Who. Though I can’t claim superfan status as I was behind the sofa the whole time and probably missed some key plot points. And you know how much… Kean-Who? The Doctor Will See You Now Read More