Everyone has their own line in the sand which they will not cross when it comes to settling down. Mine is those massive white canvasses with children in stripy knitwear leapfrogging over their siblings while mum and dad laugh heartily to one side. (I cling to the hope that when looked at from the corner… Vivarium (London Film Festival 2019) Read More
Secret Life Of Pets 2 3 stars
Cute animals in movies often become scene-stealers. Jonesy the ginger cat in Alien. Daisy the floppy-eared beagle in John Wick. Black Phillip the satanic goat in The Witch. Okay, not that last one. In The Secret Life Of Pets 2, it’s Rooster. He’s not actually a rooster, he’s a Welsh sheepdog, wonderfully voiced by Harrison Ford. He… Secret Life Of Pets 2 Read More
Incredibles 2 4 stars
“Done properly, parenting is a heroic act” intones Edna Mode, maker and mender of superhero apparel, and when Edna speaks we should all listen. Incredibles 2 is a film that holds a mirror up to how we live now. There’s the obvious (very obvious – at one point Elastigirl says “”Independence from screen slavery!” as… Incredibles 2 Read More
Tully 4 stars
If throwing a chair is your response when someone helpfully suggests you sleep when the baby sleeps, then Tully is for you. Though if you saw a chair that didn’t have piles of washing on it, or a stack of baby books you don’t have time to read, you’d probably sit down on it and fall… Tully Read More
Baby Driver 4.5 stars
Baby Driver isn’t simply a funky soundtrack-driven heist movie – it’s as much about movement as music. There’s a choreographer listed in the credits, and you can see why – as Baby, the driver of the title, makes his naturalistic if slightly gawky way through the world. In fact the film galvanises so many senses it’s like watching a 4D film in 2D…. Baby Driver Read More
Prevenge 4 stars
Sometimes it feels like our babies, even before birth, are intent on taking over everything, our bodies and our minds. Factor in the increasing number of ways mothers-to-be are told their needs must always be secondary to those of their unborn children and it’s no surprise that we’ve now got a film which pushes this idea to the max…. Prevenge Read More
To The Grave (Short Film) Short Film 3.5 stars
To The Grave is a short but moving film from director Esther Hegarty about a woman whose mother dies and who then finds the tiny skeleton of a baby when clearing out the house. The daughter – an only child – has always been convinced she had a sibling, but all is not what it seems…. To The Grave (Short Film) Read More