A celebratory film, there were hints about the reasons for the breakup, and really it didn't need any kind of in-depth analysis. It was self-evident at the time why the band had imploded, to any self-respecting fan at least....Life got in the way, as it tends to do, so it was good that the director put the focus onto the positive elements of the band...the biggest positive being that they somehow managed to get back together at all. Listening to John Squire eloquently fend off a question about his past insistence that there would never be a reunion, you get a sense of the chemistry and no-nonsense spirit that underlies the band. They are a magical group. They are at times indescribably brilliant. They have at times also been numbingly average, but that humanity at their core is what defines them. There's a kind of joyful aura that goes with them, and it's infectious, humorous, uplifting, sometimes spine-tingling. The Warrington gig was brilliantly built-up and you could literally taste the euphoria. Probably fans of the band will get more out of this than casual viewers. The rehearsal scenes are really excellent, seeing them together again and enjoying themselves. Such a positive group. Can't wait for the next instalment after the third album tour.
Reviews
4 Reviews
The Last King of Scotland
(2006)
Forest nails it
9 August 2007
**possible spoilers**
A curious film, which takes us into Idi Amin's Uganda, through the eyes of a fictionalised character, a Scottish doctor who becomes the tyrant's personal physician. Dr Garrigan is supposedly an amalgamation of several real people who surrounded the Amin regime of the 1970s, but it definitely feels like a dramatic device to enable the film to do business in the West. The film follows the young graduate as he takes a break from his stifling father and heads off to do some charitable work in Africa. What transpires is scarcely believable, and should leave you in no doubt that this man did not really exist. Some of the plot scenes seem so contrived, you could be forgiven for thinking that this is the director's first feature. It is. Enough said. However, despite the problems with the narrative, this movie is all about one man. Mr Amin. If his portrayal had been anything less than brilliant, this movie would be just another thriller. It isn't. Forest whitaker delivers a truly great performance...Charisma, humour, menace, madness, all rolled into one giant bear of a man. it's a frighteningly effective piece of acting, and i suppose a fitting way to nail the part of a dictator...by dictating the entire film. The story of Dr Garrigan fails to convince you that he is anything other than a window into the world of Idi Amin, but once you get a look through that window, it's a phenomenal feat of acting.
A curious film, which takes us into Idi Amin's Uganda, through the eyes of a fictionalised character, a Scottish doctor who becomes the tyrant's personal physician. Dr Garrigan is supposedly an amalgamation of several real people who surrounded the Amin regime of the 1970s, but it definitely feels like a dramatic device to enable the film to do business in the West. The film follows the young graduate as he takes a break from his stifling father and heads off to do some charitable work in Africa. What transpires is scarcely believable, and should leave you in no doubt that this man did not really exist. Some of the plot scenes seem so contrived, you could be forgiven for thinking that this is the director's first feature. It is. Enough said. However, despite the problems with the narrative, this movie is all about one man. Mr Amin. If his portrayal had been anything less than brilliant, this movie would be just another thriller. It isn't. Forest whitaker delivers a truly great performance...Charisma, humour, menace, madness, all rolled into one giant bear of a man. it's a frighteningly effective piece of acting, and i suppose a fitting way to nail the part of a dictator...by dictating the entire film. The story of Dr Garrigan fails to convince you that he is anything other than a window into the world of Idi Amin, but once you get a look through that window, it's a phenomenal feat of acting.
Goodfellas
(1990)
Movie perfection
5 August 2007
A gripping, shocking, at times shamefully hilarious, mob masterpiece, with a soundtrack so brilliantly chosen, you'd be forgiven for thinking all the songs were written just for this movie. The lightning pace never lets up as we follow the criminal career of the kid Henry Hill, as he blossoms from a scrawny mob-gopher into a streetwise foot soldier for the local Sicilian gangsters. It's a cautionary tale about the excesses of the American dream. All the major characters hold the world in their hands, but the inevitable backlash comes as the death toll rises and the money-making schemes become more grandiose...add some drugs, turf wars and extra-marital affairs into the mix..as well as the plain psychotic artistry of the more uncompromising villains (Pesci at his finest), and you've got a frenzied free-for-all on the streets of New York, as the gangster life tears up anyone and anything in its path. It's a wild ride, even if it's apparent where we're heading. Liotta adds a supremely good voice over which sets everything in context and slips you right into his edgy world, where every day is a constant hustle requiring wit, skill and courage. It's not a film for the faint hearted. While we are seduced by the wild world of organised crime, there are enough reality checks, in terms of the violence, to put us at an appropriate distance from the corrupt, morally redundant world that we are experiencing. Henry Hill is no Alex De Large, there's little ambiguity involved. He chooses the life and he pays for it in spades by the end. But the acting is so convincing, the story so well paced and delivered, that we have no time to reconsider our initial empathy for this bunch of villains. The cast is strong. Liotta performs an acting miracle as he holds onto the reins, occasionally being outshone by the electrifying Pesci, and the quietly malevolent De Niro...but never letting go of the story as his character ploughs on to the end. The supporting cast is brilliant So many memorable secondary characters, from Karen Hill, Mob boss Paulie, Morrie the wig-shop owner with grand ideas, henchman Carbone and many more. It's movie perfection..the blend of storytelling savvy, pitch=perfect performances, great music, elaborate camera-work and brilliant set design..It captures an era convicingly, and with an objectivity that really elevates it into a classic work of art.
The dark heart of Star Wars
5 August 2007
Star wars is a Saturday morning breakfast serial, with the upbeat 'let's have an Olympic medal ceremony' ending...Empire discards the fluffiness and moves away from its simplistic predecessor's obvious appeal to the child fanbase, without scaring everybody away in the process. The 2nd Star Wars film takes the original cast and subjects them to 2 hours of major discomfort...A forbidding icy planet replete with nasty creatures. There are ugly bounty hunters, monsters hiding out in the depths of asteroid fields, and Luke's foray into the black swamp of the Degobah system. It's a more taut, curiously downbeat film that slows almost to a halt in places, as Luke meets the Jedi Master who will teach him the ways of the force. The set pieces more than make up for the lack of pace...The opening battle on the Ice planet is a visually effective affair, and the stormtroopers have never looked as cool when they don their winter outfits. The asteroid chase and cloud city sequence are visual treats, that take you into the mysterious heart of the Star Wars Universe. The character development glues everything together. Luke's maturing process in the darkness of Degobah..Han and Leia's romantic chemistry, the droids comic relief and interplay with Chewbacca solidifies the group together and establishes a team spirit that was coming together at the end of Episode IV. The centrepiece of the film is the epic showdown between Luke and Vader,with that massive revelation, which inevitably ranks as one of Cinema's all time memorable moments. And it's a great sequence, from Vader's sobering welcome 'The force is with you young Skywalker, but you are not a Jedi yet' to the almost surreal climax. The forces of darkness loom large at every turn of the film...you get the feeling that the rebels are just slightly out of their depth. There is an underlying menace at work that heightens the dramatic tension..Vader is never as beautifully evil as he is in Empire. We finally see just why he is (Emperor aside) the top dog in the galaxy, as he lays waste to his own generals in ruthless fashion. We get some great new characters...Han's old buddy Lando Calrissien (sp?) is the slimy administrator of cloud city, who finds himself in a no-win situation, and there's the legendary Boba Fett..bounty hunter with balls of steel, and an outfit so cool it instantly establishes him as a Star Wars icon. And of course, the emperor rears his ugly head, and we get a taster of his malevolance. Any faults? It's hard to find much complaint. Some of the dialogue strays into cheeseland, the pace is interrupted with the curious but necessary Degobah scenes, but all in all, the sum of the parts adds up to a supremely effective, tightly woven sci-fi drama, the most deliciously dark of all Star Wars movies, and the most mature. Classic entertainment, stuck in a time capsule of its own, with enough memorable moments to ensure its place in the higher echelons of cinema history.
Tell Your Friends