Milchman Reviews

Radio Free Albemuth (2010)

The first film to really capture the work of Philip K. Dick

[9/10 · 3 May 2012]

While previous adaptations of the work of the late, great Philip K. Dick have often been enjoyable, none has really taken a great deal from the original source stories beyond the most perfunctory aspects of the plot.

Radio Free Albemuth, while not sticking slavishly to every letter of the original text, is the first adaptation to really capture the spirit and convey the substance of Dick's work. Although this film does not have the high tech sheen of the more celebrated films to be taken from Dick's writing, it is every bit as gripping and exciting as the best of them, but also retains the intelligence, and political thought that previously has tended to go missing in translating Dick from page to screen.

John Alan Simon has written an exemplary screenplay and matched it with strong direction. The acting performances are also fine throughout.

I saw this at the Sci-Fi London film festival and got the distinct impression that I was not alone in my enthusiasm for this movie.

Julius Caesar (2011)

An unexpected triumph

[8/10 · 9 October 2011]

A micro-budget Shakespeare adaptation made by The British Youth Film Academy, with a cast and crew nearly all still in their teens, may not sound that enticing, but this was an unexpected highlight of the 19th Raindance Film Festival in London. Not just a good film for something made by young amateurs, but a good film full stop. Shot in a derelict brewery,in noirish black and white, this is a truly cinematic film, a quality sadly lacking in most of the other British films I saw at the festival.The age of the cast, although initially disconcerting, is made a virtue by portraying the citizens of Rome as roaming gangs and there are several very good performances by the young cast.

Pig (I) (2011)

A small gem.

[8/10 · 2 May 2011]

Saw this at the Sci-Fi London festival. Although a genre picture, it is one that is no way clichéd.

I won't give away any more of the plot than is already available on this site, not just for the sake of spoilers, but also because the subtle way in which the plot is revealed (one heavy handed plot turn aside), is one of the main joys of this small gem of a film. It's a very low budget feature, but what it lacks in action and special effects, it more than makes up for in intrigue, tension, a good central concept, deft story telling and a towering central performance from Rudolph Martin. One or two aspects are ambiguous and require a small leap of faith, but this is in no way to the film's detriment. Recommended.