Month: October 2021

Starring: Timothée Chalamet (Little Women), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation), Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), Josh Brolin (Deadpool 2), Stellan Skarsgård (Thor), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Devs), Zendaya (Spider-Man: Homecoming), David Dastmalchian (Ant-Man), Chang Chen (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Rogue One), Charlotte Rampling (45 Years), Jason Momoa (Aquaman), Javier Bardem (Skyfall)

Director: Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049)

Writers: Jon Spaihts (Prometheus) and Denis Villeneuve and Eric Roth (Forrest Gump)

Runtime: 2 hour 35 minutes

Release Date: 21^st October (UK), 22^nd October (US/HBO Max)

There are many classic novels that have throughout history been said to be unadaptable due to their scope or complexity or just sheer esoteric nature. That’s not to say that many of these haven’t been adapted, but the success rate is variable and depends on who you ask. Whilst The Lord of the Rings received widespread critical acclaim once it was finally realised on screen, and The Bonfire of the Vanities went about as well as expected (i.e., terribly), adaptations like Watchmen or Cloud Atlas have had a more divided response. That said, no single novel has caused more frustration in the film business than Frank Herbert’s seminal sci-fi epic Dune.

Alejandro Jodorowsky made his attempt in the 70s but couldn’t even get it off the ground, then David Lynch’s 1984 version went so badly that he disowned it, with only the Syfy miniseries from 2000 receiving anything close to positive reception. It seemed for years that Dune would remain as the one truly unadaptable novel, but it seems filmmakers are not quite yet done trying. Denis Villeneuve, fresh off of modern sci-fi darlings Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, is now on board with what many fans have been hoping will be the definitive Dune on the big screen. After years of development and a pandemic-induced delay, the result of the labours is a true epic in every sense of the word, but not one without major compromise.

From very early on, it’s clear that the filmmakers’ model for adapting Dune is Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, in that it takes a dense story full of complex lore and archaic vernacular and turns it into something more palatable for a mainstream audience. The translation is ultimately a success, making the story much more accessible whilst still retaining the core soul of Dune’s appeal. It’s a fairly faithful adaptation, though it does move some events around and fully portrays scenes only described in the book, but it’s all in service of making the story more cinematic. The film also carefully handles the heavy exposition of the novel, imparting this information either through visual storytelling or through the eyes of protagonist Paul (Chalamet) doing research on the world of Arrakis. The story itself isn’t all that complicated or original once you wade past the political intrigue and world-building, but that’s only because so many sci-fi stories from Star Wars to Avatar have pillaged from it over the years. Looking objectively at what they’ve assembled here, you could not ask for a better on-screen realisation of Dune…’s first half.

Yes, following in much the same vein as Warner Bros. prior adaptation of the similarly-lengthy It, this is an adaptation set to be told in two chapters; the opening title even calls the film Dune: Part One. Whilst indeed a smart decision to avoid the rushed and jumbled storytelling of Lynch’s version, what this does mean is that the film can’t help but feel kind of unsatisfying without the second part immediately available. This is mainly because in regards to structure and pacing, this truly does feel like half of one big movie rather than a self-contained first part of a larger story; of any prior example of a novel split in two like this, it most resembles The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1. Villeneuve’s films are known for their slow pacing, but at times it feels like they are literally stalling for time, with a third act mostly consisting of Paul and Lady Jessica (Ferguson) wandering through an endless desert. There’s only one major action set piece to speak of about two thirds of the way through, with a few smatterings of heightened tension sprinkled throughout, but this is mostly just two-and-a-half hours of set-up for the next movie.

Most crushingly of all, the screenplay fails to find a satisfying midway climax on either a spectacle or emotional level, ending on a pretty tepid one-on-one duel and then a character pretty much turning to camera to say “we’ll be back in Part Two!” When even The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 has a more satisfying finale, you’ve got a serious problem. It’s hard to say ultimately if splitting the book in two was the best idea, but it’s a decision that ultimately feels like the compromise between creativity and finance. Making one four-hour epic in the vein of Zack Snyder’s Justice League might have been the best way to adapt the book from a storytelling perspective, but that would be taking what is already a box office risk and turning it into a Heaven’s Gate-scale disaster; remember, Villeneuve may be a critical darling, but he ain’t box office gold. Perhaps if the two films were made in tandem and Part Two was guaranteed to release within the next year, it would be more acceptable, but that second part is entirely reliant on this first film doing well, and that is far from a certainty. Don’t let all this doom and gloom get you down, because what they’ve made so far is absolutely phenomenal; on par with Lord of the Rings in terms of scale and faithfulness to the source material. The ending of Dune: Part One, though, would be like if The Fellowship of the Ring had ended on our heroes just setting up camp at Parth Galen, rather than the exciting forest battle and tragic turn of events that lead to the splintering of the Fellowship.

Whilst Dune is unlikely to entice a mainstream audience on the pedigree of the novel alone, its all-star cast just might. Timothée Chalamet makes for an excellent Paul Atreides, capturing that eerie mix of boyish wonderment and precocious intelligence that make him likeable and yet otherworldly. Yes, he’s a cold and reserved protagonist, but he’s meant to be and Chalamet manages to bring a sense of humanity to his otherwise unrelatable predicament. The film has majorly beefed up the role of Lady Jessica into as much a mentor to Paul as his male role models, and Rebecca Ferguson does a fantastic job of balancing that shaky dichotomy between teacher and mother. Oscar Isaac and Josh Brolin are both great as Leto Atreides and Gurney Halleck respectively, but they aren’t in the movie as much as you might expect.

Stellan Skarsgård is absolutely disgusting in all the right ways as the diabolical Baron Harkonnen, though the visual of a giant slimy obese man floating about like a rotund vampire may induce more giggles than frights. Dave Bautista has a far more engaging and menacing presence as the Baron’s nephew Glossu Rabban, but alongside David Dastmalchian’s Piter De Vries, he is relegated to little more than a trumped-up henchman. Zendaya and Javier Bardem are great with what they are given as the Fremen tribespeople Chani and Stilgar respectively, but their roles are little more than extended cameos for Part Two. The real scene-stealer is Jason Momoa as the gung-ho swordsmaster Duncan Idaho, who brings his natural charisma to the role and adds some much-needed relief to the otherwise very serious proceedings. Going through every cast member would take far too long, but it’s safe to say all do an exemplary job no matter the size of their role; a true testament to the “no small actors” axiom.

More than his love for the material or experience with the genre, what most excited many about Denis Villeneuve tackling Frank Herbert would be how he conceptually translated the world of Arrakis to the silver screen, and on that level he does not disappoint. Dune is a painstakingly realised and lusciously detailed movie on a visual and auditory level; a masterwork of every technical craft unseen since the efforts of Peter Jackson and Weta on Middle-earth. Every piece of production design is to die for, from the insect-like spaceships flown by the members of House Atreides to the cavernous lairs of the Harkonnen family. So much of the technology of Dune should be familiar to anyone with a passing familiarity with sci-fi, but the unique ways it visually realises force fields and breathing apparatus makes the whole world feel far more original than it is underneath; the accompanying stellar sound design and exemplary visual effects work only amplifies this feeling.

Greig Fraser’s cinematography, whilst occasionally too dark during night-set scenes, is jaw-dropping whenever it fully takes in the scope of worlds like Caladan and Arrakis, but the real show-stopper is Hans Zimmer’s gargantuan score. Whilst still undeniably his work, it sounds wholly unique and unlike anything you’d expect from him and it just kills. It’s a truly distinctive mixture of sounds and rhythms pulled from all kinds of cultures and eras, mashed together into something that still sounds like a blockbuster score but from far off in the future. I haven’t heard anything quite like it, though if I had to I’d compare it most to Kenji Kawai’s music for Ghost in the Shell, or Ludwig Göransson’s work on Black Panther. Seriously, who else but Zimmer could work bagpipes into their music and make them not only sound futuristic, but also badass? If nothing else, if you find the storytelling at all unsatisfying, there is always something about the film’s presentation to latch onto and enjoy on a pure aesthetic level.

When you get down to it, Dune has all of the right ingredients to make a genre-defining piece of filmmaking on the level of the original Star Wars, but regardless of its phenomenal pedigree, it is incomplete and with no guarantee it ever will be. At times, it almost feels as if the filmmakers are stalling for time, stretching out the story to further justify the two-part structure, when it might have been better off keeping it tight and finding a better note to leave off the story for now. It’s a film that will certainly appeal to diehard fans of both Frank Herbert and Denis Villeneuve, but it’s going to be a hard sell for the average moviegoer, and it’s their support that will make or break moving forward with Part Two. It is, after all, an arthouse blockbuster in every sense of both words. Only the eventual worldwide box office will let us know (it seems to be doing pretty well internationally so far), but if it fails, Dune may go down in film history in the same breath as Andrew Stanton’s John Carter (and I’m one of the five people who liked John Carter). It’s a movie that may well improve in retrospect when and if the second part is completed, but for now, the best thing I can say is that Dune is an unfinished masterpiece.

FINAL VERDICT: 7.5/10

Starring: Tom Hardy (Dunkirk), Woody Harrelson (Zombieland), Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea), Reid Scott (Late Night), Naomie Harris (Skyfall), Stephen Graham (This is England)

Director: Andy Serkis (Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle)

Writer: Kelly Marcel (Saving Mr Banks)

Runtime: 1 hour 37 minutes

Release Date: 1^st October (US), 15^th October (UK)

More often that not, when I need to make a clarification about the previous entry in a franchise, it’s usually me saying it hasn’t aged well and I’d give it a lower score in retrospect; e.g., Suicide Squad or Spectre. This time though, it’s the other way around: I was way too harsh on Venom. Do I think it’s a good movie? No, far from it. It’s a studio-mandated mess that was clearly micromanaged and watered down to high heaven, with a wildly inconsistent tone that felt much closer to the grimdark superhero movies of the early-2000s than anything made post-Avengers. At the same time though, it has its charms as a mindless blockbuster and Tom Hardy’s performance as Eddie Brock/Venom is entertaining at least in all its Nicolas Cage-esque ham. Either way, it was a miraculous box office success that gained a devoted cult following, and that audience is where Venom: Let There Be Carnage has clearly aimed its sights at. The result is a film that’s still hampered by the inherent flaws of its concept, but now at least has a firmer grip of its own identity and fully embraces its own insanity. It’s far from a great movie, but it’s at least an entertaining one.

Picking up roughly a year after the events of the first film, the most immediately noticeable difference Let There Be Carnage has to its predecessor is its leanness. Rather than an overly complicated origin that took way too long to get to the point, this sequel throws us right into the action and doesn’t let up as it barrels through its breezy 90-minute runtime. This makes the first act a little disorienting, especially if you haven’t seen the first movie in a while, as it makes little effort to re-establish the world and characters and throws you in as if you’re completely familiar. Luckily, the film soon slows down just enough to catch its breath, and when it does the other improvements become even clearer. Much of the appeal to many audiences to the first film was its sense of humour, which there came off as something of an accidental afterthought, but here it’s front-and-centre and it generally works. Yeah, it’s absolutely goofy, will likely piss off hardcore Venom fans, and its attempts at allegory either come off as way too on-the-nose or worryingly confused, but it at least feels intentional.

The story is nothing to write home about, essentially throwing Brock into the middle of Natural Born Killers but with alien parasites, but it keeps the movie going and it even has some compelling character development and commentary on topics like abusive relationships and journalistic integrity; it ain’t exactly deep, but it’s there if you’re looking. The only major issue lingering from the first film is the imbalance of action. Whilst Venom himself gets a lot more screentime, this is mostly relegated to comedy hijinks, and the only major set piece involving him is the climax. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of action throughout as Woody Harrelson’s Carnage goes on his revenge-fuelled rampage, but for much of the film our hero is mostly bickering with themselves and making a mess instead of doing anything anti-hero-related.

Whether you loved or hated it, you have to admit Tom Hardy was dedicated to his performance in Venom, even when that entailed borderline embarrassment. Luckily here, whilst that bonkers streak is now a feature rather than a bug, Hardy feels a little more in control (after all, he’s a producer on the film and co-wrote the story). His dynamic with himself as both Brock and the symbiote is for the most part entertaining, as they argue back and forth about their opposing approaches to crime-fighting. The relationship subtext and sexual undertones are made way more blatant here, with a major plot point involving the pair having a lover’s spat and Venom “coming out of Eddie’s closet” (real line from the movie, no joke). It’s an amusing development that’ll appeal to the Tumblr fans (Tumblr is still a thing, right?), but it’s a little muddled when these queerbaiting hijinks are juxtaposed against Venom being physically abusive towards Eddie and literally having to kill people to stay alive without him. It’s all ultimately resolved in a way that’s acceptable if not entirely satisfying, but it’s certainly safe to say this franchise would be dead in the water if Hardy at any point decided he was tired of doing it.

When Woody Harrelson made his debut as Cletus Kasady in the mid-credits scene of Venom, it inspired a lot more laughter than fear in many audiences, and not just because of his ridiculous Ronald McDonald wig (which is gone here, and I kind of miss it, to be honest). Whilst it’s still not an ideal choice, and it’s ridiculous the movie expects us to believe Harrelson is roughly the same age as Naomie Harris’ Shriek (the prologue depicts both characters as teenagers in 1996), he still delectably eats up the high-camp role with gusto. This kind of gonzo let-‘em-loose role is the kind Harrelson can do in his sleep, but he still manages to find an ounce of depth in Kasady that even the comics rarely gave him. However, they do massively change the dynamic Kasady has with the Carnage symbiote, which works for the film’s story but does run counter to why the character is so scary and unpredictable in the comics.

Harris as his romantic sidekick is unfortunately something of an afterthought, serving far more as a plot point than an actual character, and her nasally American accent is a distracting choice for a character who’s supposed to be a threat on par with Kasady. Michelle Williams gets a little less to do this time around as Brock’s ex-girlfriend Anne Weying, but she at least seems a little less embarrassed to be there and gets more involved in the action this time around, as does Reid Scott as her bumbling boyfriend Dan. The real waste here is Stephen Graham as Detective Patrick Mulligan, whose role seems to have been cut down to the barest of bones despite the film simultaneously setting him up for more in future instalments. Sure, the role of the suspicious and angry cop is hardly one worth spending a huge chunk of your movie on, and comic book fans will know why Mulligan isn’t entirely disposable, but the compromise here ends up squandering both a fantastic actor and a promising new character.

Not only was the first Venom lacking in action, much of it was just a big CGI mess of gooey monsters slamming into each other like a kid playing with action figures. This time around, whilst the lack of an R rating still means no viscera despite the villain being a literal serial killer with gigantic blade hands, it’s at least a lot more coherent and creative. As soon as Carnage enters the picture and begins his slaughter, there are some cool visual tricks that help keep it compelling despite the muted violence, and the church-set climax is leaps and bounds above the first film; if you’ve been waiting a long time to see Venom and Carnage clash on the big screen, you won’t be disappointed.

All in all, it’s a simply more aesthetically pleasing film, mainly by embracing its B-movie qualities instead of trying to look slick and modern. Robert Richardson’s cinematography is grimy and gothic in a way that evokes the character’s 90s heyday, and the switch to full-frame over widescreen only serves to make these larger-than-life characters look even bigger. The visual effects are a lot more polished and tangible, managing to make these alien monsters feel more real than ever, and Marco Beltrami’s score is suitable bold and cinematic. Other than some slightly dodgy editing in the first act, where it’s evident most of the material on the cutting room floor was snipped from, this is a more-than-competent blockbuster package that has managed to retain an ounce of artistic soul as opposed to the too-many-cooks sludge of its predecessor.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage is like a problem child who finally decided to knuckle down at school and managed to become a solid C-student; you don’t expect them to be top of the class anytime soon, but you appreciate their effort more than anything. It makes no bones about being anything other than a silly comic book caper, but it puts in the effort in all the right places and even a few it didn’t need to. Fans of the first film are going to be more than happy, and probably even some of its detractors may come around and finally embrace the insanity. I’m still not sold on Sony doing its own little Spider-Verse (Morbius still looks terrible, to be honest), but as for more Venom movies? Yeah, that might not be such a bad idea after all.

Oh, and do stay for the mid-credits scene! Can’t say more than that, but…yeah. They finally went there.

FINAL VERDICT: 6.5/10

I’ve covered film festivals before, but ususally under the guise of working them as a volunteer and then just seeing as many films as I could between shifts. This year though, Alternative Lens (i.e. just me!) headed to London as an accredited member of the press to cover the first post-pandemic BFI festival. It was certainly full of highs and lows as any film fest is, and there are so many films I didn’t get a chance to see for one reason or another, but to able to see so many without having to worry about other commitments for nearly two weeks was an absolute joy. So, without further ado, here are my two pence on everything I saw at this year’s LFF:

The Harder They Fall

A stellar feature debut by British musician Jeymes Samuel, this all-black western is a violent but fun throwback with a lot of charm and a biting sense of humour. The story is nothing to write home about, but it’s such a visual treat full of sight gags and copious amounts of blood that it’s hard to care. The stellar cast helps a lot too, with the easy standouts being Regina King, Lakeith Stanfield, and Danielle Deadwyler. Samuel’s stylish and vibrant direction here reminded me of 90s Robert Rodriguez in all the best ways, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see his name pop up on shortlists for blockbuster projects in the pipeline. What a perfect way to start of this year’s festivities! 7/10 (in select theatres and on Netflix on 3^rd November)

Spencer

Pablo Larrain’s follow-up to Jackie is yet another examination of a female political figure, and this Princess Diana drama is far as you can get from either the dreadful Naomi Watts film from 2013 or whatever that musical that just dropped on Netflix was. Less a biopic than it is a psychological thriller, Kristen Stewart gives a hauntingly effective lead performance that is sure to nab her some Oscar buzz. Larrain’s direction is impeccable, with the gorgeous cinematography and lavish production design turning Sandringham into a more opulent Overlook Hotel. Supported by Steven Knight’s biting script and strong supporting turns from Sean Harris and Sally Hawkins, this movie is likely to scare royalists more than a thousand revealing interviews with Meghan Markle. Also, I would like to own every piece of wardrobe Stewart wore in this. They’re all simply stunning. 9/10 (in theatres on 5^th November)

Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon

Ana Lily Amirpour’s latest outing has more in common with her sophomore effort The Bad Batch than her stunning debut A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, resulting in a film with strong potential but absolutely no focus. Jeon Jong-seo’s lead performance as the titular Mona Lisa is subtle but effective, and Ed Skrein is a lot of cringey fun as the eccentric Fuzz, whose appearance and demeanour are best described as “Cyberpunk 2077 NPC who wished on a magic lava lamp to be a real boy”. Amirpour still has a lot of potential as a director, but the script is the real culprit here; the whole thing feels like a first draft that just flits from idea to idea with no narrative through-line or thematic resolution. 5.5/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Belle

Mamoru Hosoda’s latest is his best since Wolf Children, and possibly his greatest yet. A visual and emotional masterpiece of the anime form, this reimagining of Beauty and the Beast for the Internet age has everything you could possibly expect from a Studio Chizu production and more. Stunning animation that melds 2D and 3D, a timely story that depicts online culture and social media toxicity with frightening accuracy, beautiful and catchy original songs that transcend the language barrier, and a gorgeously realised computer world that feels like a true culmination of Hosoda’s prior work on Digimon and Summer Wars. It’s rare for a movie to make me shed a tear, but this one had me full-on sobbing in the cinema…three times! An absolute must-see. 10/10! (US and UK release TBC)

Encounter

Some solid performances from the always on-point Riz Ahmed and the two youngsters playing his sons (Lucian River-Chauhan and Aditya Geddada) helps salvage this promising but ultimately underwhelming sci-fi thriller. Its premise is basic though with plenty of room to grow, and it has a pretty unique spin of the genre that initially works great, but the film plays that trump card way too early and turns the rest of the film into a waiting game. It probably would have played better if that reveal came far later on in the story, or if it simply made the audience question their perception of the events more after that. This really could have been something special, but it’s instead pretty average despite its excellent pedigree. 6/10 (in select theatres and on Amazon Prime on 10^th December)

Flee

A unique combination of documentary and animated feature, this chronicling of the life experience of a gay Afghani refugee is an eye-opening tale full of both hardship and joy. The shifting animation style helps accentuate the mood and intensity of the film, playing smoothly in times of calm and beauty, before turning scratchy and disorienting in moments of trauma. An education in both the horrific struggles refugees go through to simply find a life not impeded by conflict, and learning to be accepted and accept yourself in a culture that sees you as invisible, this is a movie that should be shown in schools to educate students on the importance of human rights and what happens when they aren’t avaliable. 8.5/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Sediments

Depicting a weekend getaway in the Spanish countryside for a generations-spanning group of transgender women, this is the rare film that centres trans voices and mostly avoids the usual tropes of trauma and insincere sympathy. Yes, the conversations can get cyclical and get bogged down in tired topics like surgery, but it’s so refreshing to not only see more intellectual and philosophical aspects of transness discuss, but simply seeing these women live mostly in joy and express personal happiness is something that is so needed right now. It may not do a huge amount for trans audiences, but for allies looking to educate themselves it’s not a bad starting place. But what’s with the gratuitous nudity shots? They almost completely undermine the otherwise tasteful presentation. 6.5/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Last Night in Soho

I already reviewed this one in full last week, but for those who just want the quick yay or nay: Edgar Wright’s latest is beautifully crafted but ultimately too ambitious for its own good. Despite a stunning lead performance by Thomasin McKenzie and a hauntingly gorgeous recreation of 1960s London, the undercooked script has a lot of thoughts but no cohesive opinions. For a film that centres women and tackles incredibly dark feminist topics, its gender politics are confused at best as it seeks to reconcile Wright’s period-accurate male gaze with its modern lens. It’s far too well made to be considered bad, but that’s still enough to make it Wright’s worst film by a wide margin. 6.5/10 (in theatres on 29^th October)

Titane

Julia Decournau’s follow-up to Raw has been dividing audiences since it debuted at Cannes, and once you watch it, it’s easy to understand why. This is a fierce, challenging and frankly deranged piece of filmmaking that breaks the rules of genre and taste to deliver an experience truly unlike any other. That’s not to say you’ll like it or that it doesn’t have issues. The film’s first act is its strongest, building suspense and revelations that will leave you equally appaled and excited, and then it just coasts from there until the disturbing finale. At that point it just becomes a waiting game as you wait for the film to drops its two plates and the payoff, whilst as bizarre as you’d expect, isn’t worth the patience. It’s a film I’ve not been able to get out of my head, and has only improved with further thought, so I’d highly recommend you watch it even if it doesn’t seem like your kind of thing. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. 7.5/10 (in select US theatres now, and in UK theatres on 31^st December)

Costa Brava, Lebanon

This Lebanese dystopian drama may be focused on domestic issues of environmental degradation and political unease, but its themes will resonate across many different countries and cultures in all sorts of ways. It’s unfortunate then that its simple message can’t quite hold to feature-length and ends up going exactly as you’d expect. The family drama as they argue about whether to stay and fight for their land or simply leave it to be overrun is compelling at first, but the same points are simply repeated over and over and very little of consequence happens for most of it. It definitely feels like a first feature, because there are really only enough ideas for a short here. A good short, but a short nonetheless. 5/10 (US and UK release TBC)

The French Dispatch

Outside of his animated efforts Fantastic Mr. Fox and Isle of Dogs, the films of Wes Anderson have never really appealed to me beyond aesthetic appreciation and some amusing deadpan humour. It should come as no surprise then that the best parts of The French Dispatch are its brief animated segments, and the rest is an impeccably crafted and amusing set of stories that simply don’t appeal much to my sensibilities. The story focusing around Benicio del Toro as an incarcerated modern artist is a hilariously spot-on critique of art culture, but Timothée Chalamet’s tale is an esoteric exercise is political satire, whilst Jeffrey Wright’s is mildly amusing but really springs to life in those aforementioned animated sequences. If you’re an Anderson fan, you will doubtlessly find lots to enjoy here, but otherwise this mostly more of the same. 6/10 (in theatres on 22^nd October)

She Will

Oh no she won’t! While it works as a decent showcase for Alice Krige and does have some inventive visual ideas, beyond that it’s a meandering and confusing horror film that teases cool concepts but is either too self-assured or too conceited to actually explore them. Malcolm McDowell is surprisingly restrained here compared to his recent output, and his past relationship with Krige was one I wish got more in-depth exploration, but the two barely share any screen time and it just undercuts whatever kind of message it was flailing to get across. Instead, the ham is provided by a tired Rupert Everett as a character who you’d expect to be important given the casting and early prominence, but by the midpoint the story pretty much forgets him. Just a massive shrug of a movie. 3.5/10 (US and UK release TBC)

A Banquet

A British psychological horror about grief, eating disorders, and the potential end of the world as we know it, A Banquet twists everyday fears into disturbing reality as a family slowly falls apart. Held together by stellar lead performances from Sienna Guillory as widowed mother Holly and Jessica Alexander as disturbed daughter Betsey, there’s almost a beauty to how it weaves hints of distressing imagery and apocalyptic depravity into its otherwise grounded drama. Both its greatest strength and biggest weakness, however, is its vagueness. Whilst it helps build suspense and unease as we question whether Betsey’s ailment is real or not, and the final payoff certainly leaves a lot open to interpretation, it also has something of a troubling aftertaste. It’s absolutely an acquired taste, but it’s definitely one worth at least trying. Also, I’ve never seen food look so unappetising on film, which certainly helps put us in Betsey’s mindset. 7/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Shepherd

Inspired by the same story that gave us The Lighthouse, Shepherd can’t help but feel like the cheap Poundland knock-off version of Robert Eggers’ haunting tale of isolation and insanity. The entire production looks cheap, mostly consisting of our lead Tom Hughes flailing in confusion around a barren Scottish isle, with all the money having seemingly been spent on subpar CGI creatures and about five minutes of Kate Dickie being vaguely menacing. It just screams of a film made by a recent film school graduate who hasn’t figured out how to budget properly, trying to ape features with deeper pockets and more experience when it should be focusing on what it can do with what it has. 1.5/10 (in UK theatres on 12^th November, US release TBC)

The Phantom of the Open

Playing out in much the same vein as fellow UK sports dramedy Eddie the Eagle, The Phantom of the Open retells the story of the infamous golfer Maurice Flitcroft with delightful aplomb. In the hands of other actors, this could have easily been another trite and shallow crowd-pleaser with little emotional depth, but with national treasures like Mark Rylance and Sally Hawkins in the leads its hard not to get swept up in its charms. An impressive directorial debut from Craig Roberts (yes, the kid from Submarine), its period aesthetic and quirky sense of humour, paired with its self-awareness of how ridiculous its story is, help give its ultimate message of perseverance and love of the game a similar heft to Tim Burton’s Ed Wood. All in all, the perfect film to take your mum to for a rainy-day matinee. 7/10 (in UK theatres on 15^th April 2022, US release TBC)

C’mon C’mon

This year’s LFF Surprise Screening, C’mon C’mon is a hard film to surmise but an easy one to recommend wholeheartedly. Joaquin Phoenix is better than he’s ever been as a radio journalist struggling to keep his composure whilst looking after his wildly precocious nephew, leading to a movie that’s best described as the uplifting, feelgood answer to Uncut Gems. It’s a film that can be frustrating and filled with tension, but it always manages to bring you back with a wonderfully heartfelt moment to reminds you, for all its faults, life is ultimately worth it. Gaby Hoffman is likewise wonderful as Phoenix’s exhausted sister, but its newcomer Woody Norman who truly steals the show as young Jesse; easily one of the best child performances I’ve seen in a long, long while. 9.5/10 (in theatres on 19^th November)

Belfast

Kenneth Branagh’s wistful drama about a working-class family trying to survive in the eponymous Northern Irish capital during the Troubles is an easy shoe-in for Best Picture consideration. Young Jude Hill is a compelling young lead as the immediately relatable young Buddy, and is ably supporting by a wonderful supporting cast including Jamie Dornan, Catriona Balfe, Ciaran Hinds and Judi Dench. Its use of black-and-white cinematography combined with brief flashes of vivid colour creates a nostalgic visual experience that perfectly contrasts against its imagery of smashed-in shop windows and military blockades on civilian streets. There are moments where its sentiments start to cloy more than charm, but it ends on such a strong note that it’s hard to really care. It may be far from my favourite of the year, but this will inevitably be the film to beat come awards season, and I’m just glad it’s this kind of wholesome Oscar bait rather than another Green Book. 8/10 (in US theatres on 12^th November 2021, and in UK theatres on 25^th February 2022)

Nitram

Exploring the events leading up to the tragic 1996 Tasmania shooting that led to the overhaul of Australia’s gun control laws, this haunting drama from Justin Kurzel dives into the dysfunctional life of the man responsible. Caleb Landry Jones delivers a truly disturbing performance as the future shooter, painting a picture that makes you recognise (but far from sympathise with) how he came to do the unspeakable acts he committed. Essie Davis matches Jones’ disquieting energy as his deranged landlady/mother figure/possible lover, and Anthony LaPaglia and Judy Davis are respectively pathetic and troubling as his fed-up parents. It does indulge in a lot of the same cliches you might expect from serial killer origin stories, but its matter-of-fact presentation adds to the uncomfortability of how easy this was to pull off; the scene in which Jones acquires his weapons is especially damning. Worth one watch and one watch only; it’s far too depressing to endure more than that. 7/10 (on Stan [Australia only] on 24^th November, US and UK release TBC)

The Lost Daughter

Maggie Gyllenhaal makes her directorial debut with this adaptation of Elena Ferrante’s novel, and as you’d expect it’s an actor’s showcase more than anything else. Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley are equally brilliant playing the lead role at two stages in her life, creating one of the most cohesive shared performances in a long while, and the supporting turns from Ed Harris and an initially unrecognisable Dakota Johnson have their moments to shine. Unfortunately, the film’s story is a slow burner with a lot of build-up but next to no payoff, with its final vague moments making the rest of the movie feel like something of a waste. Still, I can’t completely hate any movie where a character unloads on rude cinema patrons, and Colman gets an absolute doozy of a going postal scene here. 5/10 (in select US theatres on 17^th December 2021, on US Netflix on 31^st December 2021, and in UK theatres on 7^th January 2022)

Neptune Frost

A queer anti-capitalist Rwandan sci-fi musical? That’s certainly something you don’t see at every festival. Whilst its ambitions are perhaps a bit out of reach of its minimal budget and debut direction, Neptune Frost is unlike anything you’ve ever seen or will likely see afterwards. The first half is a bit of a hard sit, especially if you’re unfamiliar with African cinema, but once it finds its second wind and really doubles down on “f*ck corporations and colonialism and gender”, it’s a truly fascinating and refreshing experience. Also, I really want that keyboard coat the lead character wears. 6/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Munich – The Edge of War

Based on the Robert Harris thriller, this WWII historical drama manages to mine a lot of suspense and intrigue out of a series of events we know from history won’t end well. George MacKay and Jannis Niewöhner make for compelling leads as former university chums-turned-enemies-turned reluctant allies, whilst Jeremy Irons does a fantastic job of representing the positive and negative aspects of Neville Chamberlain’s approach to the role of Prime Minister; yes, he’s a naïve wet blanket, but you understand what he’s trying to do. It’s a pretty standard and unsurprising political thriller otherwise, with nothing that particularly stands out as good or bad, but it does just enough to stand out amongst the pack. 6.5/10 (on Netflix 21^st January 2022)

Ali & Ava

A beautifully understated romantic drama from The Selfish Giant helmswoman Clio Barnard, Ali & Ava explores the difficulties of love against the backdrop of trauma, racism and cultural divide. Adeel Akhtar and Claire Rushbrook are both wonderful and heart-breaking as the titular lovers, with Akhtar especially shining by breaking out of his usual comedic persona, and the film’s no-frills depiction of the working-class streets of Bradford give it an authenticity most British films try to paint over. If you’re in the mood to cry, this would be a solid recommendation. 8/10 (US and UK release TBC)

The Neutral Ground

The Daily Show writer/producer CJ Hunt hosts and directs this amusing but informative and often shocking discussion of the history of Confederate monuments. Whilst it doesn’t have much new to offer anyone already aware of the problem, its focus in particular on the campaign to remove New Orleans’ key Civil War statues gives the documentary a solid backbone to the wider debate, and as it segues into discussing Charlottesville and the aftermath of George Floyd it really starts to leave an impact. If you’re new to the topic and are wanting a solid education on why these statues aren’t a true representation of American history and why they should be removed, this would be an excellent place to start; much like Flee, it’s another great educational tool. 8/10 (US and UK release TBC)

Benediction

A dry and stoic historical drama that clinically presents the life story of poet Siegfried Sassoon, there’s an uncanny sense of dissonance that permeates every achingly-long moment of Benediction’s laborious runtime. Every performance, line of dialogue and directorial choice feels far more suited to the stage than a motion picture, with its few attempts at being cinematic mostly amounting to green screen montages and some of the worst CGI this side of the 1990s; seriously, it looks like something out of Myst at times. I don’t think I’ve seen a movie so gay and yet so dull, lifeless and completely full of itself; it’s like Pete Buttigieg in celluloid form. 1/10 (US and UK release TBC)

King Richard

Will Smith finally finds the role that may win him that Oscar gold with this inspirational sports drama about the rise of the Williams Sisters. Smith is equally charming and unnerving as the unyielding Richard Williams, Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton shine as the young Venus and Serena respectively, whilst Jon Bernthal gives a delightfully enthusiastic performance as tennis coach Rick Macci. There’s certainly a lot of sentimental cheese to be found in its overlong runtime, and Richard’s less-endearing parental decisions don’t always get the pushback they deserve, but overall it’s hard not to get invested and swept up in all the excitement. Also, this is easily the best cinematic portrayal of tennis I’ve ever seen. 8/10 (in theatres on 19^th November)

Benedetta

No matter the genre or language, you can always bet on Paul Verhoeven to give you something unique, and Benedetta is easily the most challenging and insane piece of filmmaking he’s put out since his Hollywood golden years. A historical drama that explores religious hypocrisy, this feature has a bird pooping a guy’s eye, someone lighting their farts on fire, and a young girl sucking on the breast of a Virgin Mary statue…and that’s just the prologue! Though supporting performances from veterans like Charlotte Rampling and Lambert Wilson certainly add to the audacious spectacle, it’s Virginie Efira’s lead performance as the titular Benedetta that keeps this glorious piece of blasphemous camp shining so bright. Certainly not one for those faint of heart, but if you love movies that like to live deliciously (e.g., Caligula), this is one for you. 8/10 (in US theatres on 3^rd December 2021, and in UK theatres 25^th March 2022)

Petite Maman

Céline Sciamma’s follow-up to Portrait of a Lady on Fire is certainly much smaller-scale, but that doesn’t mean it’s lacking in quality or heart. A simple story of childhood worthy of Studio Ghibli, Petite Maman is far from coy about its premise and simply enjoys spending quiet moments with these two girls being young whilst trying their best to ignore their depressing realities. It finds warmth and even joy in such a mundanely sad series of events, and the lead performances from sisters Joséphine and Gabrielle Sanz just make their relationships feel that much more believable. On top of that, it’s only 72 minutes long, so this is the perfect little treat if you want a little bit of indie sweetness without the time investment. 7.5/10 (in UK theatres 19^th November, US release TBC)

Starring: Daniel Craig (Knives Out), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody), Léa Seydoux (Blue is the Warmest Colour), Lashanna Lynch (Captain Marvel), Ben Whishaw (Paddington), Naomie Harris (28 Days Later), Jeffrey Wright (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire), Ana de Armas (Blade Runner 2049), Billy Magnussen (Game Night), Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained), Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel)

Director: Cary Joji Fukanaga (Beasts of No Nation)

Writers: Neal Purvis & Robert Wade (Casino Royale) and Cary Joji Fukanaga and Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag)

Runtime: 2 hours 43 minutes

Release Date: 30^th September (UK), 8^th October (US)

Can you believe that Daniel Craig has been James Bond for fifteen years, and yet in that time there’s only been five movies? It makes him the longest to ever hold the title of 007 (the late Roger Moore still holds the record for most films, with seven entries over twelve years), and what an eventful run it’s been full of thrilling highs and disappointing lows. From rebooting the franchise with explosive gusto in the excellent Casino Royale, wading through the intense production troubles of the forgettable Quantum of Solace, celebrating the fiftieth anniversary in style with the sublime Skyfall, and then coasting back into familiar formula in the perfunctory Spectre, what has always stayed consistent is Craig’s enduring commitment to the role, and that absolutely carries into his final curtain as the legendary spy. No Time to Die has been a long time coming, with repeated delays to its release even before COVID-19 impacted cinemas, leaving fans in breathless anticipation for well over a year. Finally, it’s safe to say that the wait is over and it was well worth it. Whilst No Time to Die isn’t quite the best of the recent Bond flicks, it is a fantastically entertaining one and a more than worthy finale to the Craig saga.

Unlike the Bond films of the bygone era, which occasionally made dalliances with continuity but mostly stood as self-contained stories, the five Craig films have had an ongoing narrative with recurring characters and themes that have evolved alongside 007 as a character. No Time to Die is no different, picking up the loose ends left by Spectre and spinning them into an epic yarn with world-ending stakes but an extremely personal character focus. The title itself is certainly apt, with death being a key theme of the film alongside secrets, forgiveness, and letting go of the past. It’s a story that touches on beats already explored in the series, with Bond still grappling with his lost love Vesper Lynd as he did in Quantum of Solace and being forced back into the saddle after a long hiatus as in Skyfall, but it brings more than enough fresh ideas to the table and the recurring motifs help thematically gel it with those prior entries. Whilst enjoyable in isolation, it works best in context with the rest of the series and satisfyingly pays off years of storytelling in a way that almost feels pre-planned; it even makes Spectre slightly better in retrospect.

The film is incredibly beefy with its 163-minute runtime, but it moves at such a strong clip that it’s hard to really care and there is hardly a wasted or dull moment to be found. The Craig movies have often been critiqued for sucking a lot of the zany fun out of the franchise in favour of more Bourne-influenced realism, but each entry has gradually brought back the fun and, whilst not going full Moonraker, No Time to Die does have a far more exuberant spring in its step. The screenplay is incredibly witty and self-aware, with Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s sense of humour shining through in the dialogue, though it stops well short of turning into a farce and grounds it with some solid moments of pathos. It expertly balances that line between popcorn entertainment and emotionally resonant cinema, all leading up to a finale that both delivers everything you could want from a Bond film but also completely upends your expectations. The story dares to go places one couldn’t imagine even the early Craig movies would go, and caps off this era for the franchise in a bittersweet but fittingly poignant manner.

It’s hard to believe back in 2006 there was such a backlash to the casting of Daniel Craig as James Bond, seemingly on little more basis than the fact he’s blonde and not conventionally attractive; in our age of increased gender-and-raceblind casting, it seems practically parodic. The haters were quickly silenced after seeing Casino Royale though, and over the years Craig has delivered a Bond that respects Ian Fleming’s writing whilst evolving and undoing some of his more unsavoury characteristics. The Bond we meet in No Time to Die is a perfect denouement to the arc he has been on over the five films and, without spoiling too much, Craig’s performance here is quite possibly his richest and most satisfying yet. Whilst this is certainly the most fun Craig’s ever had with the role, cracking off the one-liners and throwing himself into the action with a nary a sense of reluctance or lethargy, he’s certainly still the cold-blooded killer we first saw kill that man in the bathroom. This is a Bond at the end of his rope, trying to finally put to rest the demons of his past, leading him to become more abrasive and emotionally vulnerable. By story’s end, it’s clear he has evolved into a far more complex version of Bond than we’ve ever seen, and Craig more than delivers the touching send-off this character serves; I’d hate to be the performer who has to follow his act.

The rest of the returning cast generally deliver the quality performances you’d expect, but Léa Seydoux especially impresses as the rare returning Bond girl Madeleine Swann. An interesting but underdeveloped and inconsistent character in Spectre, here she is given much more material to play with and Seydoux really sinks her teeth into it and has a wonderfully natural chemistry with Craig. Jeffrey Wright returns for one last turn as Felix Leiter to bring back those feelings of nostalgia for Casino Royale, and Ben Whishaw continues to be an absolute delight as the constantly beleaguered Q. The only returning face to once again underwhelm is Christoph Waltz as perennial Bond villain Blofeld, and he’s mostly rendered a second banana who is far more talked about than seen or heard; it’s almost like the filmmakers are embarrassed by this version of the character. In terms of new faces, Lashanna Lynch is easily a standout as Bond’s replacement as 007 Nomi, bouncing off of Craig with charming aplomb and proving herself as a viable action heroine in her own right, whilst Ana de Armas threatens to steal the entire movie in her all-too-brief turn as the excitable rookie CIA agent Paloma; can we get a spin-off teaming up these two badass women, please? Even some of the smaller characters are memorable, like Billy Magnussen as a perpetually-grinning CIA operative, or David Dencik delivering an inspired take on the mad scientist trope. Unfortunately, the film’s biggest weakness is Rami Malek as the film’s villain Safin. Whilst Malek himself does a commendable job and his world-ending plan is unique and all-too-timely (probably yet another good reason to delay this film during COVID), he’s not in the film very much and his motivations are flimsy at best. He makes sense as a lower-stakes, more personal adversary in the vein of Javier Bardem’s Silva, but his leap into supervillainy never quite adds up and would have been more fitting in the hands of a series-spanning antagonist rather than one introduced in the final act.

When it comes to action, it’s been as inconsistent in quality across the Craig era as the writing. Whilst Casino Royale and Skyfall had some truly spectacular sequences like the parkour chase through Madagascar in the former or the silhouette fistfight in the latter, Spectre had its moments but lost steam towards the end (I mean, Bond defeats Blofeld in that movie by shooting down his helicopter with a bloody pistol) and Quantum of Solace was little more than a frenzied series of close-ups and quick cuts. Thankfully, No Time to Die is no slouch on this front and delivers some excellent sequences courtesy of the series’ perennial second unit director Alexander Witt. There are far too many to fully recount, with a frenzied shoot-out in a Cuban ballroom and a frantic vehicular chase across the Norwegian countryside as the easy standouts, but rest assured the action here is never lazy or perfunctory. The cinematography by Linus Sandgren is gorgeous in both its execution and variability, switching from relaxed beauty shots to frenzied thrills at a moment’s notice, and the production design shoots for the moon and delivers a final villain fortress truly worthy of the Bond brand. On the musical front, Hans Zimmer’s score is refreshingly restrained compared to his usual blockbuster fare, and even cleverly works in themes from prior films into its melodies. Billie Eilish is quite a refreshing choice for No Time to Die’ssignature Bond theme, and her song of the same name is a fittingly sombre number for the film’s tone and themes; it’s no “Skyfall” or “You Know My Name”, but very few songs are.

Back in my review of Spectre (which I gave 7.5 at the time, but I would downgrade it to a 6 in retrospect), I said it was the Dark Knight Rises to Casino Royale’s Batman Begins and Skyfall’s The Dark Knight. In hindsight, that comparison was a little short-sighted. If anything, No Time to Die has far more in common with the final entry in Christopher Nolan’s landmark trilogy, but with this extra caveat: No Time to Die is The Dark Knight Rises…done right. As an ending to this fifteen-year saga, it delivers on everything you could ask for on a narrative, spectacle and emotional level, completing the Bond franchise’s transition into the modern era in a way that could work as either as a touching way to cap off the series all together, or just the beginning of a whole new era. As both Game of Thrones and Star Wars proved recently, ending a long-running series in a satisfying and uncontroversial way is hard task, but No Time to Die is evidence that it can be done with elegance and respect. The news cycle may want to immediately turn to speculation about what the future of the franchise may hold (heck, they’ve been doing that anyway years before this one came out), but now I think is a better time to pause and reflect on the series just past, because it’s one that will be incredibly hard to follow.

FINAL VERDICT: 8.5/10