By Liam Springate-Jones A Quiet Place is an extraordinary piece of work. A masterstroke of suspense, thrills and survivalist dread, it racks up the tension and makes brilliant use of silence as a storytelling device. This film was stuck in my head for days after watching it. It’s a horror film that creates genuine terror and…
There was genuine reason for hope with this movie. Hope that it might finally buck the trend of rubbish video game adaptations. It didn’t look – at least on paper – like a studio simply cashing in on an established franchise; director Justin Kurtzel had arrived right off the seductive and bleak Macbeth, bringing the film’s two…
You may (or very likely may not) have noticed that I haven’t been very active around here lately. And by ‘lately’, I mean the last thing I posted was a review of the stunning Wind River all the way back in September! Sorry about that. Life has contrived to take a front seat role for the…
Taylor Sheridan’s recent career shift has an air of Matthew McConaughey’s ‘McConaissance’ a few years back. Sure, Sheridan’s name holds none of the same weight, but the conviction is no less admirable. Sheridan was a working actor with a decent recurring gig on Sons Of Anarchy when finally he realised, at 40, what he was doing wasn’t…
It’s finally here. With The Dark Tower earlier in the summer and the likes of Gerald’s Game and Mr. Mercedes gracing the small screen (plus a host of other adaptations in active development), it appears to be the year of Stephen King. Now it’s time to cast our eyes to the big one – the updated adaptation of one of his…
I’ve been playing Grand Theft Auto 5 since the day it came out four years ago (somehow it’s already been that long), and during those four years my time spent in-game has racked up to a whopping 35 days – 35 full, real-time days. And that’s just playing online, without taking into account the three times I’ve…
Here’s the thing: I’m just not that into origin stories. That doesn’t mean they’re inherently bad or that there aren’t good ones out there, but for every Godfather Part 2 there’s an Alien: Covenant. Too often it’s an area of cinema derived from the desire to sell tickets rather than an artistic yearning to tell a story, so…
War For The Planet Of The Apes Or as I like to call it, The Great EscAPE. Seemingly continuing the trend of blockbusters being really good in 2017, War For The Planet Of The Apes has gone down a storm with both critics and audiences. In some ways it’s not hard to see why: the film is…
It’s not like Warner Bros. haven’t made a few pennies with the three films currently comprising their DC Extended Universe – Man Of Steel, Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad made a combined $2b+ at the worldwide box office. But what they’re really desperate for is a comprehensive hit; some critical success to go with all that money, and…
During the press rounds for Alien: Covenant, Ridley Scott basically admitted that the only reason he made the film was to right the wrongs of Prometheus – specifically, it’s lack of the Xenomorph. Now I don’t think too many people would argue there were problems with Prometheus, but despite the impression Scott seems to be under, I doubt this was everyone’s main issue.…
When James Gunn delivered Guardians Of The Galaxy to the big screen back in 2014, he surprised almost everyone. Here was this relatively unknown director of ‘squelchy’ independent films like Slither and Super (he also penned The Belko Experiment which is currently in cinemas), jumping into the well-established Marvel Cinematic Universe with a group of characters who no-one but avid comic readers would…
Welcome to part 3 of my Page vs Screen series. Find part 1 here Find part 2 here World War Z To call World War Z an adaptation of Max Brooks’s book would be somewhat false. At best it’s a reinterpretation, but even that’s being a little kind. Marc Forster’s film essentially just takes what’s a really cool…
Star ratings have a habit of ruling film criticism. Bus posters and billboards particularly love their eye-catching nature, and indeed it makes sense to advertise with such a clear visual aid in areas where people will only grab a quick glance at the poster in question. Even if there’s a small quote beneath, it’s the number…
Being a film critic sounds like the perfect job. They get paid to sit and watch movies all day and then write about said movies. They get the chance to mull with and interview stars at festivals. They get early access to all the big movies. And did I mention they get to sit around watching…
LIGHTS OVERHEAD 