The Kray twins and their gangster violence of the fifties and sixties in London is indeed a big topic and they still form part of the worst of British criminal history. Brian Helgeland distils this into a slice of their life, largely revolving around the marriage of Reggie to Frances Shea (effective Emily Browning).
As a sort of backdrop to that we get all the big crimes, the political scandals and the gang wars of the time, all set in the fantastic realm of London clubs owned by the Krays and frequented by the rich and famous.
It is certainly fascinating. Helgeland, however distances us from much of it by using voiceovers – notably Frances – and an almost languid style which makes the scenes of extreme violence even more shocking. I am not sure it works but at least he has chosen a style and sticks to it. What lifts this film is a monumental performance by Tom Hardy as each of the twins, the wideboy Reggie
and the insane and bisexual Ronnie.
He deserved an Oscar for this and doesn’t even get a nomination. Go figure. A large cast do the 60’s thing well, set dressing is good
and the use of music from the time to complement Carter Burwell’s soundtrack is good. A solid effort that doesn’t quite come off
★★★+
and Emma Stone is perky and insistent as the love interest.
Parker Posey 
plays a faculty professor and wife also keen to get away with Abe, the professor. Newport, Rhode Island also features as a main part of the film. But does it ever really lift off the ground and inspire? 
No. definitely, a minor work in his gallery which is professionally done but lacks the hook to really engage us. Nor do we have the great one-liners of the past.
is soon mixing high school and high-class call-girl activities. Eventually, a mishap occurs
and her family are visited by the police to tell them of her second life. Mother (excellent Geraldine Pailhas)
is appalled, shocked and feeling the need to be compassionate, the stepfather (Frederic Pierrot)
keeps putting his foot in it and younger brother takes it as totally normal. Isabelle herself is totally introvert and detached from what she has done, seemingly unaffected to a large degree but also distant from romantic love too. It is an interesting exploration of modern mores and the difficulty some have of understanding the motives of those who breach certain moral codes. 
Marine Vacth is not only gorgeous but totally right for the role and she looks to have a great future as an actress. She holds her own against the veterans like Charlotte Rampling in the cast. I liked this film a lot and thought that it has many possible readings 
and a depth that belies its glossy visual exterior, precisely because the heroine is not so forthcoming about her acts.
Somehow the two click as Jonas helps Ruth move and saves her from a suicide attempt. This is not a bad movie but lacks a special feature to make it more memorable. Hannelore Elsner 
and Max Riemelt take the lead roles and do it well,
especially Riemelt who also plays Ruth’s love interest in the historical scenes.
Maybe too much flashback but the songs are good.
or be turned into an animal and then in the woods around the hotel where “loners” who have escaped from the hotel try to eek out a living
, this is one of those films that are impossible to predict right down to the last scene.
It boasts a very creative screenplay and while it is a comedy, it is also disquieting in many parts.
What it speaks of is the rules we make up to run society and how for the most part we blindly follow them.
all add good support and Olivia Colman as the hotel manager is particularly wry in her performance.
Good music and photography make this a film that is difficult to forget even if it possibly fails to overcome some unclear plot decisions. A film maker to watch.
to find a magic healing plant and later another scientist used the same Indian to revisit the same territory.
Basically, the film, which is beautifully shot by David Gallego in black and white is about the clash of civilisations and how difficult it is for the white man to understand the ways of nature and the jungle.
Neither European man is willing to sacrifice certain aspects, such as what they bring from home and the symbolism of baggage is repeated throughout. We also have references to the great destruction the rubber barons wrought on the area and the ridiculous attempts of the church to colonise and spread the word.
Director Ciro Guerra creates an almost hypnotic effect of being in the jungle and the work by all his actors but especially the young and old Karamakate (Nilbio Torres and Antonio Bolivar
) is excellent. This is an important piece of film making respectful to the indigenous and to our ancestors.
is always a joy to watch. But there is just too little interest and substance in this movie about a woman who starts dating a man the spitting image of her husband who drowned five years before.
Instead of being creepy or Hitchcockian, which would have built up the suspense, it ends up as all rather flat despite Ed Harris and Robin Williams
in the cast too. Sometimes you wonder what the point is.
and this brings the US and China together to cooperate on finding the culprit. A top Chinese military computer official (Leehom Wang) recognises part of the code as something he and a friend worked on at university. Trouble is that friend, Hathaway (the charisma free Chris Hemsworth)
is in jail and special dispensation must be sought for him to join the hunt. They all traipse off to Hong Kong, they including FBI and the rest. To very mixed results. There is a love story too as Wei Tang plays the Chinese guy’s sister and she is an ace programmer/hacker too and falls for Hathaway.
Viola Davis is the number one on the US side and adds much needed weight.
Parts of the film and especially the mental reasoning of the hacker hunters are well presented while other parts and especially the ending tend to wimp out a bit. I felt it was a good film but it could have been so much better.
falling for the 19 year-old next door.
Turns out that he (Noah, played by attractive Ryan Guzman) is a raving psychopath who seeks total revenge on Claire (Lopez) and her family when she rebuffs him after their initial one night stand.
The script reads like a Lopez adoration society, the bad guy, who is 19 going on 29,
is so capable at everything (Greek classics, mechanics, gunmanship, assertiveness skills and communication) and the plot holes are so vast that there is no alternative but to just enjoy it for laughs. Nothing can be taken seriously and in any case none of the characters are very nice, interesting or credible.
Interspersed with clips from their films
and old photos
it focuses on the relationship according to her and has some wisdom and tenderness about it.
But we still don’t get to know the full story of Bergman although perhaps much of his inner psyche was coming out in his films.
I thought this was a nice gentle piece of historical recording.
passionfilm 