Film Review: Sylvain Chomet’s The Illusionist
The Illusionist, Sylvain Chomet’s follow-up to Belleville Rendezvous, is adapted from an old script by Jacques Tati, who sadly passed away in 1982. The script, given to Chomet by Tati’s daughter, Sophie, therefore has a familiar backdrop - a magician in the early ’60s is struggling to compete with the birth of rock ‘n’ roll.
Film review: Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky, based on the 2003 novel by Chris Greenhalgh, is a film of two styles - half period drama and half avant-garde character study. The film opens in 1913 with an epic, thunderous performance of Rite of Spring, composed by Stravinsky. Chanel (Anna Mouglalis), midway through her affair with Capel, sits in the audience.
DVD review: Lymelife
The grey, restrained world of Derek Martini’s debut movie shares a heritage with Ang Lee’sThe Ice Storm with its central themes of repression, teen romance and wife-swapping in 70s America. But where The Ice Storm incessantly talks about life, Lymelife actually lives it. This is no OSCAR baiter. It’s harsh and honest.
DVD review: When You’re Strange
With Johnny Depp voicing the narration written by Tom DiCillo, this is an astonishing collection of fly-on-the-wall views of The Doors on their trajectory skywards. Jim Morrison certainly was strange, charismatic, talented and no doubt infuriating. And as Johnny Depp says, speaking DiCillo’s words, “You can’t burnout unless you’re on fire.”
Film review: Woody Allen’s Whatever Works
Woody Allen’s Whatever Works is an over-familiar regression that, given the sun-soaked flourish of Vicky Cristina Barcelona, is not so much a letdown as a full creative drought. The supporting cast are effective in their roles and allow for a break from the audience berating waffle of protagonist Boris.
DVD review: Casanova directed by Federico Fellini
This incarnation of Casanova, directed by esteemed Italian director Federico Fellini, is a visual spectacle. Casting Donald Sutherland in the title role of this film was a masterstroke, ensuring the film will be well-received by fans of Fellini, and provides a somewhat different perspective to the often more romantic stories of Casanova.
DVD review: We Live in Public by Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winner Ondi Timoner
A cautionary tale of the effect of the technological age on the human mind, this documentary portrays the ‘public life’ of a man named Josh Harris - a man whose work demonstrates that existing in the modern world means existing ‘in public’, and whose vision has been proven both piercingly accurate and ahead of its time.
DVD review: Disgrace
Set against the dramatic backdrop of post-apartheid South Africa, Disgrace is a skilful adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s Booker Prize-winning novel of the same name, and explores themes of morality, desire and race. Many of the scenes are difficult to watch, but there is a curious beauty to the film.
