Left to right: Natalie Portman and Tessa Thompson in ANNIHILATION, from Paramount Pictures and Skydance. “It’s making something new.” So says biologist Lena (Natalie Portman) about the alien infestation occupying an area of coastal swampland in Annihilation. ‘Something new’ is exactly what writer-director Alex Garland has delivered, in his adaptation of the acclaimed science fiction … Continue reading “Annihilation”
Category: Reviews
“Napoleon” – The Silent Epic Goes Digital
The BFI today announced a new chapter in the remarkable story of Napoleon, Abel Gance’s 1927 silent film chronicling the life and times of France’s most famous Emperor. This autumn, a new digitally restored version of the movie, completed by film historian Kevin Brownlow and the BFI National Archive, will go on theatrical release in … Continue reading “Napoleon” – The Silent Epic Goes Digital
“Mad God: Part 2” by Phil Tippett
Can you imagine taking Fritz Lang’s Metropolis by the scruff of the neck, dragging it through a septic tank filled with toxic waste and owl pellets, electrocuting it, injecting it with illegal hormones, and irradiating its nether regions so that its secret inner organs grow tumours and swell to the size of rotted grapefruits before … Continue reading “Mad God: Part 2” by Phil Tippett
“Harbinger Down” – Film Review
For a sci-fi horror movie set on a frost-covered trawler in the middle of the icy Bering Sea, Harbinger Down positively oozes warmth. A warm respect for its genre. A warm regard for its audience. And a blazing passion for its mission: to prove that old-school practical filmmaking techniques are alive and kicking in this brave new digital world. An unashamedly nostalgic riff on … Continue reading “Harbinger Down” – Film Review
“The Bone Clocks” by David Mitchell
Ever since the publication in 1999 of his first novel, Ghostwritten, author David Mitchell has consistently delighted in playing with narrative structure. For example, in his earlier work, Cloud Atlas, no less than six narratives spanning many centuries are nested together like matryoshka dolls. Like Cloud Atlas, Mitchell’s latest novel, The Bone Clocks, is divided … Continue reading “The Bone Clocks” by David Mitchell
Mike Batt’s “The Hunting of the Snark”
Rummaging through a forgotten drawer the other day, I dug out a dusty collection of ancient audio cassettes that hadn't seen the light of day for years. Among them was a real oddment: a concept album for a musical theatre adaptation of Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark, which tells the story … Continue reading Mike Batt’s “The Hunting of the Snark”
“Cloud Atlas” (with Apologies to David Mitchell)
The Cloud Atlas Journal of Graham Edwards Having unfortunately missed the opportunity to view the kinematographic entertainment appellated Cloud Atlas at my local magic lantern house upon its initial theatrical release, I was most gratified when my dear spouse, Mrs E, graciously presented me with a DVD edition of said motion picture as a Yuletide … Continue reading “Cloud Atlas” (with Apologies to David Mitchell)
“Fire City: The Interpreter of Signs” – Review
Demons walk among us, feeding off our misery. But we cannot see them. To us, they are ordinary human beings. To them, we are their next square meal. That's the premise of Fire City: The Interpreter of Signs, the feature directorial debut of Tom Woodruff Jr, an Academy Award-winning creature-maker whose track record includes films like Aliens, Predator … Continue reading “Fire City: The Interpreter of Signs” – Review
“Interstellar”
Make no mistake, Interstellar is a big film. Big ideas, big images, big heart, all driven by the big ambitions of writer/director Christopher Nolan. Interstellar relies on what might, in the hands of a lesser filmmaker, have been a too-familiar series of science fiction tropes (doomed Earth, maverick ex-pilot, the perils and wonders of space). … Continue reading “Interstellar”
“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”
A year ago, I told you what I thought of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first instalment of Peter Jackson's latest Tolkien adaptation. Looking back over my review, I see I was in a forgiving mood over a film that I mostly enjoyed, but which left me unsure of the wisdom of adapting the material. … Continue reading “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”
Graham Edwards 