The credentials of Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (The Lives of Others (2006)) were enough to get me to this 189 minute German epic at its first session. Fortified with a strong coffee and a stash of dark chocolate and mandarins, I felt confident that I could stay the course.
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Charming and mostly predictable, Poms is like spending a cosy afternoon with wine and a good friend.
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This is a heartwarming romcom about falling in love with Country, culture and family.
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There have been a few decent British biopics of late (I wrote this in 2019). Well-crafted, character-driven and largely sympathetic toward the subject – The Chaperone (2018) and Red Joan (2018) come to mind.
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I watched this film five years ago and never finished my review. Here’s what I wrote at the time compared to AI-generated text …
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Like a Miyazaki story come to life, with cuteness and soundtrack by Spielberg and a cast from a Japanese staging of The Cursed Child. But don’t let that put you off.
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If you are looking for a film that relentlessly depicts the awful hopelessness of war, Edward Berger’s re-adaptation of Erich Remarque’s novel is the one to watch.
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I was reminded of the quiet, rural drama of Dark River (2017) while watching this intense and satisfying dive into fundamentalism. It has some predictable beats but introspective camera work and a strong performance from Alice Englert help it transcend cliches.
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With conductor, Marin Alsop‘s anti-women criticism running around my head and the film’s esoteric trailer looking a tad film school, my expectations were low.
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I’m not sure of the wisdom of watching a horror like Zach Cregger’s Barbarian alone in a subterranean cinema on a Wednesday afternoon. My adrenaline was high for most of it as it twisted and turned through a dark labyrinth.
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