Directors - Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden
Fairly run-of-the-mill poker film that starts off well enough despite lifting it's opening first third from Robert Altman's superior California Split, then quickly pisses away any promise by the time the end credits role. A chance meeting between Curtis (Ryan Reynolds) and Gerry (Ben Mendelsohn) results in the two of them hitting the road for a high stakes poker game in New Orleans. The characters never really come to life and the direction is fairly flat. Reynolds doesn't stand a chance next to an on form Mendelsohn as the grubby low-life. Disappointing.
Director - Robert Carlyle
Carlyle directs and stars in this black comedy about a Scottish hairdresser who finds himself the prime suspect in a serial killer case after accidentally killing his boss. Starts off well, but drags its feet and feels stodgy after the first fifteen minutes. On the plus side Emma Thompson and Tom Courtenay turn in superb sweary performances. File under missed opportunity. Shame.
Director - Wes Ball
Disappointing sequel to the enjoyable first Maze Runner film. Picking up where that film left off the surviving kids find themselves chased from location to location trying to find figure out who can be trusted along the way. Whereas the first film had momentum this one just plods, the savvy plot twists of the original are sadly absent too. So what we end up with is a road movie that goes nowhere. Missed opportunity.
Director - Benjamin Statler
The Kurt Cobain documentary that no one is talking about but really should be. Centred around private investigator Tom Grant’s time working for Courtney Love and all the weird shit that went down during his time in her employ. You would wave a hand in the air and mutter ‘bullshit’ to yourself at the facts that emerge in this doc, if it weren’t for the fact that Grant taped all of his conversations with the key players. It’s a bit of a jaw-dropping OMG doc, and a real must see. You’ll be shocked by the time it finishes. In the hands of a better director this would have been even better. Which just goes to show how the fascinating the story actually is.
Director - Alex Gibney
Superb in-depth documentary about the church of Scientology, how it came about, what it does, and ultimately just how damn creepy their whole set up is. Gibney doesn’t go for the jugular in the tacky way that Michael Moore would, but instead lets everything play out over two hours of interviews with ex-Scientologists. Not a balanced argument in shape or form, since the subject refused to be involved in the documentary. An absolute must see. You'll feel like a shower afterwards though.
Director - Christopher McQuarrie
Tom Cruise saves the world yet again. This time around Sean Harris is the big bad heading up some shadow organisation that only the Cruiser knows about. MIRN (as no one called it) follows the same template as the rest of the series, having the Cruiser hunted not only by the baddies but by his own people too. Same old, same old. That said McQuarrie handles the action with aplomb, Simon Pegg is funny and the usual 'bit of skirt' for Cruise to rub up against (Rebecca Ferguson), is actually more than his equal and possibly the best thing about the film. Five films in and it still feels like there's life in the old dog yet. Perfect Saturday night flick.
Director - Peyton Reed
Using the same story template as the first Iron Man film (good guy has a super suit that bad guy wants to sell to even badder guys), and suffering from a last minute change of director (Edgar Wright bailed at the eleventh hour after 'creative differences'), Ant-Man is a surprisingly decent entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink attitude of the Avenger's films it's refreshing to see a film play out on a smaller scale. The only drawback is the crowbarring in of future Marvel storylines, which all felt way too clunky. Hats off to Peyton Reed for being able to pull off the seemingly impossible. Perfect Saturday night popcorn fare.
Director - Asif Kapadia
Kapadia proves that his superb Senna documentary was no fluke with this look at the rise and fall of singer Amy Winehouse. Rising above the tabloid tittle-tattle, Kapadia shows through a mixture of home video footage and interviews with those closest to Winehouse the woman behind the headlines. At it's heart this is a doomed romance tale worthy of Shakespeare. Well worth your time.
