Harlan Ellison RIP: The Writer on the Edge of Forever Essay by Lee Hill Given that most of his books were out of print when he died, the widespread outpouring of love and admiration for Harlan Ellison belies the writer’s own cynicism about modern popular culture. During the heyday of his career in the 60s and 70s, Ellison dragged science fiction and fantasy (and legions of wallflower-like fans) kicking and…
Read MoreLFF 2017: 120 BPM
120 BPM is a film you tend to admire rather than love. Robin Campillo’s film deals with the rise of Act Up in France in the late 80s and early 90s as the activist group tackled the complacency of government, medical and pharmaceutical establishments in dealing with the crisis. If the film veers towards being a polemic at times, it contains many scenes that remind one of the anguish and…
Read MoreComing Soon: Tony Richardson and Woodfall Films
Tony Richardson and Woodfall Films: A Revolution in British Film A month-long season at the BFI Southbank, April 2018 Reviewed by Lee Hill From 1959 to 1963, director Tony Richardson became synonymous with “kitchen sink realism”. That catchphrase simultaneously celebrated and dismissed a new wave in British film. The wave first came to attention when Richardson and Karel Reisz screened their documentary short, Mamma Don’t Allow, as part of the…
Read MoreOscars 2018: Our Predictions
Rachael Kaines shares her Oscars 2018 wish list. The Oscars are here again. After the snafu of last year and the extremely unlikely event of the voters actually picking the best film for best film, all bets are off this year. “Oscar bait” films seem to be doing worse year on year, which makes for much better pickings and increasingly harder to predict winners. Here are some predictions, or rather…
Read MoreReport: I, Tonya Press Conference
Report by Amon Warmann I, Tonya has been a big player in this year’s awards season, and for good reason. Margot Robbie delivers a career-best performance as Tonya Harding – an ex figure skating champion with a shocking story to tell – and she’s ably supported by an eye-catching turn from Allison Janney, Harding’s overbearing mother.
Read MoreFilm Releases: Weekly Round Up
A round up of this week’s new releases by our Editor Linda Marric The Maze Runner: The Death Cure The third and final instalment of this very popular dystopian trilogy sees it opening with a bang. An impressive action set piece which could rival any thriller worth its salt. The film is however sadly let down by a meandering screenplay which doesn’t seem to have got the memo that less…
Read MoreMost Anticipated Movies of 2018
By Freda Cooper So that was 2017, the year when horror became the genre of choice and broke a few boundaries into the bargain. When every month had at least one blockbuster, or a superhero movie – or both. When some superheroes weren’t exactly super. And when fan backlashes became the norm, from La La Land to The Last Jedi. But, most importantly of all, people still kept going to…
Read MoreThe 10 Best TV Shows of 2017
Rachael Kaines picks her favourite TV shows of 2017. Do you agree? We have been blessed by yet another great year for television, with the golden age showing no signs of ending or even slowing down. Deciding a top ten is very difficult this year, it could have easily included things like Catastrophe, Big Little Lies, Game of Thrones, Easy (why is no one talking about this show?), and, of…
Read MoreThe Best Christmas Films You Will Re-Watch Yet Again This Christmas
Complied by Rachael Kaines Christmas is a time of joy, and in honour of that so is this list. Filled with the films that you will quite happily watch for the ninth time (even though you insist it’s crap) after a cheese course large enough to down an elephant, whilst sipping slow gin and fluctuating between contentedness and intense nausea. These movies as much a part of Christmas as turkey…
Read MoreBest Films Of 2017 By Sigridur Petursdottir
Icelandic film journalist and screenwriter Sigridur Petursdottir picks her favourite films of 2017. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri – Martin McDonagh Frances McDormand has been one of my favourite actresses for a long time. In this movie, she gives it her all. Mildred is funny, tragic, dangerous, sensitive, clever, hurt, but also crazy. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri is a brilliant film. It’s well written, it makes you laugh, and it…
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