60-second cinema

7 out of 10 Joseph Gordon-Levitt gives an excellent performance as Brendon who after receiving a mysterious phonecall from his ex-girlfriend, decides to investigate her disappearance. Brendon enters a world where no-one is to be trusted but who he is reliant on for information. Brick is essentially a new spin on the film noir/detective movie genre albeit set in a High School environment with a ‘Twin Peaks’ vibe. This is Rian Johnson’s debut feature and it is highly entertaining, fast paced and totally absorbing, but not without its flaws. It is not an easy watch. It requires a lot of concentration from the viewer mainly due to lengthy dialog and a language that is very unique. For long periods of time I had no idea what they were taking about, I just knew it was very very cool. It is a film that demands a second viewing and I believe that this could well be a film I will return to in the future and wonder why I didn’t rate it more highly.

9 out of 10 A reviewer in the Metro recently slammed 300 as jingoistic, brutal, homophobic and racist. The reviewer was a muppet. I think she forgot to consider the tale being told and the people and times it portrays. Let’s look at the criticisms one at a time: Jingoistic? Yeah, it was conflict-loving, testosterone-fuelled machismo, but that's not jingoism. Only one short scene struck me as having uncomfortable parallels with modern-day over-patriotism. Indeed, the majority of the posturing was brought about only by a desire to defend Sparta, not to play the bully with Persia. Brutal? Yup, it’s a fair cop. But what’s wrong with a bit of the old hack and slash from time to time? :) Homophobic? You what?! This is the least rational of all the criticisms levelled at it. There wasn’t a single reference to homosexuality. Maybe the reviewer objected to this? Finally, racist? Presumably, the reviewer objected to the Persians having darker skin than the Greeks. Hello? That’s

8 out of 10 (revised) I’ve heard that this is meant to be a really good film, but I came away thinking it was merely ok. Casting light on the tensions between police and the immigrant communities of suburban Paris, the film follows the story of 3 youths caught up in the rioting. Maybe I was meant to side with them, but two of them were idiots and the other, while stronger, simply wasn’t strong enough to rise above his situation. Sure, police attitudes don’t help, but as with any long-running conflict, it takes two to tango and repeated escalations are almost inevitable. La Haine demonstrates this pretty well, but can’t offer a substantive solution. You get the feeling that, were you to travel to these parts of Paris today, nothing would have changed. The final stand-off says it all. It simply fills you with a sense of despair. Hmmm... in the course of writing this review, I think I’ve convinced myself it was better than just ok. It’s certainly not a happy or hopeful film, but that

7 out of 10 If there’s one film-y phrase that I would use to sum this up, it’s “character development”. It’s soaking in it. In particular, the character of Harlan, played brilliantly by Edward Norton , is revealed gradually throughout the film. One minute, you’re on his side and the next you’re thrown into doubt. The other major characters are pretty consistent — and also well-acted — although I suppose this provides a good contrast for Harlan. I don’t want to spoil it any, so I’ll just say that, overall, it was pretty good, but lacked the killer punch that might’ve earnt it a higher rating.

5 out of 10 An average rating for a very not-average film. It simply reflects my general level of bewilderment after having watched this weird French cartoon. The story follows an orphaned boy, passionate for cycling, who eventually comes to take part in the Tour de France, only to kidnapped in mysterious circumstances. Cue his Grandma setting out on a quest to rescue him. Were I to say any more, it would spoil it a little too much, but suffice it to say it’s a little quirky. Worth seeing, even if you do so only to satisfy your curiosity.

7 out of 10 Call me crazy, but I’m starting to respect Leonardo diCaprio’s acting. I already quite like Matt Damon too, although he’s a little too Jason Bourne here. Jack Nicholson, of course, played a mob boss nicely and Mark Wahlberg was pretty good too. So why am I not raving about this in the way everyone else is? Maybe it was the wine I’d quaffed, but I struggled to maintain concentration throughout the film. The premise was great and the end was a shock, but it just didn’t grip me.

6 out of 10 While I’ve always liked Simon Pegg ’s output, it does tend to be the same thing every time. Shaun of the Dead was Spaced with zombies. Spaced was... well, Spaced. And now Hot Fuzz is Spaced with West country policemen and villagers. There are laughs to be had here, but judging by the amount of laughter in the cinema, I wasn’t enjoying it nearly as much as others were. If you’re like me, though, you might want to wait till it comes out on DVD.