Review: Parasite (2020) – Upstairs, Downstairs

When I was at university I was introduced to Memories of Murder, one of my housemate's favourite films as he chose it for a screening of our film society, Bong Joon-Ho's murder mystery that proves to be more than your typical Marple. While it was an impressive and striking film, I didn't enjoy it. Even …

Review: Bad Boys For Life (2020) – Broken Promise

  Back in 1995, Michael Bay redeveloped the action-comedy into the loud, explosive yet colourful genre it is today, thanks to the release of the original Bad Boys movie. You would be hard-pressed to find someone who wasn't at least amused by the antics of Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence). However, …

Review: Waves (2020) – A Tale of Two Siblings

You would be forgiven for thinking that Uncut Gems would be the only January release to feel like the film equivalent of a tension headache but Trey Edward Shults' Waves thanks to an opening hour that proves to be unrelenting and foreboding. If it wasn't for the final hour where it calms but never stops, …

Review: A Hidden Life (2020) – Silent Resistance

While it has been seven years since I last watched a Terence Malick film, since the release of the abysmally dour and soulless feature To The Wonder. Since then I chose to skip screenings of Knight of Cups, as well as Song to Song. However, the trailers for A Hidden Life seemed to suggest a …

Review: Richard Jewell (2020) – One of the Gang

While to some the notion of being important, doing something great and being someone of note is something to cling to as a form of life goal. Sure it isn't the most important part of life but this obsession with being noticed is one that is completely normal. It is the people that aim lower …

Review: 1917 (2020) – Everyone’s Story

While we have all seen war on film it is rare to watch a film depicting the 1st World War, a war consumed by trench warfare, a lack of movement that narratively speaking halts progression. 1917 finds a way around this by building a story around multiple tales of valour and fear from throughout the …

Review: Seberg (2020) – Not Beyond Good & Evil

When the trailers for Seberg began to circulate I had no clue what to make of it, the whole premise looked muddled from the get-go and while I was pleasantly surprised by how ambitious it tries to be it never really makes itself known, or vital, in the way it should, thanks to its own, …

Review: Uncut Gems (2020) – Hustle & Glow

Every time I read about Josh and Benny Safdie's Uncut Gems it either has to do with the relentless tension or the truly great Adam Sandler performance at its core. While both are reason enough to go watch the film on the big screen, this isn't just a tense and well-performed feature. It also serves …

Review: Just Mercy (2020) -Viewing Injustice

Back in 2013, Destin Daniel Cretton made a feature-length version of his short film, Short Term 12. While it largely went unnoticed, it highlighted Cretton's vision as a master of the many different languages of film. Instead of saying things outright, emotion and exposition were conveyed through a look, a moment of silence, a piece …

Review: Bombshell (2020) – A Little Conservative

I'll make it clear right from the start, I was not the target demographic for Jay Roach's Bombshell. This tale of sexual harassment within the ultra-conservative walls of Fox News at first glance is a story disconnected from the rest of the world. Roach and writer Charles Randolph thankfully disagree and a film that could …