A central attribute to a film’s success or failure is the performances of its stars as certain characters. Now, while it is usually the adult actors or the adult actresses who are the stand-out stars in a feature film, there are also roles where it is the child that puts a new perspective on the approach to and execution of acting. Like adults, the child stars can adapt from supporting roles to leading.
In the tradition of Hollywood using British actors to represent true blue American icons comes I Saw The Light. This film presents the life of Hank Williams, whom is considered one of the most influential American singers and songwriters of 20th century America. As with many great artists, Hank’s journey is rife with the pitfalls of fame thrust upon his personal life and health.
What a relief Creed is. With a current cinematic landscape dominated by remakes, reboots and sequels, the initial idea of Creed just sounded so unnecessary. A pseudo-combination of a Rocky reboot that is a sequel whilst also working as a remake just felt like something we really didn’t need.
Despite his iconic status as James Bond’s most celebrated foe, Ernst Blofeld has a chequered history in the 007 franchise. It seems as though no one really quite knew what to do with him. The fluctuating, inconstant persona gifted to him by so many various actors was not helped by a legal skirmish in the wings that flared up seemingly every six months.
After his father’s death and disintegrating marriage, David Lamb finds self-discovery in mentoring a little girl on the awesomeness of nature. Tommie, the 11-year-old girl, is on a path headed toward apathy and emptiness due to her terrible social and home life. In an effort to have her walk a better path, Lamb takes Tommie on a road trip to the Colorado Rockies to see the beauty of a snowy mountain wilderness.
Over at our official Facebook page, we are currently posting daily film recommendations, with each week being a different theme. This is a collection of those recommendations! This week’s theme is focused on the year 1955.
In the very North of England, settled into the cinematic hillside of the North Pennines, there lives a family of sheep farmers. Amongst the snow, the wind, and the dying local farm industry, this small family battles every day to rear the perfect sheep and to pursue the life they have always dreamed of. Meet the Hutchinsons – the stars of quirky documentary Addicted to Sheep.
Every week Film Inquiry publishes the movies that are opening in cinemas! This week: In the Heart of the Sea, The Big Short and Don Verdean.
Composers are an underrated yet invaluable aspect to the world of cinema. They have the ability and duty to evoke various emotions in the audience, causing excitement, nerves, tears and goosebumps, sometimes all at once. It takes great skill to match the images on the screen to a suitable audio, and one man is notoriously known for his breathtaking soundtracks that complement filmmakers’ work and enhance the cinematic experience.
One of the hardest things to decide when reviewing a film is if the intentions behind the production feel genuine. One aspect that always arises during the Oscar/Award periods is actors doing roles or movies being made purely for “Oscar bait”. The idea of making a movie purely for the sake of gaining awards attention is somewhat cynical, but the transparency of movie production nowadays makes this something that sadly may have some truth behind it.
The Nice Guys is a comedy action set in the 70s, starring Ryan Gosling as a private investigator, and Russell Crowe, who plays a hired “enforcer” (basically someone who breaks people in two for cash). The two initially meet as Crowe is paid to kick Gosling to bits and breaks his arm. They end up having to work together when a woman disappears, and a porn star commits suicide These events are seemingly unrelated but as events and their investigation unfold, the couple uncovers a conspiracy.
No movie gives an aura of eighties nostalgia better than St.Elmo’s Fire. The Joel Schumacher directed film is somewhat of an underappreciated ‘masterpiece’.
Even if my opinions may come across like those of a film snob at times, one who will do all in his power to avoid anything audiences may actually enjoy. I am not a film critic, but a film fan who sometimes happens to write scathing reviews. I don’t think every movie should aspire to be high art, but I do think cinema as a medium should be either entertaining or emotionally involving dramatically, with any pretensions towards being regarded as art being secondary concerns to filmmakers.
As the Western world is finally starting to make significant strides towards sexual orientation equality, it is easy to forget that in most of the rest of the world homosexuals are less than accepted in their respective societies. LGBT people in such countries face discrimination, social exile and physical beatings as punishment for their existence, and as such have largely been forced to stay closeted. But Love is one of those things that is hard to keep hidden, and as one wise man once said about Life, Love too often “finds a way”.
The Look of Silence, the harrowing companion piece to The Act of Killing, was released earlier this year to universal acclaim. With the film about to be released on streaming platforms in the US, with a ton of awards nominations heading its way (including a place in the shortlist for Best Documentary at the Oscars this year), Film Inquiry spoke to director Joshua Oppenheimer about the past decade in his life making these films, as well as the new form of documentary storytelling he has pioneered. Alistair Ryder for Film Inquiry: