Scorecard

AUGUST

FILM OF THE MONTH  Day of the Jackal ☆☆☆☆
Iron Monkey ☆☆☆☆
All About Eve ☆☆☆☆
The Blues Brothers ☆☆☆☆
The Empire Strikes Back ☆☆☆☆
Kong Skull Island ☆☆☆☆
Monty Python and the Holy Grail ☆☆☆☆
On the Waterfront ☆☆☆☆
Phantasm ☆☆☆☆
Groundhog Day ☆☆☆☆
The First Great Train Robbery ☆☆☆☆

Review Roundup - The Island

KONG: SKULL ISLAND (2017)

There are a lot of things that concerned me about this latest monster mash blockbuster, whether it's the silly title, the fact this is yet another reboot, or the way it fits in the so called MonsterVerse series. It's an all round recipe for cringe. I'm not a fan of all these grand schemes for expanded universes, and I didn't really like the sound of a story which connected with the 2014 Godzilla film by Gareth Edwards. The previous instalment was drab, grey and lifeless without a hint of popcorn fun or any satisfying spectacle beyond a handful of interesting moments. However thankfully this new incarnation of King Kong is the polar opposite of that previous Kaiju effort in more ways than one.

Review Roundup - Chasing the Dragon

T2 TRAINSPOTTING (2017)

Fraudulent sequels made decades after an original movie (or series) are one of my least favourite kinds of release. There's usually huge amounts of hype ... followed by a period of denial, regret, and self imposed amnesia. Remember this? It's back! Just older and more lacklustre! Once in a while a film maker will have retained all their marbles into later life, but these magic moments are the exception to the rule. Trainspotting is still Danny Boyle's greatest directorial effort, something that holds up - perhaps looking better than ever today. It's awful, it's funny, and it's engaging. But despite a lot of unease about a follow up, I tried to look at the positives. The sequel book did take place some years later, and everyone involved in adapting it to the screen seemed to be back. But whether this succeeds or is just another failed attempt to recapture past glories needs closer examination. The results are pretty uneven.

Scorecard

JULY

FILM OF THE MONTH Subway ☆☆☆☆
Goodfellas ☆☆☆☆
Predator ☆☆☆☆
The Birdman of Alcatraz ☆☆☆☆
Back to the Future ☆☆☆☆
Bernie ☆☆☆☆
John Wick 2 ☆☆☆☆
Dead or Alive 2: Birds ☆☆☆☆