Valkyrie Film Review

 

Valkyrie is a true story about Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg who was a General in the German Army before and during the Second World War.

What is remarkable about this story is the enormous risk Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg played by American actor Tom Cruise, he took to get support to kill the German Nazis leader, Adolf Hitler.

RELATED FILM REVIEW: Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

If you can imagine thinking of 'how' you would kill the most notorious leader of the last century.

If you contacted the wrong person in the German government of the time you would be executed, and not only that but your family and friends wouldn't be spared.

So, the importance in telling this story as Tom Cruise has stated himself, a "big challenge" and an "enormous project" because of the responsibility in telling a truthful story that actually happened and is still being taught today around the world because of the devastation caused by the Second World War, which affected every man, woman and child in some way or another.

RELATED FILM REVIEW: The Reader

This film took two years to make not to mention the pre-production work involved, which took a further two years, so it's well recommended you see this war thriller, it will place you at the edge of your seat.

It's got a star-studded line-up of the greatest actors from Tom Cruise to Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Eddie Izzard and many, many others!

Valkyrie on DVD

Valkyrie on Blu-ray

Dylan Thompson

Milk - Film Review

Milk has been getting much respected adulation for this independent film telling us of the true story of the first openly gay American Senator Harvey Milk played by Sean Penn.

This is a powerful portrayal of Harvey Milk which sean Penn has made a point in his acting career of making films especially independent films of stories that matter.

A film like this wouldn't have been made by the top-gun studios as homosexuality is still not accepted by the American establishment.

In the 70's a period following on from the civil demonstrations on such issues as the Anti-War protests and black civil rights marches of the 60's, so it's seeming fitting someone like Harvey Milk would say, 'Hang-on what about gay rights?' Thus, a movement was born.

In 1970 Harvey Milk turned 40, and started like the most of us have, or will do and question one's life. What is it all about? Mid-life crisis is what it's termed. So, Harvey Milk with his lover moved to San Francisco the gay capital of America and the western world, and set-up a shop called Castro Camera in the poor working-class neighbourhood of Castro.

It's in San Francisco that Harvey Milk gets the notion of 'change' and to get equality across the board in American society. In 1977, Harvey Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to be voted into major public office in America.

Milk is available on DVD

Susan Hopfield

The Baader Meinhof Complex - Film Review

The Baader Meinhof Complex is the true story of Andreas Baader (Moritz Bleibtreu), Ulrike Meinhof (Martina Gedeck) and Gudrun Ensslin (Johanna Wokalek) who were the radicalised children of the Nazi generation, which is about to send Germany in the 1970s on a terrorist path of bombing and causing chaos within the foundations of democracy in Germany who like other countries are facing their own social problems, this being the worst and deadliest.

The argument of resorting to violence was the perception of American influence and political unity in the German state didn't approve and felt America was becoming too imperialistic.

The means are often spoken to justify the end result and here it was thought of creating a more 'human society' whatever that is supposed to mean when you're carrying-out terrorist atrocities against unarmed civilians who only want to live in peace, like the rest of us.

Soon the young terrorists are pursued by the head of German police Horst Herold (Bruno Ganz) who knows only too well that stopping this cause will only touch the tip of the iceberg.

The Baader Meinhof Complex is available on DVD

The Baader Meinhof Complex is available on Books

Rob Clarke

Pathology - Film Review

Pathology has been a film not that much advertised as it hasn't got a big-name actor in it but may have produced a few, because this film is about Ted Gray (Milo Ventimiglia) an extremely intelligent graduate who is training in the top Pathology programs in America.

As he begins to learn more about pathology practices, procedures, and the causes of death his talent catches the eyes of his fellow graduates.

As time moves on and Ted begins to socialise with his fellow graduates, he is shown a hidden group that uses pathology techniques in unethical ways.

As the start of the film title reads, 'some way that pathology is a window to God'.

As doctors, they see the perversion and corruption of the flesh by all means unnatural: violence, toxins, and maddness to determine the cause of death, how haunting!

Pathology is available on DVD

Rob Clarke 

Bangkok Dangerous - Film Review

Bangkok Dangerous is a slick film directed by the Pang Brothers starring Nicolas Cage as Joe the central character who happens to be a well-paid assassin.

The title of this film gives the location of the film, yes Bangkok, Thailand. Joe has four assignments or kills of some unsavoury types in Bangkok.

The way that Joe works is interesting, and the story is clever and fresh as it's done differently, which I haven't seen in a film before.

As the film progresses, we see Joe start to date a Thai lady who works in a chemist shop, and we start to see a different side to Joe, the film does slow at these encounters shows us the calming influence in his life of death.

What does this do to his mental state and outlook on life? You won't be disappointed at the thoughtfulness of the story, and how the story ends.

Bangkok Dangerous is available on Blu ray DVD

Susan Hopfield 

The Reader - Film Review

The Reader has already won a Golden Globe for Kate Winslet - Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture, another award from the CFCA and the BFCAA for Kate Winslet as best supporting actress and is being nominated for the Oscars and BAFTAS for 2009.

So, what's the story to this celebrated film starring Kate Winslet as Hanna who helps a sick young boy half her age back home. Micheal (Michael Berg) the young boy finds Hanna to thank her for her help and soon the both of them ensue in a secret affair, which is made stronger by their love of reading books. One day Hanna disappears, and Michael never sees her again.

The Second World War begins and ends. Michael (Ralph Fiennes) now a young man and is a law student sits in court observing the Nazi war crimes when he meets Hanna again, but she is now a defendant in one of these trails. 

What will become of this encounter?

The Reader is available on Blu ray DVD

Dylan Thompson

Transporter 3 - Film Review

 

Transporter 3 is fast octane action once again from Frank Martin (Jason Staham) trying to transport Valentina (Natalya Rudakova), who was kidnapped and is the daughter of Leonid Vasilev (Jeroen Krabbe), the Environmental Minister for the Ukraine government.

While having to contend with the usual heavy mob, while driving from Marseilles through to Odessa in the Ukraine.

Transporter 3 is available @HMV

 Dylan Thompson

Gomorrah - Film Review

 

Dylan Thompson

Gomorrah is based on the controversial bestseller by Roberto Saviano, and winner of the Grand Prix Cannes Film Festival in 2008, it is a more realistic insight into the Italian Mafia.

The film centres on the residents of Naples who must obey a system called, 'Camorra'.

Power, blood, and money are the essence of life in Naples and the lucky few live life outside of the Mafia organisations.

The film plot circulates around five stories and because the production is art house it gives us a more 'personal' point of view, with gritty scenes of the brutal and unstable life of these Mafia groups.

Available on Blu Ray DVD

The Happening - Film Review

 

Frank Moulinex

It is fashionable at the moment to think a virus will wipe-out humanity and leave a few humans left to reestablish human civilisation.

Well, The Happening falls into this category of something happening where people suddenly stop and then a chain of events happen where people commit suicide.

Elliot Moore played by Mark Wahlberg soon works out why these happenings occur and becomes mankind's saviour! 

The Happening on Blu Ray DVD

Revolutionary Road - Film Review

 Susan Hopfield

Revolutionary Road is a very interesting story, written by acclaimed author Richard Yates, of frustration in the repetitive cycle of life that we all live in.

The film is directed by Sam Mendes the husband of Kate Winslet who plays April Wheeler, and her on screen husband Frank played by Leonard Dicaprio. 

Motorola product page on eBay

The story settings are in the 1950s, a period in American society of prosperity because after the Second World War America didn't need to rebuild their cities from warfare damage, unlike those countries across Europe and America's closest ally Great Britain.

So, when April chooses to take a big risk of leaving the comforts of Connecticut and uproot to Paris to 'live a little' but can they find happiness or will they destroy their marriage.

Revolutionary Road is available @HMV

Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - Film Review

 

Dylan Thompson

Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a powerful story of innocence during the Second World War, which focuses on the story of two eight-year-old boys who meet in the unfortunate settings around a Nazi concentration camp.

One of the eight-year-old boys is the son of the camp's Commandant, and the other eight-year-old boy is a Jewish boy who is a prisoner inside the concentration camp.

The camp's son son sees people in striped pyjamas and wonders why they wear such clothing and in one scene wonders why one prisoner was a doctor and now peels potatoes in his house.

The camp's son was doing doing what young boys do and went exploring and found the concentration camp and found the Jewish boy hiding behind rubble and that is where their friendship begins.

 

But as time goes on their friendship and their innocence led to some dire consequences and shakes the whole ideology of Nazism and the persecution and murder of others such as Jews, Catholics, Gays, Political Prisoners, and other who were deemed unworthy or inferior to Nazism.

Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is available @HMV

Mean Dreams - Film Review

Mean Dreams

Mean Dreams is a film about lost innocence amongst two teenagers who come from different backgrounds, but are struggling to maintain an existence in the countryside of the Northern territory of North America.

When new neighbours move into the small country house, it consists of single father Wayne Caraway (Bill Paxton), who is a police officer and rather violent, which is vented-out on his daughter Casey Caraway (Sophie Nelisse).

Youth has a curosity attached to it and this often leads to trouble, especially in the case of country boy Jonas Ford (Josh Wiggins).

When Jonas sees Casey he makes contact and slowly a rather innocent relationship ensues, but her father isn't happy with this connection and later-on ends in a fight between her father and Jonas.

Unfortunately Jonas isn't going to listen to Casey's father and finds-out why her father seems menacingly uptight - he's a corrupt police officer. 

Jonas convinces Casey to runaway with him, and he has an idealistic notion of surviving on this money, as he falls in love with Casey.

Well, not only witnessing a police officer committing a criminal act and then profiteering; but stealing these ill-gotten gains isn't the wisest of decisions and Casey knows all to well what her father is capable of. 

The people that are left behind and not running is Jonas' farming family who are put under-pressure for Jonas to return, with the cash. 

But this thriller is well worth the watch as the cat-and-mouse game between Jonas and Wayne ensues.

Sadly, this was one of the last films Bill Paxton made before his death in 2017.

But, this is probably one of his best roles and played Wayne Caraway in a very harrowing way. Often you think he's in the same room as you, and wait for his hand to rest on your shoulder - giving you goose bumps. 

Mean Dreams is available on eBay.