Tag: Drama

100 Word Review – All About Eve (1950)

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A magnificent example of classic Hollywood.

Star Margo Channing (Bette Davis) believes that ingenue Eve (Anne Baxter) is trying to climb Hollywood’s career ladder by using her as a stepping stone.

It’s a truly twisted tale of deception, ambition and betrayal.

Witten and directed by Joseph L Mankiewicz (Cleopatra, Guys and Dolls), this film has won six Oscars including Best Directing and Best Screenplay and was nominated for a further eight. It even beat Sunset Boulevard for Best Picture and holds the record for the greatest number of female action Oscar nominations. It is currently number 100 on IMDb’s Top 250 films.

100 Word Review – Up (2009)

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Possibly one of Pixar’s most beautiful family features. 

Carl (voiced by Edward Asner) has lived a long life. Now widowed and alone, Carl will stop at nothing to prevent developers from seizing his property, including flying away.

Written and directed by Pete Doctor (Inside Out, Wall.E) and Bob Peterson (Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc.), it captures the spirit of adventure that lives on in us long after our childhood years. Christopher Plummer along with both directors and various members of their family, lent his voice to the film.

Winner of two Oscars for music and animation, it’s now #114 in IMDb’s Top 250.

100 Word Review – Rush (2013)

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You don’t have to care or know anything about racing cars to enjoy this film.

Based the true story of the rivalry between James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl) on and off the track in the heady world of 1970s Formula One.

It is moving, tense and at points truly mesmerising. Bruhl’s extraordinary performance as Lauda was recognised by a Golden Globe nomination.

Written by the Oscar nominated Peter Morgan (The Last King Of Scotland, Frost/Nixon) and directed by Oscar winner Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon, A Beautiful Mind), this biopic is breath-taking. It is currently #160 of IMDb’s Top 250.

100 Word Review – Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)

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This is one of those films that I’ll be talking about for months.

Greg (Thomas Mann) is forced by his mother (Connie Britton) and father (Nick Offerman) to hang out with his classmate Rachel (Olivia Cooke) after they find out she has leukaemia.

RJ Clyer is wonderful as Greg’s fellow filmmaker, the dead-pan Earl of the title.

Funny and moving in a way which is reminiscent of Little Miss Sunshine.

Adapted from the novel by its author Jesse Andrews, it is a wonderful exploration of friendship and loss of innocence splattered with enough filmic references for the most devout cinephile.

100 Word Review – Misery (1990)

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Kathy Bates is extraordinary in this film.

Acclaimed writer Paul Sheldon (James Caan), whose car comes off the road on an isolated highway, is rescued by Annie Wilkes (Bates), his biggest fan.

A wonderful, terrifying thriller about the power of fame and idolisation.

I’ve never been more scared of anyone than I am of Bates in this film. She won an Oscar for her performance. Adapted by William Goldman (The Princess Bride, Marathon Man) from Stephen King’s novel and directed by Rob Reiner (The Princess Bride, This Is Spinal Tap), it’s a story constructed by master storytellers, delivered with perfection.

100 Word Review – Ruby Sparks (2012)

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Calvin (Paul Dano) is a best-selling author going through writers block. Dreaming of the girl of his dreams, he begins writing about her, never imagining that she might step off the page and into his life.

The first film written by and starring the hugely talented Zoe Kazan (In Your Eyes, What If), with a spectacular cast, it is a better version of (500) Days of Summer (2009), showing the dangers of creating an image of a women rather than getting to know the one that is right in front of you.

It is beautiful, magical, terrifying and above all truly heart-felt.

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100 Word Review – Lars and The Real Girl (2007)

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One of the best films I have ever seen about coping with mental illness in a loved one.

Lars (Ryan Gosling) is an awkward young man who brings his girlfriend over for dinner with his brother (Paul Schneider) and sister-in-law (Emily Mortimer). She is a sex doll called Bianca, that Lars ordered online and is having a deep and meaningful relationship with.

Writer Nancy Oliver (Six Feet Under, True Blood) was nominated for an Oscar for her work. This film is moving beyond belief, but in a really happy way. It’s touching and subtle and dry and very very human.

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100 Word Review – 12 Angry Men (1957)

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Henry Fonda stars in this moving legal drama. 

Based almost entirely in one room, it follows the decision making process of a jury in a murder case and how minds can be changed by one man asking all the right questions.

Directed by Sidney Lumet (Network, Dog Day Afternoon), it was shot with ever increasing focal lengths so that the backdrops appear closer to the actors as the film intensifies, filling an audience with a growing sense of claustrophobia.

Despite the low budget, and losing out on all three Oscar nominations, it currently sits at number 5 on IMDb’s Top 250 films.  

100 Word Review – In The Loop (2009)

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This is a political satire to end all political satires.

MP Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) with his assistant Toby (Chris Addison) and spin doctor Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi) head state-side as representatives of the British Parliament in an attempt to ensure another war doesn’t start.

Co-written and directed by the marvellous Armando Iannucci (Alan Partridge, Veep), and co-starring James Gandolfini, this could not help but be a masterpiece of dry-wit and comedic filmmaking.

It has the feel of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, which ties in with the “funny because it’s true” sensibility of the script perfectly. It is also endlessly quotable.

100 Word Review – The Skeleton Twins (2014)

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From writer and director Craig Johnson (True Adolescents) and co-writer Mark Heyman (Black Swan, The Wrestler), comes this bitter-sweet drama about the strength of shared childhoods and sibling bonds.

Milo (Bill Hader) a failed actor, attempts suicide. His estranged twin sister Maggie (Kristen Wiig) gets the call as she is on the verge of doing the same. Forced back into each others lives after 10 years apart, they rediscover each other, themselves and just try to survive.

Co starring the equally wonderful Luke Wilson and Ty Burrell, this is a quirky moving film with moments of comedy, karma and catharsis.