Faith films are in fashion with audiences in the American mid-west, but will religious dramas be with voters at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences? After making an awards season splash with his remake of All Quiet on the Western Front, Edward Berger has opted for a traditionally less happy Oscar hunting ground. In all honesty, this book-to-film drama should not buck that trend. Berger’s latest film shows great promise but is weighed down by redundant sub-plots and…
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The Witch 2015
Originating in ancient folktales, The Witch (2016) remains one of the most inspired adaptations of the written word to cinematic language. Crucially we only see glimpses of the titular demon – keeping alive the dreaded unknown that would have formed the basis of this traditional storytelling experience. What we are given instead is flashes of different impressions of what a witch looks like: an unseen spiritual entity, a seductive wanderer and an unremarkable seventeenth century Puritan, a technique that creates…
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Vanity Fair 2018
As is the case with all my favourite books, Vanity Fair has proven largely unadaptable. That’s why this is the best adaptation so far of Makepiece’s (very dated, but still excellent) novel.
Vanity Fair started slowly. The first episode didn’t really work for me. I found it to be visually solid and enjoyed Olivia Cooke’s performance, but I found the put downs and jokes to be mostly uninspired and witless. However, as the show went on it picked up. It progressively…
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The Favourite 2018
Lanthimos films have been an acquired taste for me. As much as I enjoy the Lobster and Sacred Deer, I more respect them than love them. However, this is his first absolute masterpiece and the first exception to that trend. This delightfully twisted, shockingly funny and strikingly original period piece is the best movie of the year I’ve seen so far.
While being reasonably grounded historically speaking, The Favourite still manages to be incredibly entertaining. While not that much of…
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