“The dead have no titles”
When a drama’s titular character is such a towering historical figure, an audience arrives with some preconceptions that can bring an extra challenge to an actor. But I hadn’t really seen Cate Blanchett in anything prior to seeing this in 1998 – and that really rather helped.
In a film filled with exceptional performances, Blanchett holds the centre superbly. Circling her sun are characters of mixed motive. The duplicitous Earl of Leicester is ably worn…
“You’ve become so good at vanquishing your opponents that you have run out of enemies. And I worry that in looking for them, you might create them.”
This wasn’t so much a traditional film as a 2-part televised play - but in the end, content is content.
I am of an age (62 in 2025), that means I remember with crystal clarity these two figures. They loomed large in the 1980s Britain I knew. And therein lies the biggest challenge…
Quite simply my favourite film of all time - even if I’m never 100% sure why.
It’s a comedy. Or a thriller. Maybe both. It’s a love story - with Iranian hitmen chasing Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Pfeiffer (in only her 2nd lead) around night-time Los Angeles. It has cameos to burn, from directors like David Cronenberg, Jim Henson and John Landis (who is actually helming the film itself). Dan Ackroyd is a pal who cares, Jonathan Lynn is a…
“This stretch of road runs between nowhere and not much else…”.
I saw this film on release in 1996 - and regarded it very highly. I wondered if the 28 year gap would reveal flaws - but if anything, it looked even better on this later viewing.
The film is itself set across decades from the 1960s to 1990s - and frankly could have been fixed in any of them. It is a very old-fashioned production in many ways -…
