Short Reviews

Bakumatsu Taiyo-den

Largely unknown outside of its native Japan, this comedy classic set in a Tokyo brothel was just released last month on Blu-ray by Masters of Cinema and is the subject… Read More
Snitch

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson does “serious” in this solid drama about a committed father who sets out to catch a group of fearsome drug dealers in the act in order… Read More
Knightriders

After the success of Dawn of the Dead, George A. Romero delivered this baffling tale of a nomadic gang of bikers sworn to live their lives as medieval knights –… Read More
Berberian Sound Studio

One of my favourite films from last year stands up remarkably well to repeat viewing at home. This fetishised exploration of Italian giallo filmmaking, analogue sound recording and foley effects,… Read More
Wreck-it Ralph

Disney proves it can deliver plenty of winning Pixar magic even when producing animated adventures on its own. A retro computer game villain looking for a little appreciation, breaks free… Read More
The Mask of Satan

Recently released on Blu-ray in the UK as Black Sunday, this early horror offering from Italian maestro Mario Bava stars Barbara Steele as a 200-year old vampire witch, accidentally revivied… Read More
The Big Wedding

A serious contender for worst film of the year. Robert De Niro plays the despicable patriarch of an estranged family, who must come together despite their myriad petty feuds to… Read More
A Company Man

Slick Korean revenge thriller starring So Ji-sub as a stylish, yet solitary assassin, whose company operates behind the facade of a legitimate metal merchant. When he fails to liquidate a… Read More
Abductee

A welcome change of pace for Japanese writer-director Yamaguchi Yudai sees the Sushi Typhoon alumnus eschew the splatter effects and goofball humour in favour of a stripped down chamber piece,… Read More
Profound Desires of the Gods

If you are looking for a singular cinematic experience, then look no further than this bizarre, anthropological odyssey through the backwaters of Okinawa – a remote island off the South… Read More
Rosemary’s Baby

Returning to familiar ground first covered in his earlier film, Repulsion, Polish director Roman Polanski chose to direct this adaptation of Ira Levin’s bestselling novel for his Hollywood debut. Mia… Read More
Cinema Paradiso

My list of shame title for this month’s edition of Full Disclosure – an ongoing feature over at Twitch – was Giuseppe Tornatore’s Acedmy Award-winning love letter to the golden… Read More
A Late Quartet

The talented members of a world renowned string quartet, about to emabark on their 25th season performing together, are tested when one of their number falls sick with a debilitating… Read More
Quartet

For his directorial debut (at the age of 75), Dustin Hoffman delivers an unashamedly lighthearted and indulgent comedy drama starring some of the UK’s finest veterans. Set in a fictional… Read More
Iron Man 3

There is lots to enjoy and plenty to discuss in Shane Black’s new addition to the growing cinematic incarnations of the Marvel Universe. Already breaking records around the world before… Read More
Barbara

After expressing her desire to leave East Germany, physician Barbara (Nina Hoss) is banished to a small hospital in a remote part of the country. There she is occasionally visited… Read More
Sansho the Bailiff

I really struggled with this film. I am familiar with Mizoguchi Kenji’s work, and have enjoyed the films of his I have seen, but nothing could prepare me for the… Read More
Who Framed Roger Rabbit

It is impossible to adequately explain to the youth of today just what an achievement this film was back in 1988. Watching something like Iron Man 3 today, we have… Read More