September 2012

Films that time forgot: Angel Heart (1987)

by Matthew Hammond 28 September 2012

Alan Parker’s Angel Heart (1987) is an experience in total atmosphere and mood. There is only one way to adequately describe the sensation and affective power of the film: pressure cooker intense. Tension, intrigue and fear bubble up, all the way to boiling point…

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In Review: Now Is Good

by Maryann O'Connor 27 September 2012

Let’s just get this out of the way right at the beginning; Now Is Good is a big old weepfest. Having said that, we’ll add an extra clarification for those of you who might feel a little bit put off by that statement. It is a weepfest but also an honest, fun and at times [...]

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London Film Festival: Celeste and Jesse Forever

by Vicki Cole 26 September 2012

Celeste and Jesse Forever seemingly tells the classic tale of girl meets boy, girl and boy fall in love, girl and boy get married. However, we are made aware that there’s more to this particular love story when happily ever after takes place before the title credits have ended.

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What’s your superhero power?

by Maryann O'Connor 25 September 2012

Stop what you’re doing right now. That’s right, put your knitting/cat/chainsaw down and have a think about what your superhero name would be. Now, we know you’ve already thought about it passingly, fleetingly, endlessly but now you have an actual excuse to devote time and effort to designing your very own superhero costume and motto [...]

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Resistencia Mini-fest: The City of Photographers

by Maryann O'Connor 21 September 2012

This 2006 documentary about the photographers of Santiago, Chile is yet more proof of the power of photographs and film. Margaret Thatcher’s old mucker, Augusto Pinochet, presided over one of the worst periods in Chile’s history

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Resistencia Mini-fest: With Fidel Whatever Happens

by Maryann O'Connor 21 September 2012

Everyone knows the living legend of Fidel Castro and Cuba. Fifty years on from the revolution, they have seen the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and seemingly survived unscathed, much to the disappointment of their mighty northern neighbours.

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In Review: Free Men (DVD)

by Maryann O'Connor 19 September 2012

Free Men is a french language dramatisation of the trials faced by the Moroccan and Algerian immigrants in Paris during World War Two. They had arrived in France before the German occupation to find work but many were now without any hope and the occupiers’ relentless search for Jews in their midst had created a [...]

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In Review: ParaNorman

by Ben Harris 17 September 2012

Laika, the stop-motion animation studio known for 2009’s Coraline, bring us their second feature film, ParaNorman. This animated zombie-infested flick lends itself more to a mature audience but it’s still, in most ways, relatable to a younger demographic.

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The New Empress Saturday Matinée Presents: The Secret of My Succe$s

by J P Wooding 15 September 2012

Boardroom battles, slapstick silliness and the eighties era are three of my favourite film trappings. The news that Michael J. Fox is to return to our screens in his own TV show after a long absence reminded me of an old film favourite that incorporates all three: The Secret of My Succe$s.

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Raindance: British micro-budget film Strings nominated for award

by Maryann O'Connor 13 September 2012

Strings, a British film featuring at the upcoming Raindance Film Festival, is a drama telling a story of teenage angst and romance. That in itself does not sound particularly remarkable, but you cannot help but be intrigued when you learn that it was written, directed and produced by a teenager for the princely sum of [...]

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In Review: Dredd 3D

by Ben Harris 12 September 2012

Judge Dredd, 2000 AD’s comic hero, was left in the cold after an underwhelming attempt to bring the character to the big screen in 1995. Now with a British team in tow, Dredd gets the 3D treatment and a much-needed revamp.

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