A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Reviews of films from the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales).
Graham Phillips, “Salisbury! A Day in Skripal City” (July 2018) In late July, British journalist / film-maker Graham Phillips spent time in Salisbury in southern England…
Tim Usborne, “Secret Science: Chemical and Biological Weapons” (2016) In 2016, the year of its centenary, Britain’s major defence science and technology park, popularly known as…
Isabel Coixet, “The Bookshop” (2017) Directed by a Catalan-Spanish director, this film exudes provincial English kitsch in its setting, its stereotyped and sometimes frosty characters, and…
“The Tsar and Empress: Secret Letters” (2017) A lavish two-part series revolving around the letters that Tsar Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia, and his…
British Films, French and French-language Films
Armando Iannucci, “The Death of Stalin” (2017) A British-made comedy satire about the death of Joseph Stalin and the struggle among his senior officials in the…
“Why is China Investing in the Balkans?” (VisualPolitik EN, 26 March 2018) VisualPolitik EN is a Youtube channel that posts short video clips on geopolitical and…
William Oldroyd, “Lady Macbeth” (2016) Adapted from Nikolai Leskov’s 1865 novel “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District”, this character study investigates how an apparently demure young…
“Imperialism on Trial – Eva Bartlett” (London, 31 January 2018) Canadian journalist Eva Bartlett was invited to speak at an anti-war protest meeting in London about…
Val Guest, “The Quatermass Xperiment” (1955) Filmed well over 60 years ago (at this time of writing), this film of alien-human possession remains a timeless inspiration…
British Films, North American Films
Paul Thomas Anderson, “The Phantom Thread” (2017) If viewed as a comedy romance about a successful narcissist couturier who aspires to be part of the upper…