British film censor re-evaluates guidelines in response to audience feedback… The British Board of Film Classificiation has recently issued new guidelines after consultation with almost 9000 members of the public. Regarding explicit and graphic sexual images in films such as 9 Songs (directed by Michael Winterbottom), the BBFC found that most people felt such imagery […]
Cult Classics – The Transformers: The Movie (1986)
The Transformers: The Movie, 1986. Directed by Nelson Shin. Featuring the voice talents of Peter Cullen, Judd Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Stack, Frank Welker, and Orson Welles. SYNOPSIS: Beyond good. Beyond Evil. Beyond your wildest imagination… As the war between the Autobots and Decepticons rages on a new enemy emerges – Unicron, a giant, planet-devouring […]
R.I.P. David Carradine (1936 – 2009)
Kung Fu and Kill Bill star found dead… Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominated actor David Carradine has been found dead in a hotel room in Bangkok, where he was staying while filming his latest movie Stretch. Early police reports indicated that Carradine – best known for his work as Kwai Chang Caine in the […]
Thoughts on… Synecdoche, New York (2008)
Synedoche, New York, 2008. Written and Directed by Charlie Kaufman. Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Michelle Williams, Samantha Morton, Emily Watson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Dianne Wiest, Tom Noonan and Hope Davis. SYNOPSIS: A theater director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he attempts to create a life-size replica of […]
Five Essential… Japanese Horrors
Richard J. Moir selects his Five Essential Japanese Horrors… 5. Audition (1999, dir. Takashi Miike) Audition is a Japanese horror film but you wouldn’t think it from the opening hour. It plays as more of a romantic drama with hints of comedy (mainly coming through the actual audition scene) and leaves the audience wondering what […]
The Gay Lord of the Rings: Readings From Middle-Earth
Gary Collinson examines contemporary readings of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings… Originally published in three volumes in 1954 and 1955, The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy chronicling the ‘War of the Ring’ and the end of the Third Age of ‘Middle-Earth’ – a secondary world created by […]
Seth MacFarlane Talks Family Guy Movie
Family Guy creator announces plans for a theatrical outing for the Griffin family… Seth MacFarlane, the creator of hit animated comedy shows Family Guy, American Dad, and upcoming spinoff The Cleveland Show, has been talking to Wired Magazine about his interest in bringing Peter Griffin and company to the big screen. MacFarlane, who was attending […]
British Cinema – City Rats (2009)
City Rats, 2009. Directed by Steve M. Kelly. Starring Danny Dyer, Tamer Hassan, Ray Panthaki and Susan Lynch. SYNOPSIS: A low-budget British drama focussing on eight interconnected characters who struggle to deal with their personal demons throughout the course of a single day. Looking at the DVD cover for City Rats it would be easy […]
Five Essential… Films of Takashi Miike
Gary Collinson selects Five Essential Films of Takashi Miike… Cult Japanese director Takashi Miike is one of the most prolific filmmakers working today, with over seventy credits since his debut in 1991. Miike’s body of work is often violent, sexually perverse and bizarre, mixing elements of different genres to create his own distinct style, which […]
A Terrence Malick Profile
Rory Barker profiles legendary director Terrence Malick… As a wave of great American filmmakers were unable to continue making films and the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawks, and John Ford were consigned to history a new, younger generation of US filmmakers emerged. Garnering the golden combination of both commercial success and critical acclaim consistently, […]