Lethal Weapon (1987)

Buddy-based L.A. police drama that’s very much an inferior version of Beverly Hills Cop. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about, but I couldn’t really. 

Mel Gibson plays a “troubled” policeman wrestling with bereavement and mental health issues. He’s teamed up with Danny Glover to investigate the death of a woman who appears to have leaped from an apartment balcony. 

It’s a little hammy, the villains (including Gary Busey) are woefully one-dimensional and it feels very “TV movie” in places. But Gibson and Glover work well together, with a certain chemistry, even though the macho aspects of the plot are ludicrous. At the end, for example, Gibson engages in a lengthy fight with the villain when he could have simply arrested him. 

To some extent, you have to buy into Gibson’s whole style – twitchy and “on the edge” – for the film to work at all. If you can’t engage with his persona, or you find him merely ridiculous, then you’re left with a fairly ordinary thriller. 

My copy is the “director’s cut” but I’ve no idea what was removed or added for this version. 

It’s worth watching if you’re curious about 1980s blockbusters, as I am, but I don’t ever need to see it again.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)

Oliver Stone’s disappointing and unnecessary sequel to his original 1987 Wall Street hit, which was itself patchy. Michael Douglas returns as Gordon Gekko. He’s out of prison and says he wants to reconnect with his estranged daughter (an unconvincing Carey Mulligan). That daughter’s fiancé (Shia LaBeouf) is himself a Wall Street wizard and begins his own wheeler-dealing with Gordon Gekko. Josh Brolin plays a smooth, ruthless banker who gave evidence against Gekko in the past.

It’s a frustrating film that feels slow in parts and plain odd in others. Naff visuals don’t help: sometimes there are fussy split-screen effects, and at a couple of points we see crudely literal representation of “dominoes falling” and “science”. 

Susan Sarandon has a bit part that doesn’t really work, and Charlie Sheen has an awkward cameo purely as a nod to his role in the first film. He wasn’t very good in that either. 

Michael Douglas is always compelling, but it’s a genuinely baffling story that simply did not need to be told. The bolted-on happy ending suggests that Oliver Stone is muddled about how he feels about Gordon Gekko. He seems to be in love with the character and unable to make up his mind about whether he’s a nice guy or a baddie. Instead, he gives him a line about all of us being mixed bags who should give each other a break. After two films, that just seems like a cop-out.

The Informers (2009)

Muddled adaptation of short stories by Bret Easton Ellis about a bunch of loosely associated dysfunctional, alienated Los Angeles people in 1983.

It completely lacks charm or intrigue. The sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll feels forced and clichéd. None of the characters seems to care about anything, so why should we care about them? It makes the mistake of being every bit as empty, vacuous and depressing as the world it portrays.

There’s an all-star cast including Billy Bob Thornton, Kim Basinger, Winona Ryder, Mickey Rourke and Chris Isaak, and some of the individual performances are reasonable enough. But none stand out and the film doesn’t really hang together. What works well on the page seems flat and even annoying in this jarring, unrewarding mess.

Midnight in Paris (2011)

Charming Woody Allen comedy-drama about an American screenwriter and would-be novelist named Gil Pender (Owen Wilson) on holiday in Paris with his rather superficial fiancé Inez (Rachel McAdams) and her insensitive parents. 

While Gil begins to feel distant from Inez, with whom he evidently has little in common, he finds himself transported to the Paris of the 1920s that he idealises so much. Indeed, every night he travels back in time and begins to mingle with notable Bohemians and artists including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Zelda Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Salvador Dalí and so on. Should he stay in the past, or is it just a nostalgic distraction from what’s really important in the present?

It’s remarkable how much Owen Wilson takes on the “Woody Allen-type character”. Even his speech patterns and mannerisms are Allen-esque.

If you can accept the fantasy/time travel premise, there’s plenty to enjoy. The film asks some interesting philosophical questions but never becomes too serious or ponderous. There are roles for Carla Bruni and Lea Seydoux as well as Michael Sheen, Kathy Bates and others.

The Intern (2015)

Comedy drama by Nancy Meyers, with interesting adjustments to the same formula she used for Something’s Gotta Give and It’s Complicated. 

Robert De Niro is Ben, a 70-year-old retired widow who goes to work for an internet fashion business run by the brilliant young entrepreneur Jules (Anne Hathaway). He’s smart, wise and generous, and as her unlikely intern he eases her stress – helping her become more efficient in the office. Ultimately, he helps her with every aspect of her life – from childcare to marriage guidance. 

As always with Meyers, it’s an aspirational film obsessively focused on wealthy people and how they live. There are lovingly presented interiors of huge homes and office spaces where everything is new and expensive. The sun-dappled streets of New York also look immaculate (Meyers has a distinctive lighting style). There’s not a hint of true urban living, just as there’s virtually no one who isn’t white, rich and successful. This was made for people of a certain age and with a certain value system. 

It's slightly better than those two previous films, however, because the parts played by De Niro and Hathaway are well written, nicely observed and persuasively performed. But Rene Russo is oddly underused as the masseuse that Ben falls for. And a plot thread about Jules’ mother fizzles out completely after a silly interlude in which Ben and his colleagues break into her mother’s house to delete an e-mail sent to her in error. The other male characters are all awkward and self-consciously drawn. It’s as if an old person wanted to describe what young people are like. The strangest section comes in a hotel room scene (that seems to recall Lost in Translation) when Jules cries because she doesn’t want to be buried alone and the saintly Ben says she can be buried next to him and his former wife. It’s unclear whether this is meant to be touching or funny. I found it a little creepy. 

Despite and because of all of its jarring superficiality, The Intern is fascinating. Nancy Meyers is a highly skilled filmmaker, so it’s a shame she gets distracted by fancy kitchens.

The End of the Affair (1999)

Neil Jordan’s adaptation of Graham Greene’s classic 1951 novel, which had previously been adapted by Edward Dmytryk in 1955, is by far the better of the two films. It’s rare that this is the case with remakes, but if anyone could fashion a satisfying film from this material it was Neil Jordan. 

During World War II, writer Maurice Bendrix (Ralph Fiennes) falls in love with Sarah Miles (Julianne Moore), the wife of a civil servant (Stephen Rea). But other forces keep the couple apart. Whereas the 1955 film is awkward and improbable, this remake comes alive as a psychological drama because the characters are three-dimensional and sympathetic. You can really believe that Sarah and Maurice love each other because the acting is so strong. 

There’s also an excellent performance by Ian Hart as the detective assigned to follow Sarah’s activities. 

Graham Greene’s somewhat overwrought handling of Catholic themes is softened here so that the character motivations become credible.

Two for the Money (2005)

Extremely unusual drama

Al Pacino plays a charismatic gambling addict who has built a career advising other gamblers on which way to bet on American football games. He meets Matthew McConaughey, who is so talented at selecting winners that he gets it right 80% of the time. Meanwhile, Rene Russo plays Pacino’s wife, who forms part of a complicated love triangle with the two men. 

It works on lots of levels. It’s primarily a study of the relationship between the two men. But it’s also about the psychology of gambling and addiction. 

The tone is peculiar. Parts of the film feel like a comedy without jokes. There’s also a homoerotic subtext, with McConaughey’s rippling, sweaty muscles often displayed in close proximity to the adoring Pacino. 

I found it hugely watchable because the three main performances were so strong. It seemed initially trashy but acquired a kind of depth as it progressed.

The Debt (2010)

Remake of a 2007 Israeli film called Ha-Hov. 

In 1965, three young Mossad agents attempt to capture a Nazi war criminal called Dieter Vogel. Their plans go wrong and he escapes. The agents choose to give a false account of what happened and live with that lie permanently. That is, until Vogel shows up 30 years later and their deception risks being exposed. 

This is an excellent drama that successfully tells parallel stories separated by three decades. It’s centred on Rachel, who is believably played by Jessica Chastain in the 1960s scenes and Helen Mirren in the 1990s sequences. Sam Worthington and Ciarán Hinds both play David Peretz, while Marton Csokas and Tom Wilkinson both play Stefan Gold.

Jesper Christensen is suitably creepy as the so-called “Surgeon of Birkenau”.

The Debt asks deep questions about morality, and the plot is pleasingly unpredictable. It's scary, too.

Children of Men (2006)

Co-written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón, this is a remarkable dystopian thriller adapted from a novel by P. D. James. 

It’s 2027 and the world has gone to ruin. For 18 years, humans have been infertile. When the youngest person dies, it’s a major news event. Meanwhile, Theo Faron (Clive Owen) finds himself looking after a girl (Clare-Hope Ashitey) who – miraculously – is pregnant. He attempts to transport her to safety amid anarchy and violent hostility. 

It’s a terrifying drama because it looks and feels so real. Maybe it’s the grim English locations or perhaps it’s the brilliant, deadpan script, but it’s utterly believable. Other details help – the old car that won’t start, or the pair of flip-flops Theo has to wear. The appalling treatment of immigrants doesn’t even seem like a prediction any more, after Donald Trump’s treatment of Mexicans and the UK Conservative government announcing plans to fly people off to Rwanda. 

Clive Owen – always excellent – is really at his best here. Michael Caine is superb as an ageing hippy drug dealer called Jasper. And Julianne Moore is great as Theo’s estranged wife, although I wish she was in the film for longer. 

It’s disturbing and thought-provoking, but with moments of humour too. A masterpiece.

The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

Brilliant adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel, starring Matt Damon as Tom Ripley, an inventive young man who infiltrates and ultimately ruins the lives of a couple played by Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow. 

It’s brilliantly plotted, with Ripley somehow staying on top of the absurd twists and turns of the various crises he creates. Matt Damon is superb in this part – charming enough to be credible as someone the couple instantly like and creepy enough to always present a sense of nervy threat. 

Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman are both excellent in supporting roles. 

The Italian scenery looks stunning too.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Third and final part of Peter Jackson’s (first) Tolkien trilogy. 

It’s ridiculously epic in terms of length (over three hours) and narrative scope (action across multiple kingdoms). There’s a more emotional aspect, too, making this the strongest of the three films. 

As before there’s plenty of soaring choral music and once again it’s probably best not to ask too many questions about the rules behind when, where and how the “magic” can be applied.

I would have liked a better resolution of the plot thread about Éowyn (Miranda Otto) and her love for Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), who goes off with the elf lady played by Liv Tyler, but the film was long enough already.

The most striking aspect is that it’s extremely unusual to see a film about hetrosexual male love. But if nothing else, this is a study of exactly that. The tender, selflessly generous understanding between Sam (Sean Astin) and Frodo (Elijah Wood) is explored with real sensitivity. It ends up being hugely touching, despite all my cynicism.

The Informant! (2009)

Based on the book by journalist Kurt Eichenwald and directed by Steven Soderbergh, this is a biographical comedy-drama about Mark Whitacre, the whistleblower in the lysine price-fixing conspiracy of the mid-1990s. 

The story is fascinating and Matt Damon is watchable in the lead role. What spoils it is the deliberately “cheesy” tone achieved by Soderbergh, who applies irritatingly chirpy and “comedic” music to nearly every scene. I’ve never known music to be more poorly judged or matched to a film. It only underscores that the story and situations we see unfolding aren’t particularly funny. The Informant! (why the exclamation mark?) could have been far more compelling as a straightforward biographical drama.

The same corny stylings ruined Ocean's Eleven, too, so I’ve come to conclude that this director’s work simply isn’t for me.

Green Zone (2010)

Exciting thriller loosely based on real events and directed by Paul Greengrass, with the familiar, dynamic style that makes his best films so watchable. 

It’s 2003 and Matt Damon is a US soldier in Baghdad, leading a unit in the search for Weapons of Mass Destruction. But working with a member of the CIA (Brendan Gleeson) and a journalist (Amy Ryan), he comes to realise that there aren’t any weapons to find and that the government has acted on false information. 

It’s a thriller, a war film and a conspiracy drama. 

Matt Damon – rarely less than brilliant – is as riveting as he ever was. 

The fast cuts make it especially exciting, and I like the "low-res" visuals (which were no doubt exceedingly expensive).

Ray (2004)

Excellent biopic of the popular musician, starring Jamie Foxx. 

It manages to cram in a lot of song performances as well as back story about the death of Ray's young brother and the loss of his vision as a child. There’s also a fair bit about his complicated personal life and his heroin addiction. Foxx is excellent at playing the wildly talented but conflicted character who is simultaneously worshipped and misunderstood. 

Director Taylor Hackford gets away with sometimes tricksy visuals (neon signs floating across the screen as text, and so on) by making them work in the context of the narrative.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Second part of the trilogy. More running around Middle-earth uttering fairly ludicrous statements and looking serious. 

You simply need to take it at face value that this creature/thing can out-magic that creature thing, or that this mystic power can thwart that one. 

There’s little here that wasn’t done better in the first instalment, which had a more unified narrative. Also, the segments featuring the walking, talking living trees dragged and detracted from the dynamism of the big battle scenes. 

The best thing about the series is Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn Elessar. He’s fun to watch, unlike the loutish Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) and the silly baddie with hair like Cher (Christopher Lee). 

It suffers from “mid-trilogy” problems in that it has to build on or develop themes from the previous film without the luxury of being about to resolve any of them.

Sommersby (1993)

From the back of the DVD: “People remember Jack Sommersby. They know him as a bitter, loutish man. But when Jack returns home after the Civil War, he's tender, caring and resourceful. Has the war changed him. or is the man calling himself Jack Sommersby an impostor?”

This is a brilliant drama starring Richard Gere and Jodie Foster as a married couple living in extraordinary circumstances. There are themes of identity running through it – Jack may or may not be who he says he is – and it also explores issues of race and personal relationships.

Foster and Gere are both excellent, juggling several plot threads: the story about who Jack is, the story of their marriage and the story of the town's agricultural fortunes. It’s moving and it keeps you guessing. 

James Earl Jones has gravitas as a judge, even if I can only hear him as Darth Vader.

Legends of the Fall (1994)

Family saga, domestic drama, western, war film, homage to Native American traditions and mini-history of the USA. 

Three brothers live with their father (Anthony Hopkins) in the wilderness and plains of Montana. The youngest, Samuel (Henry Thomas), is due to marry Susannah (Julia Ormond), but his would-be wife is attracted to the middle brother Tristan (Brad Pitt) and simultaneously yearned for by the older brother Alfred (Aidan Quinn). These conflicting emotions play out against the changing times (World War I, Prohibition), and – in Tristan’s case – against the Native American traditions he embraces. 

This is an unusual, intelligent film that covers a lot of narrative ground but never becomes trite or silly. 

There are excellent performances all round. It’s moving but not sentimental. Hopkins a little wasted in terms of minimal dialogue, but when he’s on he’s very good. Pitt is better than usual, too, rising to the challenge of being at the centre of the story.

Young Guns (1988)

British gentleman John Tunstall (Terence Stamp) employs several youthful cowboys to tend his cattle on the New Mexican frontier. But after Lawrence G. Murphy (Jack Palance) murders Tunstall, those young guns seek revenge...

Directed by Christopher Cain, this is a competent western that doesn’t break any new ground and doesn’t really need to. It was presumably created to show off these popular, good-looking actors (including Kiefer Sutherland and Charlie Sheen) in a group format that justified an ensemble cast.

Emilio Estevez is convincingly unpredictable as William H. Bonney a.k.a. Billy the Kid, although he just made me yearn to re-watch  Sam Peckinpah's superior Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.