Viceroy's House (2017)

A not especially compelling historical drama, set at the time of India’s handover from Britain, and the partitioning of India and Pakistan. 

It tells that political story as well as the tale of a young couple separated along social and religious lines. 

Hugh Bonneville stars as the final Viceroy of India, Lord Dickie Mountbatten, and Gillian Anderson is excellent as his wife. 

Overall, the film disappoints. Somehow it fails to bring all of this to life. The script never sparkles and the overuse of archive footage (or at least mocked-up archive footage) has the effect of distancing you from the action. Also, it’s never clear whether the British actors are being formal and stuffy on purpose or whether they simply don’t have particularly well-written parts.

The Mercy (2017)

Directed by James Marsh and based on the true story, this is an account of the amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst, who entered the 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race. 

Crowhurst lies about his progress, giving false coordinates of his location. He needs to win the race to resolve his financial affairs, despite the fact that his state-of-the-art ship (Teignmouth Electron) isn't ready in time for the trip. He can't give up and he can't go on, and this ultimately destroys him. 

Colin Firth is entirely convincing as the troubled Crowhurst, who quickly unravels when alone at sea. Rachel Weisz is excellent as his loving but possibly naive wife.

A desperately sad drama, brilliantly done.

The Mountain Between Us (2017)

Disaster/survival story that’s also a romance. 

A surgeon (Idris Elba) and Guardian journalist (Kate Winslet) survive a plane crash in the High Uintas Wilderness and attempt to walk to safety. The pair are very different to each other but the intensity of the experience brings them together. 

It’s engaging and heartwarming, if a bit idealised. 

I liked the simplicity: just two people and a dog trying to stay alive in a vast, desolate space.

Case 39 (2009)

Genuinely chilling supernatural thriller. 

A social worker (the always likeable Renée Zellweger) applies for custody of a girl she believes is in danger from her parents. But after a spate of disturbing events it turns out that the real danger is the girl herself. 

It’s suspenseful and dramatic, with excellently handled tension throughout. Co-stars Bradley Cooper and Ian McShane add depth, although Cooper seems underused for an actor of his talents. 

Thankfully, Case 39 doesn’t turn silly at the end like so many horror-flavoured stories tend to. That said, the ending did disappoint as I imagined a much bleaker (and even darkly comic) outcome. In fact, something similar to what I’d expected can be seen as the DVD bonus alternative ending.

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

Utterly ridiculous and extremely weak retelling of the standard myth. This film made $390.5 million, but it’s difficult to see why. 

Kevin Costner is fair enough in the lead role (even if he looks like Jon Bon Jovi), but Alan Rickman is utterly woeful as the Sheriff of Nottingham. There’s a silly “pantomime” style about the way his character is written and directed. You are reminded of the second Blackadder series, although that was much funnier. The constant changing of lenses is distracting: baddies are shown in grotesque fish-eye close-ups. 

Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is merely adequate as Maid Marian, while Christian Slater is slightly odd as Will Scarlett. 

Production values are poor, with constantly changing light and an often washed-out quality to the footage. 

The famous theme song by Bryan Adams ("Everything I Do) I Do It for You") doesn’t even appear in the film, although it is used over the end credits.

Beyond the Sea (2004)

Intriguing but flawed biopic of Bobby Darin, written and directed by Kevin Spacey, who also stars as the singer. 

It’s a baffling film. The set pieces featuring the songs are expertly created and Spacey inhabits the role brilliantly. But things come slightly unstuck with the “magical realist” element of him talking to his younger self. There’s no attempt to describe his rise to fame, but there’s lots about his health problems and his ambiguous parentage. 

John Goodman and Bob Hoskins are on screen too much. Brenda Blenthyn is excellent as his mother. Kate Bosworth is underdeveloped as Darin’s wife. It’s suggested that she drinks too much but the question of alcoholism is never explored further. 

In terms of storytelling it’s disappointingly shallow and inconclusive, despite moments of brilliance.

The Weatherman (2005)

Extremely downbeat drama with flashes of comedy. 

Nicolas Cage plays a TV weatherman having problems with his dying father (Michael Caine), estranged wife (Hope Davis) and unhappy children. He’s also having a sort of midlife crisis, and members of the public who recognise him keep throwing junk food at him. 

It’s whimsical and engaging but you wish it was funnier. Michael Caine’s dodgy American accent is a distraction. Cage and Davis are both excellent, however, and the film gains gravitas as it progresses. 

It’s a deeply sad story. Cage’s character seems such a nice guy that you’re completely on his side even as everything seems to go wrong around him.

The Cutting Edge (1992)

A sort of romantic comedy, although there could have been a lot more comedy, directed by Paul Michael Glaser. 

Prima-donna figure-skater Kate (Moira Kelly) rejects a series of male partners until she gets paired-up with a former ice hockey player named Doug (D. B. Sweeney). Kate ’n’ Doug aim to compete at the Olympics, but tensions run high between them. She’s wealthy. He’s not. Inevitably, they begin to fall in love…

The low budget is evident but that cannot explain the strangeness of the locations and the script. Their coach is a “comedic” Russian (Roy Dotrice, with a dodgy accent). Kate’s father Jack (Terry O’Quinn) doesn’t have much to do and is a complete void in terms of character. 

There’s a lot of music crammed into the film and used at every opportunity. And there’s a strange “misty” quality to the ice-skating scenes – either in the name of “atmosphere” or to disguise the fact that the actors aren’t the ones doing the skating. Even the main couple seem strange. Kate, low on charm, isn’t good at the expressive scenes. And yet despite all this, there’s lots to enjoy about The Cutting Edge. It’s a simple story that gets you rooting for the young couple, however preposterous they might seem.

The Birds (1963)

Following Rebecca (1940), this was another Daphne du Maurier adaptation by Alfred Hitchcock. It’s a sort of horror story, set in Bodega Bay, California, where birds begin to attack humans for no apparent reason. 

It’s to Hitchcock’s credit that he never explains away the cause of these bizarre events. You can interpret them any number of ways. Is it a Cold War allegory? Is it about repressed sexuality? Or is it simply a horror story? 

It’s strange in other ways, too. The relationship between Melanie (Tippi Hedren) and Mitch (Rod Taylor) doesn’t follow the usual love-story progression. And the age difference between Mitch and his younger sister is also striking. The widowed mother Lydia (Jessica Tandy) is also deeply odd. Initially, I thought the natural disturbance was a reflection of her grief manifested in nature – and it's possible that this is another of the many intended interpretations. 

The ending satisfies because it’s ambiguous and doesn’t offer any easy solutions.

My Cousin Rachel (2017)

Superb historical drama adapted from the novel by Daphne du Maurier. 

A young man in Cornwall (Sam Claflin) meets his older cousin’s widow (Rachel Weisz). Initially, he suspects her of causing his cousin’s death. But he is quickly bewitched by her and – driven mad by lust – donates his estate to her. But is she to be trusted? 

It’s tightly plotted and excellently acted. Weisz judges her role perfectly, seeming to be simultaneously sinister and completely proper in everything she says and does.

The Two Faces of January (2014)

Directed by Hossein Amini, this is an absolutely stunning thriller adapted from the 1964 novel by Patricia Highsmith. 

It’s 1962. American con artist Chester MacFarland (Viggo Mortensen) and his wife Colette (Kirsten Dunst) are holidaying in Greece, when MacFarland’s criminal past catches up with him. Desperate and needing to flee, the couple team up with Rydal Keener (Oscar Isaac), an American tour guide who himself is a conman, albeit on a far smaller scale. But Rydal’s motivations are ambiguous – he has designs on Colette, while seeing Chester as a reminder of the father he recently lost. 

The exciting plot consistently ramps up the tension as the fortunes of the three become more and more entangled. 

It’s brilliantly directed: every shot is expertly framed for maximise the drama. 

The soundtrack by Alberto Iglesias is uncannily well suited to the action. 

It’s an admirably short film at 97 minutes: taut and perfectly paced.

All That Jazz (1979)

An autobiographical musical drama directed by Bob Fosse. It’s a noble failure – high on ambition, low on satisfaction. 

The “story”, what there is of one, deals with a character supposedly based on Fosse himself. Joe Gideon (Roy Scheider) is a theatre director and choreographer. He’s a womaniser, chain-smoker and drug user whose health is getting worse by the day. When he’s eventually hospitalised, the remainder of the film plays out as a sort of fantasy/dream sequence that blends scenes from his life with high-concept showbiz production numbers. These take place in an imaginary nightclub with the angel of death played by Jessica Lange. 

The problem is that Joe's character is established in the first five-to-10 minutes and is left with nowhere to go. It’s never explained how he got to be who he is, why he behaves like this, why his family put up with him, and why we should care. A brief bit of back story (Joe as a teen) is quickly abandoned, and way too much of the film is taken up with him hallucinating while in hospital. That time could have been used for character development. 

The impressionistic scenes are a spectacle, but there’s an ugly quality to the visuals that’s off-putting. Ultimately it becomes wearying.

Music and Lyrics (2007)

Enjoyable romantic comedy directed by Marc Lawrence. 

A 1980s pop idol named Alex (Hugh Grant) is tasked with writing a song for a Shakira-like pop star of the present day (Haley Bennett). To achieve this he ends up collaborating with Sophie (Drew Barrymore), the slightly eccentric woman who comes round to water his plants. 

Plot-wise it might sound silly (and indeed it is), but Hugh ’n’ Drew have real chemistry. Also, they get to reel off some genuinely funny lines. 

The film seems to lose its way a little about two thirds of the way through, with a couple of rather misjudged scenes. For example, why does Sophie take a box of biscuits to the party? It seems to be setting up a joke, but there’s no pay off. Was a vital bit of the script cut at the last minute?

Thankfully, the film recovers before the end. 

Kristen Johnston is easy to like as Rhonda, Sophie’s sister. Grant is surprisingly effective as a pop star, and his song and dance routines are all quirky and enjoyable.

The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

A merely OK war film based on the true story of the Germans and the Allies fighting for control of a strategically vital bridge over the Rhine. 

It’s interestingly shot, and the firepower all looks real enough. The problem is an average script. Also, the characters aren’t especially well-drawn. Without a focal point, it’s harder to identify with anyone. Poor storytelling means that you’re unsure how you’re meant to feel about the characters and their situation. 

Robert Vaughn plays a German general who seems troubled by his role with the Nazis. Unfortunately the actor doesn’t really bother with an accent. George Segal plays his American counterpart while Ben Gazzara is Sergeant Angelo (a.k.a. “Angel”), his likeable friend. 

There’s a stronger, grittier film buried deep inside this one, but director John Guillermin is unable to draw it out.