While You Were Sleeping (1995)

Described as a romantic comedy, this OK film directed by Jon Turteltaub isn’t really funny at all. 

Sandra Bullock stars as Lucy, a Chicago Transit Authority token collector. She has a crush on a commuter, Peter (Peter Gallagher), who she sees every morning. One day he’s pushed in front of a train and she saves his life. He goes into a coma, and in a blaze of confusion she allows Peter’s family to believe she’s his fiancé. But then she starts falling in love with Peter’s brother (Bill Pullman). 

Whenever Bullock is on screen, she shines. Pullman is also pretty good. The problem is the ensemble case of family and friends – poorly drawn characters with too much screen time. It’s just not very well written. For example, when Peter’s actual fiancé shows up you expect all sorts of amusing misunderstandings, but that event is thrown away and a potentially interesting plot thread merely fizzles out.

The Truman Show (1998)

Jim Carrey stars as Truman Burbank, a man who doesn’t realise that his whole life has been filmed for a reality TV show broadcast to millions. This show is masterminded by Christof (Ed Harris), portrayed as an almost godlike figure.

It's a fascinating idea, but the execution seems fatally flawed. In places the storytelling isn't strong enough – mainly because you can’t easily tell what’s meant to be TV footage and what is us seeing what’s really going on. 

The plot only works at all if you don't ask any questions of it. For example, why does Carrey’s character perform as though he’s in a TV show when he doesn’t know he is? And how does the acting role actually work for his wife (Laura Linney), who is on duty 24 hours a day, 365 days per year?

Dead of Night (1945)

Extremely unusual Ealing Studios curio.

It features a series of short stories framed within one wider narrative. Each of these tales deals with some kind of supernatural occurrence. The best of these, by some distance, is the one featuring Michael Redgrave as a ventriloquist whose dummy takes on a life of its own. It's chilling and unnerving, unlike the other segments, which seem a little too mannered and silly to really work – with hammy acting that doesn't help. There's also a "comical" story about a deceased golfer who returns to haunt his rival.

You have to admire the ambition of this construction, even if not all of it works.

Say Anything... (1989)

The first film directed by Cameron Crowe is a highly enjoyable and satisfying romantic comedy starring a very young John Cusack.  

Following high school graduation, Lloyd pursues Diane (Ione Skye), who is cleverer and more “successful” than him. She lives with her pushy father (John Mahoney, of Frasier fame), who has strong ideas about her future. 

As a 1980s teen saga, it’s in the general vein of the films by John Hughes. But there’s far more nuance and sophistication here, with Crowe developing the father character and his complex relationship with his daughter. (In Hughes’ films, adults are merely a one-dimensional “enemy”.)

Cusack and Skye both have a lot of charm and the scenes with the two of them working out their feelings for one another are sweet and endearing. Mahoney comes across weirdly, but we later learn why that is.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

Extremely entertaining crime thriller directed by Joseph Sargent and adapted from the 1973 novel by Morton Freedgood.

A New York subway train is hijacked by a team of four men in hat and moustache disguises. They take 17 passengers hostage and threaten to kill them unless they are paid $1 million within an hour. 

Walter Matthau stars as the Transit Police lieutenant responsible for saving the victims and resolving the crisis. Robert Shaw plays "Mr. Blue", who is one of the deadly crooks.

It’s tense and exciting with plenty of moments of welcome humour. That said, there are also some very dodgy racist jokes.