In Bruges (2008)

Directed and written by Martin McDonagh, this is a drama that also functions as a black comedy and a tense thriller. 

Two hitmen (Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell) travel to Bruges to await instructions for their next job from their boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes). While passing the time as would-be tourists, they try to come to terms with who they are and what they do for a living – until a call from Harry changes everything. 

It’s brilliantly written – a superb character study with some very funny lines. It’s also extremely sad, as we see the pair wrestling with their consciences and questioning whether they are entitled to strive for a better kind of life.

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.

The Constant Gardener (2005)

Thriller adapted from the John Le Carre novel, with an emotional dimension you wouldn’t usually expect from that genre. 

Ralph Fiennes plays Justin Quayle, a mild-mannered diplomat whose Amnesty International activist wife (Rachel Weisz) is murdered. In investigating her death he learns that she was killed for what she has discovered about the British government’s collaboration with pharmaceutical companies in Africa.

The acting is tremendous all round, and Fiennes and Weisz are completely believable. The former’s sense of loss is unbearable to behold. Bill Nighy plays Sir Bernard Pellegrin at the Foreign Office and Pete Postlethwaite plays the creator of a deadly drug. 

It’s beautifully shot, with the beauty of the African landscapes contrasting against the ugly goings on perpetuated by corporate greed. 

It’s tensely dramatic and desperately sad, but also achingly romantic. That’s a lot to weave together, but director Fernando Meirelles pulls it off.

No Time to Die (2021)

Famously much-delayed by the Coronavirus pandemic, the 25th James Bond film finally hit cinemas in September 2021 – five years after work on it first began. There was a lot of additional baggage because we knew in advance that it would be the final episode starring Daniel Craig. With plenty of threads to tie up, there was a lot it had to achieve to be a truly satisfying finale. Unfortunately, despite plenty of striking moments, it doesn’t quite deliver. 

On the downside there’s a somewhat muddled plot that lacks the graceful coherence of the storylines in Skyfall and Spectre. Some of the gimmicks are tired, too: a secret base on a remote island really wasn’t very original. And while it’s nice to see the familiar gang back together – with welcome returns for Jeffrey Wright (as Felix), Ralph Fiennes (M), Ben Whishaw (Q) and Rory Kinnear (Tanner), all of whom suddenly look a lot older – it’s odd that the roles of Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) and Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) seem to have been minimised. Other limitations include a silly Russian scientist played by David Dencik and a hammy main villain played by Rami Malek. The latter was unconvincing as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody and is just as unconvincing here – especially when delivering his ponderous speeches. The whole film seems a little underwritten, and even a rival “00” agent (Lashana Lynch as Nomi) doesn’t quite come to life as a character. 

On the plus side, the action sequences are vivid and exciting, and Hans Zimmer’s musical score maximises the drama. Daniel Craig has a magnetic charm, if a little less sparkle than usual. And Léa Seydoux is fully believable as Bond’s on/off lover Madeleine Swann. The introduction of a child character (Madeleine’s daughter) also adds a new dimension to the series. The most entertaining section features an evening-gowned Cuban agent named Paloma (Ana de Armas), who briefly assists Bond with martial-arts kicks and a cheery energy that’s otherwise lacking in a rather dour 163 minutes. 

The shock ending – really not what I expected – raises some big questions about the future of the franchise. I wish the film hadn’t concluded the way it does, but we are assured that somehow or other James Bond will return.

The Reader (2008)

Intriguing and moving drama. In Berlin in 1958, 15-year-old Michael (David Kross) begins a brief, passionate love affair with 36-year-old tram conductor Hanna (Kate Winslet) that will come to haunt his entire life. Fast-forwarding to 1966, Michael is now a law student who gets to observe a trial of female SS guards who allowed 300 Jewish women to burn to death while locked in a church. He is horrified to see that Hanna is one of the accused women.

The film asks questions about morality and identity. One of the law students suggests that everyone in Germany is complicit in these crimes, and not just those in the court, but The Reader doesn’t try to offer any simplistic answers.

With his usual skill and elegance, Ralph Fiennes plays the older Michael. Bruno Ganz (who was Hitler in Downfall) plays a Holocaust survivor who teaches law), while Alexandra Maria Lara (Hitler's secretary in Downfall) gives evidence in court.

Directed by Stephen Daldry and written by David Hare, it’s a hugely powerful story that gains gravitas as it speeds through the decades towards the present.

Cemetery Junction (2010)

Written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, this film has all the pathos, humour and drama that made The Office so special. The romance story at its heart is also very similar to that of Tim and Dawn in that show – even down to the idea of a girl wanting to pursue a creative urge (painting/photography) despite a heartless boyfriend standing in her way.

The film tells the story of three working-class friends (Christian Cooke, Tom Hughes and Jack Doolan) coming of age in Cemetery Junction, Reading, in 1973. Each of them struggles with the limits imposed by a backward-looking English community. When one of them starts to think outside of the small-town confines, he finds his family and colleagues are less than open-minded about his ambitions.

Felicity Jones plays Julie, a glamorous photographer who wants to travel and live a more fulfilling life than the one her nasty, selfish father (Ralph Fiennes) and boyfriend (Matthew Goode) have planned for her. Ricky Gervais plays a racist, unpleasant father bickering with his family, while Steve Merchant has only a brief walk-on cameo.

The period detail is well-observed, although sometimes things look a little too clean and bright.

There’s an unbeatable soundtrack (David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Roxy Music, T.Rex – even Elton John sounds good in this context) and a powerful sense of yearning.  Plenty of laughs, too, amid some serious points about class and social aspirations.

Trivia: Emily Watson plays Felicity Jones’ mother, just as she did in the Stephen Hawkins biopic The Theory of Everything (2014).

A Bigger Splash (2015)

Superb drama in which Tilda Swinton plays a pop star recovering from a throat operation in seclusion on an Italian island. Matthias Schoenaerts is her partner, a recovered alcoholic who survived a suicide attempt. Their lives are turned upside down again when the singer's former lover and promoter (Ralph Fiennes) arrives and moves in, bringing with him a girl who may or may not be his 22-year-old daughter (Dakota Johnson). Tensions soon develop, with far-reaching consequences for all four of them.

Ralph Fiennes’ performance is astonishing. Incredibly charismatic and bursting with energy in every frame, he absolutely nails it and never lets up. There’s a perfect scene in which he dances to “Emotional Rescue” by the Rolling Stones.

The film is beautifully and strikingly shot, with an unusual visual flair. Director Luca Guadagnino knows exactly what to linger on, when and for how long. It’s full of nuance. The diverse music is remarkable, too, throwing you into unexpected moods.

My only criticism is that I was never convinced by Tilda Swinton as a rock star. She doesn’t look right and she doesn’t project the kind of magnetism you would expect. You do see her in flashback, and there’s even a moment when she’s seen on stage, but you never learn what made her famous. The fact that she can only speak in rasping whispers, owing to her recent surgery, adds to the problem. She has little to project beyond contorted facial expressions. She’s certainly not a Chrissie Hynde. She’s not even an Annie Lennox.

The Hurt Locker (2008)

Jeremy Renner stars in an extremely suspenseful tale of bomb disposal set during the Iraq War in 2004. Unlike his predecessor, he recklessly ignores the protocols of his role and puts his colleagues in even greater danger. But he appears to be a genius at his work, functioning under the most intense pressures imaginable.

I like the way the film features a couple of big-name stars (Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes), only for them to be quickly done away with. I certainly wasn’t expecting that.

Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty are both excellent as the other parts of the bomb-disposal unit. Seeing their fear and panic close-up adds to the hair-raising spectacle.

As the film unfolds it increasingly takes on deeper, more profound questions about life and death. Perhaps wisely, director Kathryn Bigelow refrains from passing moral judgements and lets the actions speak for themselves. That said, there’s an inevitable US bias to the storytelling.

An incredibly gripping film that won’t easily be forgotten.

Skyfall (2012)

The third Daniel Craig Bond film is not only his best, but also the best Bond film overall. Directed by Sam Mendes, it’s pretty much perfect. The witty and dry dialogue is so much stronger than in previous episodes. And it’s visually stunning. The opening sequence (before the mind-bending titles over the Adele song) is a stunning piece of extended action in Istanbul involving a car chase through a crowded market, a shoot-out, a motorbike chase over rooftops, an absurd episode involving an excavator, a fight on the roof of a moving train, and, most dramatically, Bond being shot “dead”.

I’ve heard fans say that this film humanises Bond too much, with his family backstory and the “psychological” dimension, but for me that only makes it better. There’s even the first hint of homoeroticism in a Bond film. The villain teases him, only for 007 to counter “What makes you think this is my first time?”

It’s ideally cast, introducing the new Q (Ben Whishaw) and Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) plus the new Chairman of Intelligence (Ralph Fiennes) and an impressively nasty villain called Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem). Rory Kinnear resumes his role as Bill Tanner, getting the part just right. And Judi Dench is wonderful as M. When she starts reading a poem by Tennyson as Bond runs through the London streets to save her (the film is also a British tourism brochure), it’s deeply stirring stuff.

Spectre (2015)

The opening sequence in Mexico City is one of the most exciting and visually striking you will ever see, with a glorious long, uninterrupted take without edits that shows James Bond prowling among the masked people in the Day of the Dead parade, entering a hotel lobby with his girlfriend, taking the lift to another floor, entering his room, leaving the room (and the girl) and walking along the top edge of the building to assassinate a terrorist. This flows into a scene with collapsing buildings and a dizzying helicopter fight. And all this before the titles sequence.

As in Skyfall, which this is nearly the equal of, there’s dry humour and the character has been refined to a perfect crystalisation of what Bond is about. Daniel Craig – in his fourth appearance in the role – absolutely nails it.

It’s visually stunning and the pacing is expertly handled. The villain (Christoph Waltz as Blofeld) is convincingly creepy and the Bond girl (Léa Seydoux as Dr. Madeleine Swann) is refreshingly unimpressed by 007 – for a while, anyway, until she inevitably falls for him.

Aside from Bond’s invincibility, the only thing that doesn’t ring true is the big meeting of SPECTRE agents. Would such a top-secret organisation really put all of its members in one room?

Really looking forward to the follow-up.

Coriolanus (2011)

Directed by and starring Ralph Fiennes, this one alienated me at first and I hated it for about 45 minutes. Set in modern Rome (although it doesn’t look like Rome), but with Shakespearean language, it really seemed to jar. I also didn’t like the brutal, bloody violence or the visuals in general, and I found Vanessa Redgrave hammy and overwrought. I don’t have an issue with modernising Shakespeare (machine guns, mobile phones), but it seemed to lack context: the where, when and why of the action.

The film improved as it went on. Fiennes is always watchable. And the ongoing thread of depicting action through TV news footage was a nice touch. There was even the neat joke of Jon Snow presenting news reports in Shakespearean English.

The themes of war, loyalty, pride and politics and so on are as relevant as they ever were, but I still wish it had been set in Ancient Rome. Even better would have been to see Fiennes performing it on stage.