My thoughts about books, writing, life and so many other things….Judy Leigh/ Elena Collins.
Love the poem, love the man, love the film. 'Howl' is a 2015 film about the landmark obscenity trial in 1957, concerning 'Howl', Allen Ginsberg's signature poem. It features excerpts from the poem as we see beat poet Ginsberg reading his work to an adoring audience of famous writers such as Neal Cassady and Jack Kerouac. …
When it came out on DVD, I bought a copy of The Brothers Grimsby because the two main actors are both highly skilled. Mark Strong is a ubiquitous performer who has excelled in so many films, from Our Friends in the North to Sherlock Holmes, from Kingsmen to Anna Karenina and RocknRolla. He has been …
Continue reading The brothers Grimsby: definitely mad for it.
I'd just been out with friends to The Star, my local pub, for a very lively evening and we came back home and chose a movie. What better than to settle down and watch 'Third Star'? We were all in the mood for a strong plot, with an actor who always delivers a fine performance, and the film has …
Continue reading Cumberbatch’s ‘Third Star’ left me startled
Like so many other people, I had always disliked James Bond films. I suppose the 007 movies have become a cultural reference point for British people: we know a bit about the actors, the villains, the traditional genre and the theme tunes. I didn't like the Connery Bond; even if we allow that it is of …
I watched 'The Program', the biopic of Lance Armstrong's exploits, which deals with his fight against cancer and his decision to take performance enhancing drugs in order to become a Tour de France winner. The film relates the story of Armstrong, from his early days of being a competitive young rider, through his battle with cancer, …
Continue reading ‘The Program’ – blood bags, syringes and sleuth.
I need to review my habit of going to the cinema and buying tickets in Row A. I choose to sit at the front, partly because I am a bit myopic and partly because if I don't sit there, someone with a big head will come and sit directly in front of me. However, Row A and the pre-film …
I decided to test the hype for myself: I went to see 'The Revenant' at the cinema last night, sitting on the front row, right in front of the Big Screen. I wasn't put off by the preamble warning about blood and gore and detailed injuries: I knew this was a film about some guys enduring …
As the plaudits and praise rightly pile up about the late and impressive actor, Alan Rickman, people will ponder his best films. Of course, the blockbusting and memorable films such as 'Die Hard', 'Harry Potter', 'Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves' and 'Truly, Madly, Deeply' will be high on most people's ratings. But I have seen …
Stuart: A Life Backwards: a review We've all had the discussion: is the film better than the book? Is the book more meaningful than the film? In the case of Alexander Masters's book, 'Stuart: A Life Backwards,' the answer is, absolutely, that both are equally impressive. Alexander Masters's book is an account of his unlikely …
'Korkoro' is one of my favourite films. Directed by Tony Gatlif, a French Algerian of Roma ethnicity, it came out in 2010 and is one of those World War Two films you may not have seen, but it is a real gem. It documents the rarely-mentioned topic of porajmos, the Romani holocaust. It is set …
Continue reading Korkoro: Come, let’s away to prison: We two alone will sing like birds i’ the cage
That quintessence of dust 