THE BIG SHORT (2016) I have to declare an interest - I had to sell a thriving business in 2009 as a direct result of the 2008 banking crisis. It was painful for both me and my investors, so a film about how some blokes made a fortune out of it did not appeal, but from almost the first scene I was hooked…… Director: Adam McKay Cast: Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan … [Read more...]
Review: Fury (2014)
Ideals are peaceful, history is violent. Not known for sugar-coating his subject material, director David Ayer once again delivers a slice of brutality in war film Fury. Following on from Training Day and End of Watch his attention is reverted back to the story of a US tank squad left to hold a crossroads alone against a battalion of German SS soldiers. … [Read more...]
Review: Sleepers (1996)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B004JRQ0V8][/pullquote] Following the staggering success of The Godfather films, mafia-themed, New York-set dramas became something of a sub-genre themselves in the late 1980s and 1990s. Sleepers, which owes a fair bit to Francis Ford Coppola's magnum opus is one of … [Read more...]
Review: The Tree of Life (2011)
Terrence Malick is a polarising director. Initially making a staggering debut with Badlands, his follow-up Days of Heaven lead to a 20 year break before The Thin Red Line announced his return to working behind the camera. His films split critics more regularly than any other as he seems to walk the line between pretentious, artistic, genius and self-indulgence. The Tree of … [Read more...]
Review: Inglourious Basterds (2009)
It's the 40s “ World War II to be precise “ and Nazi Germany are spreading their fascist views as far across the globe as possible, including France. Cities are infiltrated and countryside havens are terrorised by the Anti-Semites. Hitler is also unaware that his about to get his ass handed to him on a plate in the slightly fictional Inglourious Basterds. Brad Pitt heads the … [Read more...]
Review: Moneyball (2011)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B005FLAOLY][/pullquote] Like romantic comedies aimed at female audiences, sports films are one of the most clichéd and formulaic genres in cinema. During the course of the movie you usually have an underperforming team who suddenly get an inspirational new coach or … [Read more...]
Review: Fight Club (1999)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B002LE87R6][/pullquote] To write a review on Fight Club goes against the first two rules of fight club. David Fincher's seminal 1999 masterpiece is about a disillusioned white collar worker (Edward Norton) whose life takes a series of turns that lead to him meet Tyler … [Read more...]