Joseph Walsh
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DVD Review: ‘Third Star’
★★☆☆☆ Third Star (2010) is a film which had great potential as a showcase for British talent, starring Tinker Tailor Solider Spy’s (2011) Benedict Cumberbatch, JJ Feild and Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville. This is the first feature for Hattie Dalton, better known for her award-winning BAFTA shorts and work on the critically acclaimed Notes on…
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Blu-ray Review: ‘Heavenly Creatures’
★★★★☆ This week sees the Blu-ray rerelease of Peter Jackson’s fourth New Zealand-based feature Heavenly Creatures (1994), starring Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey. The film is based upon the Hulme-Parker murder case that shocked Christchurch, New Zealand in 1954. Two young girls – Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme (Winslet) – become extremely close friends, sharing…
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Film Review: ‘Post Mortem’
★★★★☆ Post Mortem (2010) is a powerful, evocative film from Chilean director Pablo Larraín, with stunning performances from Alfredo Castro, Antonia Zegers and Amparo Noguera. This is Larraín’s second entry (they are not in chronological order) in a trilogy that deals with Chile’s political history, the first film being the fantastic Tony Manero (2008).Post Mortem…
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Venice 2011: ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’ review
★★★★★ Fresh from its premiere at the 2011 Venice Film Festival, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) is without doubt the finest film of 2011 so far. With an ensemble cast showcasing the very best of British talent – including Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds and John Hurt – and…
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Film Review: ‘The Art of Getting By’
★★★☆☆ Gavin Wiesen’s The Art of Getting By (2011) is a coming-of-age rom-com starring Freddie Highmore and Emma Roberts. The film follows George (Highmore), a teenage misanthrope who has never done a day’s work in his life. George is bright, but fails to see why he should bother with school, homework or any other form…
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DVD Review: ‘The Colour of Pomegranates’
★★★★☆ Armenian director Sergi Paradjanov’s The Colour of Pomegranates (1968), starring Sofiko Chiaureli, is not what you would call a traditionally entertaining film. A more appropriate set of terms would be, intriguing, intelligent and challenging. The film does not possess a conventional plot, although it loosely follows the life of 19th Century Armenian bard Sagat…
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Film Review: The Skin I Live In
★★★★★ From acclaimed director Pedro Almoldóvar, and starring Antonio Banderas and upcoming talent Elena Anaya comes The Skin I Live In (2011),an incredibly beautiful based on the novel Tarantula by Thierry Jonquet. The Skin I Live In perfectly blends sci-fi, horror, thriller and drama in such a deft way that audiences will only be left…
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DVD Review: ‘Winnie the Pooh’
★★★★☆ That willy-nilly, silly old bear Winnie the Pooh (2011) is back in a brand new animated adventure from Disney, this time boasting a great voice cast including Jim Cummings (voicing both Pooh and Tigger), John Cleese and a rather funky soundtrack from indie actor/singer, Zooey Deschanel.We join Pooh Bear (Cummings) and friends in the…
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Film Review: ‘The Guard’
★★★★☆ The Guard (2011), directed by John Michael McDonagh (brother of In Bruges [2008] director Martin McDonagh), is an outrageously hilarious and inappropriate comedy that allows the ever under-rated Brendan Gleeson to shine opposite a wonderfully deadpan Don Cheadle, with a supporting cast of other talent including Mark Strong and Liam Cullingham.Gleeson plays Sergeant Gerry…
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Film Review: ‘Project Nim’
★★☆☆☆ Imagine you had a brilliant story that you just had to tell. Then you thought about the best way you could make that story cinematic. Then, perhaps in a moment of madness, you decided not to bother with the second part of that thought. You would probably end up with something similar to ape…
