Category Archives: Movie Reviews

The Whistleblower Movie Review

This fictionalised account of the real-life story of ex-Nebraskan cop Kathryn Bolkovac’s fight against sex trafficking during a stint in 1999 as a UN peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia falls far short of realising its dramatic potential.

One of the problems is that the filmmakers seem intent on educating the audience on the horrors of the sex trade. Who needs convincing that this appalling trade is a) a reality and b) abhorrent? Continue reading The Whistleblower Movie Review

Submarine Movie Review

This dark-toned semi-comedic Welsh coming-of-age movie was adapted from a novel by Joe Dunthorne. It seemed to me that the transition from literature to cinema was less than seamless. There is a helluva lot of voiceover from the lead character, for example – this sort of wordiness is never ideal in an essentially visual medium. However, this is but a minor gripe amongst a whole lotta major ones. Continue reading Submarine Movie Review

Beginners Movie Review

When hotshot ad and rock video directors cross over to feature movie making, the results are often underwhelming. This effort of Mike Mills is worse than that. It’s tedious indie drivel.

I hasten to add that my use of the word ‘indie’ is not in itself derogatory. I don’t buy into that indie vs mainstream stuff. Quality is my concern, not fashion and status-charged generic differentiations. Thing is, there is such a pong of self-conscious indie style about this movie – especially the writing – that it can’t go unmentioned. And substance? MIA. That’s the crucial point here. Continue reading Beginners Movie Review