Although I’m a “man man man man manly man”… I must confess to really liking the original “Pitch Perfect”. Tuneful, funny, quirky and with a knock-out cup routine (that took me ages to perfect). On the back of those high expectations, Pitch Perfect 2 is not Aca-awful… but it is a big disappointment. The college … Read more
(First of all, let me add that there is a minor plot-spoiler in this review, which I have left ‘til the penultimate paragraph: I point that out since I normally try to avoid spoilers in my reviews, but this was a significant (but personal) contributor to the overall enjoyment of the film). The Age of Adaline … Read more
X-rated for Sheep. Based on Thomas Hardy’s classic novel (which I much shamefully admit I have never read), Far From the Madding Crowd tells the tale of Bathsheba Everdene’s rags-to-riches rise to become a farm-owner in rural Dorset in the 1870’s, the title coming from the fact that Dorset is a long way from the … Read more
Avengers: Age of Ultron is nonsense. But it is glossy, well-packaged and star-studded nonsense. Following on from the defeat of Thor’s brother in the last film, the story revolves around Loki’s staff, an object of unspeakable power, which in a blitzkrieg of special effects is repatriated by the Avengers from a mountain fortress in a … Read more
In “Focus” Will Smith plays Nicky, a con artist from a long lineage of con artists, who takes under his wing the beautiful and talented pickpocket Jess (Margot Robbie): a great example of the sort of apprentice system that the UK Government is looking to encourage! Margot learns the more advanced tricks of the trade … Read more