The Score (2001)

Nick Wells (De Niro) is a jazz club owner who exists in an almost exclusive mood-lighting environment when indoors. In addition to running his club (which he hardly does) he's a safe-cracking thief, a talent that he puts to use only if the situation satisfies his calculated risk assessment. After decades of such risk he's on the verge of giving up. But there's one final job to be done, the biggest 'score' of his life, which naturally comes with the biggest risk.
It's the type of film that I enjoyed, because it's well-made and the performances of the actors are all commendable, but have no desire to ever watch again. As a one-time thing it passed the hours just fine. It's a slow-boil, purposefully holding back the pace until the last half hour.

3 night shifts out of 5

Inserts (1975)

It's somewhat ironic that Dir. John Byrum's first feature was for twenty-one years lumbered with an X rating, considering it's a black comedy/satire/direct commentary on the movie business, the people that work in it, and the people that consume its output. At least, I think that's what it's about. It's not explicit in meaning, but it is explicit in other ways, hence the rating for sexual content.
Richard Dreyfuss plays a 1930s film-maker who's left the Hollywood system. Unable to deal with the 'talkies', he now spends his time shooting sleazy silent porn movies in his apartment, a location that the camera never leaves.
With just five characters, including Veronica Cartwright, who I'm a big fan of, it's like a stage play, in which the seemingly washed-up pornographer's interactions with the others reveals the naked truth about himself.

3 genre edicts out of 5

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

Fourth-wall breaking Ferris is a confidently cocky role model for liars and phonies. He decides to take a day off school, but needs others to share in his fun lest his calculated brilliance go unnoticed. Enter the reluctant Cameron (Alan Ruck), the film's best character. On the surface Ferris is well-presented, but surface is all he is, whereas Cameron has depth and learns from his experiences. The third member of the group is Ferris' girlfriend (Mia Sara), whose role is mostly to smile wryly or sympathetically in reaction shots.
The determined school Principal (Jeffrey Jones), an authority figure that's mocked not just by students but by his own ill-considered actions, serves as a counterpoint to Bueller's carefree cleverness, but he's borderline slapstick. All in all, FB is an entertaining but much overrated John Hughes flick.

3 close calls out of

Hawk the Slayer (1980)

A cheesy but fondly remembered by many (including yours truly) Sword + Sorcery flick that borrows plot from many sources, including Tolkien, the Western genre, and a well-known sci-fi film that I once again refuse to name.
John Terry is Hawk, the leading man with an impractically-balanced magic sword, but the script doesn't push him to the fore like you'd expect.
Hawk's face-ache evil sibling, Voltan - The Dark One, is actor Jack Palance; he hams it up, but I get the feeling he's slightly embarrassed to be there.
Much of it appears to have been filmed within a few hundred square feet of English forest. I'm sure I saw the same tree multiple times.
Harry Robertson's bitchin' soundtrack is like hearing a 1970s folk band playing snippets of Jeff Wayne and Ennio Morricone, with pastoral interludes.
It's a strange and difficult film to defend, but I'm absolutely a fan of it.

3 [mystical noises] out of 5

Ip Man 3 (2016)

Of the Donnie films that I've seen to date, the role of Ip is the best he's been. His version of the Wing Chun master is a kind soul with a fierce conviction, and the actor's real-world ego is completely absent from the performance.
Ip's two biggest failings are not recognising that his excessive modesty, though admirable in intent, can be misconstrued as sanctimonious; and that his singular focus, a trait that's good for martial arts is sometimes bad for human relationships. An exploration of both those things are at the heart of the film.
As if in response to the previous entry, Ip's wife and son have an active role to play in the narrative; the former bringing a VERY welcome emotional layering. The most interesting of the antagonists (Zhang Jin) is the kind that struggles with his own nature; i.e. he evokes both sympathy and ire in a viewer. And finally, thankfully, the combat stays on the favourable side of realistic.

4 nourishing ideals out of 5

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Kubrick's most controversial film explores two of the most common types of violence: physical and psychological. Which of the two is most damaging in its implication is debatable, but in order to get the message across the execution of story is by turns distressing, repellent, offensive and oddly pantomime.
The language used by Alex (Malcolm McDowell), the Nadsat slang, as it was in Anthony Burgess' original novel (1962), is a peculiar mix of childish wordplay and poetic structuring that's almost Shakespearean at times.
Using Beethoven, with its cultured/civilised associations, as a soundtrack to violence provides additional contrast in support of the larger societal ones.
It's a challenging film, in all respects, but an immensely powerful one.

5 victims of the modern age out of 5

Mannequin (1987)

A 1980s spin on the myth of Pygmalion, about a sculptor who fell in love with one of his own statues. The love-struck fool in this instance is aspiring artist (i.e. hopeful dreamer) Jonathan Switcher (Andrew McCarthy). His creation, the titular dummy, is Emmy (Kim Cattrall), without whom the movie would be a dead loss rom-com. Emmy becomes Switcher's saviour and muse.
A 'classic 80's movie' claims the box art, twice in case we somehow miss the sizeable one on the front. Opinions will differ on whether or not it deserves the tag, but it reminded me of at least one thing that I do love about movies of the era: screen wipes. I miss screen wipes. But pastel pinks I don't miss.

2 leggy dolls out of 5

Appleseed Alpha (2014)

Deunan and her cyborg buddy Briareos survive as hired-guns in a post-apocalyptic world. Deunan hopes that one day they will both reach the safety of Olympus, but Briarios isn't convinced that the place exists.
Alpha is an alternate version of events, but given that it's essentially set before the first of Aramaki's Appleseed films, I'd hoped for a return to the earlier animation style, but it's the same as was used in its sequel. Boo!
It's a story of hope, which is something that it reminds us of too often; perhaps they knew that some viewers would be falling asleep partway through? There's at least one new character that's recognisably Shirow in essence, but it was all too flat and lifeless to keep my attention. It'd be more than serviceable as video game FMV, but as a movie... nope. Not even close.

1½ post-war cleanups out of 5

Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998)

An alternative telling of the Cinderella story, supposing that a sixteenth century historical 'truth' was inspiration for the well-known tale.
Drew Barrymore is the young maiden who's mistreated by her wicked stepmom and forced into servitude in her own home. When distanced from her predicament she's more intelligent, outspoken and inspirational than the wispy female that we often get in modern fairy tale versions.
It gives more backstory to the "French" Prince, although he's still pretty bland most of the time. Anjelica Huston is well-cast as the conniving and jealous stepmom (I mean that in the most complimentary way), but my personal favourite character was the middle sister, Jacqueline (Melanie Lynskey).

3 everyday rusties out of 5

After.Life (2009)

Schoolteacher Anna Taylor (Christina Ricci) and her partner (Justin Long) are failing to connect on an emotional level, as if some kind of unseen veil exists between them, a metaphorical screen that gets replaced by a white sheet on Eliot Deacon's (Liam Neeson) funeral home table.
I felt a similar kind of disconnect to the story; the emotional thread of the film, even with its attempts to take an indirect route, was unable to fully penetrate the muddled presentation. In its desire to be both a psychological thriller and a sophisticated chiller it unfortunately loses sight of both goals. And while at various stages I loved the colours used, the lighting, framing, and even the recurring blood motif, the balance of sombre and sinister never felt quite right, as if each one was being forced into corners that were in different buildings. But kudos to Ricci for doing what was required during the attempt.

2½ appropriate flowers out of 5