A dystopian world, around six hundred years into the future. Dr Dyson Ido (Christoph Waltz) is a mechanical engineer and scavenger who finds the processing core of an unnamed cyborg, who he rebuilds and subsequently names Alita (Rosa Salazar). Beneath the innocent exterior lurks the heart of a fighter, with the capacity to do battle…
Isn’t It Romantic (2019)
The romantic comedy has a long and storied history, and has its roots from the very beginning of cinema, spanning the course from the silent era to the period of screwball comedies, right until the present day. These films are amongst the most popular, but they are also the most predictable, and are often material…
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019)
In 2014, Phil Lord and Chris Miller did something extraordinary – they took perhaps the most absurd premise in contemporary cinema, namely focusing an entire feature-length film on the popular construction toy Lego, and made one of the finest animated films of the current generation. The Lego Movie was a bona fide cultural phenomenon, and…
The Best Films of 2018
2018 was an exceptional year for cinema – I feel like I say this about every year, but I genuinely believe the standard of cinema is only increasing year after year, with more respect being given to independent filmmaking, a seismic shift towards inclusivity and a broader appeal being found in intelligent, well-made cinema, which…
Keep the Aspidistra Flying (1997)
When one thinks of George Orwell, it is natural to relate his career to two novels – Nineteen Eighty-Four and Animal Farm. These works are obviously towering literary achievements, but also powerful works of political commentary which are beginning to look like certain world leaders are using them as manuals. One of his lesser-known, but…
Holiday (1938)
Throughout film history, there are certain combinations that undoubtedly prove to be recipes for success – one of them is the combination of the names George Cukor, Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Normally, one would think of the timeless classic The Philadelphia Story, but in the case of this review, we’re considering the somewhat less…
Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
…well. I don’t know where to start. There have not been many films that have elicited such an extreme reaction in me as Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom. First, some context – a friend and I have an annual Valentine’s Day tradition where we watch the most disturbing, controversial and transgressive films we…
At Eternity’s Gate (2018)
The best way to start this review is with a bit of a personal anecdote. I visited New York City in 2017, and one of the destinations I was determined to go to was the Museum of Modern Art, the home to the works of many artists I have admired for years. Several of my…
Vice (2018)
2018 was an amazing year for film – I feel like I mention this every year, and perhaps my expectations are just getting lower, or films are just getting better (perhaps through the increasing prestige being attached to independent films, which are slowly growing in wider viewership through different distribution models). My list of the…
The Favourite (2018)
England in the 18th century – an era filled to the brim with stately manors and state-like manners, enormous, overflowing dresses and an abundance of appearance-altering cosmetics, allowing people to constantly reinvent themselves every morning, especially those in the upper-class who found their homes in the drawing halls and ballrooms of the wealthiest and most…
The Postmodern Pelican 