The Grass is Greener - 1960 ****1/2

An amusing and typically English film. Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr are the owners of a large stately home which they periodically open to visitors for extra money. One day Robert Mitchum appears and falls in love with Kerr, who reciprocates and rushes off to London with him for a few days under the pretence of visiting friends. Meanwhile, Grant (fully aware of the situation) has the pleasure of an old friend (Jean Simmons) who drinks too much, flirts too much, and is besotted with him.
It's quite farcical but very enjoyable and easy going - must watch.

Soapdish - 1991 **

For a film that had such a good cast it was surprisingly unfunny and over the top. Sally Field is the manic, obsessive star of a daytime television soap who becomes desperate after finding out that the company want to get rid of her. Robert Downey Jnr plays one of the writers, besotted with a member of the cast, and Whoopi Goldberg is Field's close friend and scriptwriter Rose.
There is obviously a reason why this isn't exactly an Oscar winner.

A New Kind of Love - 1963 *** 1/2

When mannish Joanne Woodward is contracted to go with her boss to Paris to 'lift' some new ideas for the latest fashion season in New York, she becomes enamoured with a caddish playboy (Paul Newman) who is there to get a scope for a new newspaper article. After a misunderstanding and a drastic makeover, Newman mistakes Woodward for an elegant, foreign debutante and starts to pursue her.
Beautiful shots of Paris, and you can see Paul and Joanne's genuine love for each other in the scenes they inhabit together.

What a Carve Up - 1961 **** 1/2

Loved this film. Saw it years ago and was recently lucky enough to get it on DVD due to a birthday Gift card.
Kenneth Connor and Sid James play friends who are summoned to Kenneth's uncle's estate after they learn of his sudden death. The evening unfolds in a terrifying way when other members of the strange family appear and get bumped off in quick succession.
Very funny and enjoyable.

Gambit - 2012 *** 1/2

'Gambit' is funny. It's not hilarious, but it has enough humour to quench the audience's thirst.
Colin Firth is a master at distinguishing forged paintings, and when he tries to get wild Texan Cameron Diaz involved in his latest scheme to swindle Alan Rickman out of a stunning Monet, everything that could possibly go wrong, does.
Colin Firth is quietly amusing and I liked the plot very much, but Cameron Diaz is a bit tiring after a while.

What about Bob? - 1991 ****

'What about Bob' starts off as a rather strange, whimsical film and quickly escalates into almost screwball proportions. Bill Murray plays neurotic Bob, who decides to follow his new shrink (played brilliantly by Richard Dreyfuss) to his holiday home in Maine. Try as Dreyfuss might, he just can't get rid of Bob, even to the extent where his family start including him in everyday plans. Bob meanwhile is spreading his own sort of love around the island, with surprising results.
Worth a watch, I've wanted to see this for ages.

The Other Woman aka Love and Other Impossible Pursuits - 2009 **

Bleak and hard going. Natalie Portman plays a woman trying to get over the death of her baby as well as juggling her marriage with her husband who left his last wife for her. Portman tries unsuccessfully to get on with her husband's son from his first marriage, all the time feeling inadequate for not having the child she so desperately wants.
Nothing happy or positive here so don't watch unless you have some sort of sedation for afterwards.

Mother's Boys - 1992 *

Dreadful film with Jamie Lee Curtis as a psychotic mother who abandons her children and husband and then returns years later to create fresh havoc in their lives. Peter Gallagher is his usual sleazy self which is quite off putting but it doesn't really effect the overall hideousness of the film itself.

What Richard Did - 2012 *** 1/2

'What Richard Did' is a slow burning, tense drama. Richard is a golden boy who's life is drastically changed one night when his jealous and possessive nature over his new girlfriend causes a tragedy.
Very well acted and raw.

(NOIR) The Enforcer - 1951 ****

Incredibly powerful and well paced classic noir starring Humphrey Bogart as an intimidating law enforcer who gets himself embroiled with some dangerous men which we see through a variety of flashbacks. Very tense and very entertaining movie. One of Bogart's last.

Harlow - 1965 ***

The film itself was okay, but Carroll Baker was woefully miscast as Jean Harlow. For fans of Jean, this film does nothing for her image, missing out important chunks of her life (such as her relationship with William Powell) and portrays her as a bit of a ditzy, uneducated bimbo which she wasn't. The relationship with Marino Bello is glossed over as little more than a step-daughter being immature towards her slightly annoying stepfather, when in reality Bello was a hard and unlovable man who took all Jean's money and made it very difficult for her to mature as a human being and as a celebrity. It wasn't a bad standalone film if you want to try not to compare it to any real events but there is no way you can take this as gospel about Harlow's short and sad life.

(HORROR) Silent Hill: Revelation - 2012 *

Diabolical. The sequel to an excellent film has let me down in more ways than one. A hideous mess of terrifying, nightmarish characters who wouldn't look out of place in something Stephen King would envisage. One particular scene involving a spider-like creation is etched firmly on my memory.
Awful. Pointless.

Enough - 2002 *** 1/2

'Enough' is a variation on 'Sleeping with the Enemy.' Full of domestic and emotional abuse against one woman (Lopez), her husband will stop at nothing to alienate her from friends and family, and then harm her to stop her leaving him. She is spunky and has balls, but there are certain scenes (including learning martial arts) that don't quite fit with her personality.
I enjoyed it however.

My Favourite Wife - 1940 ****

An extremely funny but tender rom-com from Leo McCarey where Cary Grant marries a new wife before finding out that his old one isn't as dead as he thought. Irene Dunne has been shipwrecked on an island for seven years and finally comes home. Her happiness is blighted however when she finds out that Cary Grant has just married someone else after declaring her legally dead! Mix ups ensue for a veritable banquet of screwball comedy.

Jack Reacher - 2012 *

What a dire movie. Tom Cruise, your career is over!! Jack Reacher incorporates a sort of trampy Robin Hood who goes around killing the baddies to save the goodies. All very nice in a fantasy world but not so good in real life.
Just a complete mess.

Pain and Gain - 2013 1/2

Pain and Gin more like. Because the only way to get through this horrendous mess is with a heck of a lot of alcohol. I don't think I have seen such a hideously bad film in a long time. Mark Wahlberg needs to stop making films and retreat to a dark corner where no one will see him, and The Rock is a joke as an actor. Added to which, funnily enough this ISN'T a porn film, but you wouldn't know it, with shot after shot of women's breasts and arses with no point or reason whatsoever. It was doing my head on by the end. You can always tell that a film is rubbish if the director has to rely on the degradation of women to make it sell. And that was what happened here. Don't watch this. Even if you are high as a kite.

Connecting Rooms - 1970 ***

Hard going and bleak, but also tender and bittersweet, 'Connecting Rooms' merges two great stars (albeit past their prime) in the form of lonely neighbours staying in an imposing and cold boarding house. Bette Davis is the wannabe star who has great dreams for herself but whose real life is sadly different, and Michael Redgrave is a schoolteacher who has a strange secret about why he left his previous post.
The characters in the house are all quirky and individual but at the same time are united in their hunger for acceptance.

Rubberneck - 2012 ****

A weird name for this eerie thriller, but worth a watch nonetheless. A socially awkward scientist has a one night stand with one of his colleagues but cannot seem to let go, even after months have gone by. When he sees that she is taking an interest in a new member of the department, he becomes obsessed, and his internal rage gets the better of him.
A nervous and unsettling film. Not well known but good anyway.

Come September - 1971

A nice easy going film. Rock Hudson plays a wealthy playboy who retreats to his beautiful mansion in Italy for one month in September a year. During this time he meets up with his gorgeous fling Lisa then goes back to America with no ties or restrictions. This time however, he comes to Italy early, and finds that his girlfriend is on the verge of getting married, and his mansion has been transformed into a hotel. Things are about to get a lot more chaotic than he could ever imagine.
Very funny, Rock Hudson is always good for a laugh.

Who's Harry Crumb - 1989 *** 1/2

John Candy is extremely funny in small doses. Here he plays a private investigator who comes off as something a bit like Peter Sellars in the Pink Panther.
He hasn't got a clue. He's absolutely rubbish as a person who tries to be a member of authority. The funniest scene involves his car becoming attached to the car in front and being dragged along the road for miles.
Watch it.

Parasite Eve - 1997

An incredibly depressing and mournful film about scientific discoveries into deadly parasites interspersed with death and despair. The Japanese aren't exactly known for cheerful, upbeat films, but even this was taking the biscuit a bit.

The Vicious Circle - 1957 *****

Caught this by chance but blimey what a whopper of a film! John Mills plays a well respected doctor, falsely framed for the murder of a German movie star found in his flat. The beauty of this film is the amount of red herrings (a bit like an Agatha Christie) and the fact you genuinely have no idea who to trust. The ending comes as a proper shock when the culprit is revealed. I really loved this, I loved the direction, the acting and the fast paced story. Tiring at time! What an unexpected treat. This is a proper suspense film.