House Party - 1991 ** 1/2

The first 'House Party' was pretty dire, so what possessed me to watch the second one? I have no idea. Contrary to reviews I preferred this one. It was funnier despite the fact it went way off track regarding the original story. Still, there are funnier films out there, and even though Whoopi Goldberg appeared briefly at the beginning it didn't raise the tone of the film much more.

(HORROR) The Amityville Haunting - 2011 **

Another chaotic mess by the affably named 'Asylum' film company. Basing itself around lost footage found of a family's slow descent into madness and mania in the by now infamous 'Ocean Drive' house that was home to the Amityville killings. Of course it wasn't filmed in the real house, it looked nothing like it in fact, the actors were painful, especially the ex-army father who insists on everyone calling him 'sir' and the aggravating boy who wanders around sticking his video camera in everyone's face and repeating the same questions over and over again,
It's a horrendous movie.

Detention - 2011 ***

It's getting three stars for total originality because iv never seen anything like this before. It's slasher/comedy/sci fi/ all mixed together, and you are never quite sure which scene will inhabit which. It's a very dry almost black comedy, not a laugh out loud one, its or not scary enough to be a slasher. It's very weird. I can't say I loved it, but hats off to the director for manoeuvring such a fresh idea.

(HORROR) The Hearse - 1980 *

Another awful film. I was hoping to see one of my old silver screen favourites Joseph Cotten in an intelligent and dramatic part, but he just came across as an old fuddy duddy. The film itself is laughable. A woman named Jane moves to her aunt's house that was left to her for the summer. She begins to experience weird feelings in the house, and is troubled by sightings of a herse at night time on the road.
The locals brush her off and disregard her as crazy, but are still hesitant to talk about the house.
Sounds good, but really isn't. Give it a miss.

(HORROR) Solstice - 2008 **

If you are aware that this was by the directors of the 'Blair Witch Project' you can't help but be slightly put off initially. But don't let that sway your mind. Use instead the fact that this film is ridiculously bad all on its own. The characters are so transparent that it makes you wince, and the whole 'lets all celebrate the solstice together by getting hammered and groping each other' wears thin. This is not a good film.

Behind Office Doors - 1931 **

Despite starting well, this pre-Hays film sadly lagged behind, not to mention the awful sound and picture quality that was intensely distracting.
Mary Astor alone couldn't save this film, although she does look lovely as a post-1920s flapper.

(HORROR) Paranormal Calamity - 2010 *

Because of my strange obsessive need to watch every spoof film that has ever been made it fell upon me to watch this.
It was utterly horrific. Unfunny, boring and the story was such a joke I just kept staring at the screen in disbelief. Lots of swearing for no reason and lots of weird sec scenes.
DO NOT WATCH THIS.

St Martin's Lane - 1938

I didn't like this at all. I didn't like Vivien Leigh's character who cared about no one at all and I didn't like Charles Laughton's character who had an unhealthy interest in her. She was 18 and he must've been in his mid to late 40s.
All set around St Martin's Lane in London and starring Leigh as a professional pickpocket and Laughton as a busker who takes pity on her when he spots her stealing someone's wallet.
I didn't like the over the top acting and even Rex Harrison couldn't save the day.

The Children's Hour - 1961 **1/2

This was a very depressing film. Hepburn and MacLaine play two schoolteachers who come under devastating scrutiny after a pupil starts up a rumour that the pair are lovers. This results in a complete loss of their livelihood and their pupils being taken away.
It is a bleak story of what happens when rumours are given fuel and the sorts of things slander can do to a person. Very sad. And based on a true story.

Half Baked - 1998 ***

Quite a funny film actually as stoner movies go. Dave Chappelle and his friends play high as a kite stoners who have to try and get their friend out of jail by selling lots of weed. It's a stupid film but its a laugh anyway, certainly when you don't want to put too much effort into a movie.

Evelyn Prentice - 1934 **

One of Powell and Loy's earliest pairings, slightly more dramatic than 'The Thin Man' and with barely any comedy.
William Powell plays a defence attorney who, though devoted to his family is rather neglectful of his wife romantically. Because of this, she embarks on an affair with a violent womaniser, ending her in court. It is then up to her husband to defend her.
A good drama, but I prefer this couple in the lighthearted movies.

Standing Room Only - 1944 ***

An enjoyable little rom-com starring the delightful Paulette Goddard who plays the quirky and ditzy Jane.
Lee Stevens takes his secretary to Washington but is annoyed when Jane cancels their hotel bookings without telling him thinking that they aren't adequate.
Finding no other rooms available in the whole city, the pair take posts as maid and butler in a house but soon find the jobs not exactly how they imagined.
A nice movie, nothing special but worth a watch all the same.

A Day at the Races - 1937 ****

Ridiculously funny offering from the Marx Brothers. Groucho takes over a sanitarium under the pretence of being a doctor when in fact he is simply a vet.
Enter some hilarious scenes that actually made me scream with laughter and Chico and Harpo sprinkle their own special magic on every second of their screen time.

(HORROR) Texas Chainsaw - 2013 ***

 

Overlooking the ridiculous continuity of a film that casts a girl in her early 20s as a 40 year old woman (whose friends include other 20 something model type stunners) this wasn't a bad slasher. I liked the fact that the end of the original is merged into the beginning of this so that we have a continuous flow. I'm not sure about the whole 'anti-hero' stance that Leatherface now holds as a horror creation, but I still found the film gruesome, creepy and horrific, just what you want from a scary movie.

(HORROR) The Haunting of Helena - 2013 **

A not too original horror based on the twisted version of the evil tooth fairy. A young girl begins to have visions of the tooth fairy coming to kill her after she bumps her head in a car crash. Her mother soon begins to experience the tooth fairy as well, and finds out that she is the entity of the wife of a terrifying man who had all her teeth pulled out by him for smiling at another man.
It's pretty disgusting, even more so for me as I have just had two teeth pulled out and spent over 6 months with agonising toothache!

Leon: The Professional - 1994 *****

Oh my goodness I loved this film. One I never thought I would be able to get round to seeing. I also thought it would be incredibly boring but by golly was it anything but.
After her family are slaughtered by a drug baron and his cronies, Mathilda takes shelter in the only other place she knows, that of a quiet man who lives in the apartment opposite her own. What she doesn't know is that he happens to be a professional hitman named Leon who has his own ideas about his privacy and taking on the responsibility of a 12 year old girl.
The whole thing is superbly acted, with highlighted performances from Gary Oldman (as the sadistically manic drug lord) and Natalie Portman as Mathilda.
Wonderful. 5 star. Watch it now.

Man's Favourite Sport? - 1964 *****

Maybe my new favourite film? I cannot explain how much I loved this movie.
Rock Hudson plays a charming employee who works at a fishing store, knows everything about fishing, and has even written a book on the subject much to the joy of his manager. There is just one problem. He has never actually fished before in his whole life.
Enter Paula Prentiss, who is desperately keen to get him to take in and win the annual fishing tournament.
Hilarity ensues as Prentiss takes over Hudson's life, giving him six days to get up to scratch on his fishing techniques so that he can enter.
Apparently Howard Hawks did this film as a homage to one his best known productions 'Bringing up Baby' (one of my other favourite movies) and you can tell that some scenes (including the ripped dress) are basically lifted from this.
Rock Hudson is wonderful. And the music is of course by Henry Mancini. A must see.

(HORROR) Slumber Party Massacre 2 - 1987 ***

Yes, the film really is as cheesy as the poster above makes out. It starts off well, but soon collapses into a mess.
A weekend away at a friend's condo soon goes downhill for Courtney as she begins to dream about her sister who is locked away in a mental institution warning her of a killer on the loose who is after her. It's a bit of a jumble and not particularly well directed.

(HORROR) Would you Rather - 2012 ****

'Would you Rather' is a film that seems to have slipped under the radar when it comes to up and coming horror movies.
It is definitely worth a watch though.
It's one of those films that makes you hurt all over, a nightmare of epic proportions.
Iris accepts an invitation to a strange dinner party, on the provision that she takes part in a game of "would you rather". If she wins the game she will be given the money that is desperately needed to help her sick brother.
Once she realises the sort of game she and the other contestants are playing she wants out fast, but there is only one way she is allowed to leave, with a bullet in her head.
Films like these in my opinion are usually the strongest contenders for horror, they prey on any normal human beings worst fears and choices and present them to us on a massive screen where we cannot escape.
Watch this.

(HORROR) Silent Night, Deadly Night - 1984 *** 1/2

Oh yes, it was cheesy, it was camp, but I was scared!
After witnessing his parents brutal slaying by a maniac in a Santa costume, a young boy named Billy is sent to an orphanage. Here, he grows to intensely dislike the Mother Superior, and relishes the chance to get out once he turns 18 and earn some money.
By chance, he gets a job in a local toy factory and does very well, even developing feelings for one of the girls who works there. However it all changes when, at the last minute, his boss asks him to step in and cover the shop's Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, which brings back all the horror Billy experienced years ago. He flips, and begins a massacre of his own.
I liked it, I couldn't stop watching it, and I'd like to see the sequel.

Grown Ups - 2010 **

In 'anticipation' of the new Grown Ups 2 movie, I thought I should watch the first one. Oh no no no, what a mistake. This was awful! Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, I command you to step away from Kevin James and David Spade this instant or your acting careers will be flushed down the toilet.
A group of old school friends mourning the death of their favourite coach, decide to spend a weekend together, honouring him, getting drunk, mucking around, being immature, disrespecting their wives and injuring each other in the name of 'masculinity.' It was boring, unfunny, and I barely raised a smile. It's not a nice 'feel good' film, more a warning to all those who think they are 'missing out' on being young and foolish, when in fact, they are just sad and pathetic. *sigh*

The Men Who Stare at Goats - 2009 **1/2

Oh er, what an odd film. Based on a true story? Really? Ewan McGregor plays a reporter who meets oddball George Clooney in a bar and finds out that he is claiming to be a former member of some sort of Illuminati New Earth Army who use paranormal powers to complete their missions whilst hoping to stop war full stop as well. He drops everything and goes along for the ride without having a clue what he is getting himself in to. So weird. I don't get it, and I didn't really like it either.

(HORROR) Scary Movie 5 - 2013 ***

I am a fan of the Scary Movie films. I know they are over the top and downright stupid in some parts but that's what I like about them. They always cheer me up if I need it. Scary Movie 5 continues in this vein. It draws on horror movies that have been out since like Paranormal Activity and Mama. Anna Faris isn't in this, but it doesn't really matter because Ashley Tisdale does well on her own and serves up a few dozen laughs all by herself. Snoop Dogg pops up randomly in a scene which is also quite amusing, he seems to have a habit of doing that.
I'll keep watching them for as long as they carry on making them.

Youth in Revolt - 2009 ***

A strange film. I must say I do like Michael Cera, although it has become obvious that he portrays the exact same character in every single film. Here he is a quirky yet sensitive teen who goes to stay with his father and meets a girl he becomes infatuated with. He will do anything to stay with her, even of it means setting fire to a caravan or getting her expelled from a posh school. At the same time he has constant visits from his alter ego, a slimy chain smoker with a moustache who keeps pressuring him into doing al the things he really shouldn't.
Quite a good film I suppose.

(NOIR) Out of the Fog - 1941 ***

John Garfield is an amazing actor but he doesn't half play some unlikeable characters. Here he plays a bootlegger who makes his living beating up people who won't give him money, and stumbles into a situation where he falls for the daughter of one of his latest victims. Ida Lupino plays her usual stupid, dense self who becomes infatuated by Garfield even when she finds out he is blackmailing her father.
Not your usual noir, as its set around the waterfront, but one to watch once.

Sightseers - 2011 ** 1/2

What a peculiar film. I haven't seen Alice Lowe since she was in the brilliant 'My Life in Film' with Andrew Scott. This wasn't brilliant. It was just very strange and very slow.
Lowe and Oram play an unhinged couple who go off on a caravan holiday but end up compiling a large body count of people who get on their nerves. It's very dark, and cannot possibly be described as a 'black comedy' because its just not funny. Most of the time it's awkward and embarrassing.
Strange and creepy in my opinion.

Oblivion - 2013 **

I'm sorry, but Tom Cruise is past it, and no matter how many weird sci-fi type films he is put in, he will still be the same. He's washed out now, and nowhere was it more clear than 'Oblivion', a head tripping, post apocalyptic head **** that centres around Cruise cruising around (see what I did there..??) in a type of time travelling spaceship/plane and shooting at metal UFO's that look like they have been taken out of a Star Wars film. Then we have his incredibly English and very red-haired partner/friend/lover sitting at a massive computer clicking buttons and directing him. What fun. Then we have him going back in time and getting tangled up with characters there, as well as trying to get back to his present time. And to top it all, this riveting pile of gunk is nearly two hours long.

Abigail's Party - 1977 ***

I was expecting this to be far funnier than it was. Alison Steadman is great and to be honest there was nothing actually wrong with the characters, it was just such a bleak and awful drama that you finished watching it with a sigh of relief. Mike Leigh isn't exactly known for cheerful and positive playwriting but even so I wasn't expecting to be depressed for the rest of the evening. Abigail's Party is not the actual get together that we see in the film, it's the party of the daughter of one of Beverley's (Steadman) guests that is happening below. It's weird and rather ominous, with a lot of loose ends that don't get resolved and a horrible ending.

Wuthering Heights - 2009 ***

I am a huge fan of the Laurence Olivier version of this story. Therefore any tv drama of this was going to be closely compared to it. I thought this was a sumptuous drama and incredibly well done. Tom Hardy is a very versatile actor and puts his all into the role of Heathcliff who falls desperately in love with wild and carefree Cathy (played by his wife to be Charlotte Reilly). Certain parts of this were changed and I was disappointed (yet again comparing it to the 1939s version) because one of the most potent parts of the story was switched around, leaving me feeling a bit hollow. *SPOILERS* When Cathy dies in the book, Heathcliff is by her side, but in this version he is loitering outside in the garden without knowing what is going on. And also, when Heathcliff dies in the earlier film, he does so because of ill health and a broken heart, here he goes crazy and shoots himself. I can't deny that the acting was very good but for continuity and screenplay I have to side with the 1930s film.

White men can't jump - 1992 ***

I got this mistaken with 'Boyz in the Hood' ( don't ask me why!) and so felt I had to watch it because it was in my must see movie book. It was moderately funny but in all honesty both lead characters are intensely unlikeable (Snipes less so than Harrelson I must add) and seem to have no morals or responsibilities other than teaming up and beating other 'macho' men at basketball. The whole film actually revolves around this, whilst making sure to point out every other scene that Woody Harrelson is white and therefore cannot play basketball. That is the only concept if this film.

(NOIR) Loan Shark 1952 **

A rather weak noir with George Raft fronting as an ex-con who is infiltrated into a group of vicious loan sharks in order to put a stop to the attacks and threats made to the people who can't pay up. He of course falls in love with a beautiful woman and has to decide whether his morals are more important than his romantic life. Wouldn't watch again.

Shock - 1946 **

One of those films that you imagine is going to be better than it actually is. 'Shock' doesn't really deliver, but is still fairly entertaining for it's length and cast. Lynn Bari plays a young wife who goes to a hotel to await her husband who is coming back from the war. After falling asleep she wakes up in the middle of the night and goes to the balcony where she witnesses something horrific in the adjoining room. A murder! Going into shock, she is taken to a psychiatric hospital where she is treated by a menacing Vincent Price who she soon realises is the murderer she saw through her window. Will anyone believe her? Sounds a good story doesn't it, but it comes across like its been done before.
Not a strong contender and despite it's labelling as a noir I don't think it can really be called one.

The Woman in Red - 1984 ***

Not a particularly funny film as Gene Wilder movies go, but still something to watch on a Sunday afternoon. Wilder plays Teddy, a happily married man who becomes besotted by a woman he sees at work. The whole film is basically about him trying to find ways to be close to her without his wife finding out. I thought it was a bit of a sad film, and portrays married men as idiots who can't control themselves.

Gangster Squad - 2013 ****

Gangster Squad is one of those films i know I'm going to like before i watch it. It was better than 'Lawless' but not as good as a typical 1940s noir. Sean Penn was almost unrecognisable as Mickey Cohen, the sadistic leader of the gang which has total control of the whole of Chicago. Emma Stone plays his beautiful abused mistress, and Ryan Gosling plays the cop who falls in love with her, whilst trying to put an end to the bloody violence.
It's typical Hollywood. Glitzy, glamorous and indulgent. I enjoyed it, although found that it ran on a bit.

Funny About Love - 1990 ***

Not a bad film. Gene Wilder plays his usual manic self, falling in love with an independent and beautiful woman before finding himself in a quandry after they cannot become pregnant. He doesn't really want a baby of course. So what does he do? Falls into the arms of a younger woman with none of the stress of burden. He then realises that he does want children, but is he too late? A bit of a darker film than others that Wilder has done, but worth a look.

(HORROR) Playback - 2012 **

What an awful film. An what is Christian Slater doing in it??! (It's always weird when that happens). It's loosely (and badly) based on the Ring movies, but fails miserably in every area. The acting is awful, almost funny, and the story doesn't make any actual sense. It's interspersed with horror scenes that are being shot in the movie so in the end you forget who you are actually supposed to be watching. Add in some shaky camera work (essential for any awful film) and some fake tomato ketchup blood, and you have this film. Avoid.

A Haunted House - 2013 ***

Quite a funny film, obviously trying a bit too hard to spoof too many horrors though in a way which is no longer original. Scary Movie has been there and done that, and considering there is now a 5th movie in their franchise that has just been released it leaves 'A Haunted House' in the shade.
Marlon Wayans is a funny guy, much funnier of course in films where he performs with his brother, but still quite good here. He plays Malcolm, who moves into a large house with his girlfriend of two years Kisha, and almost immediately, strange and unexplained activity begins to take place at night time. Not the type you would expect in a regular horror film mind, but still peculiar.
The whole film is trying to be the Paranormal Activity movies, and some of the scenes are very funny and effective. On the whole however, I think the film lacks being really hilarious, and just comes across as being quite flat.

(HORROR) Crowsnest - 2012 **

Starts off well, as do many 'found footage' films, and then gradually progresses to being completely ridiculous. Why do people in mortal danger have to quiver and snivel and breathe SO loudly in films like this? Of course they are going to be seen! Idiots. The also have a tendency to poke their cameras/camcorders out of their hiding places into the faces of the psychopaths and then wait until they have nearly been dismembered alive before they run away. Quite predictable, but quite amusing anyway.

Stoker - 2013 ***

I've seen the 'Vengeance' trilogy by this director, and they all have the same weird slightly creepy vibe. I was expecting something else from 'Stoker.' I'm not sure what though. The story is (apparently) loosely based on Alfred Hitchcock's 'Shadow of a Doubt.' I sort of wish that I hadn't known that before I saw the film.
After her beloved father is killed in a suspicious automobile accident, India retreats into herself, that is, until her hypnotic and mysterious uncle Charlie appears, supposedly with the idea of looking after India's mother in the large old house that they have been left with. Charlie's intentions however, are much darker and obsessive than either India or her mother could ever have imagined. Nicole Kidman's performance isn't very strong either.
Worth a watch, but altogether disappointing compared to his trilogy of Tartan Asia Extreme movies.

I Want You - 1998 *

This is a really awful film. If it wasn't for the lovely Rachel Weisz it would be a total write off. Helen is a young woman running a hairdresser's and dating a local radio star. Unbeknownst to her the psychotic boyfriend that she split up with a while ago is out of jail and looking for a reunion with her, which doesn't go down very well with her new boyfriend or the young, mute boy obsessed with her. It's awfully acted (I know it's supposed to be filmed in an amateur style but really?!) and all the characters are immensely unpleasant.

A Good Day To Die Hard - 2013 **

Such a confusing film, with one of the longest most amazing vehicle chase scenes I've ever seen. Bruce Willis is getting on a bit now, and it does show. In this film he meets his son for the first time in decades in the middle of a particularly nasty action scene and they get together to shoot various nasty characters. There's a lot of double-crossing in this film and even more explosions but apart from that it didn't have a very clear storyline.

Jack the Giant Slayer - 2013 **

After how much I enjoyed 'Oz the Great and Powerful' I thought 'Jack the Giant Slayer' would be pretty good as well. I wasn't sure how they would 'modernise' the story of Jack but on the whole it couldn't of been closer if it had tried.
That annoying boy from 'About a Boy' is now all grown up and taking the main part of Jack, who feels a bit perturbed when he notices that a large beanstalk has sprouted in his house (he was entertaining the princess at the time and now she is at the op of the stalk) and decides to help the soldiers in their quest to find the princess at the top and also slaughter the massive troll who has probably taken her prisoner.
It's just a bit wishy-washy and nothing is really black and white. I didn't enjoy it.

(HORROR) The Purge - 2013 ****1/2

'The Purge' is a terrifying film. More so because you can imagine this sort of thing happening in America somewhere down the line. To me this was far more disturbing than a slasher or ghost film. It focuses on the problems with our society, and how the wealthy regard the poor.
The Purge happens once a year. On this night, for 12 hours, all criminal activity is legal and emergency services are unavailable. Unemployment and criminal rates are at an all time low because America is in effect 'cleansing' itself of people it does not feel are worthy to be alive and no one is going to bother committing a crime throughout the rest of the year if they know that they can do anything they want on this night and not have to face the consequences of their actions. Already a terrifying thought, but what would happen if you found that a group of people wanted to break into your home and kill you, and there was no one to help? This is exactly what happens to Ethan Hawke and his family on the night of the annual purge, after his son unwittingly opens the door to a homeless man who is seeking refuge. The house is then surrounded by a group of menacing individuals all wearing masks (presumably all from the same high class neighbourhood that he lives in) who tell him that unless he gives them back their 'target', they will enter his house with force and murder him and his family. Hawke is an unpopular character, for, despite working in security and designing top notch security systems he doesn't seem to comprehend that his family or he would need to use one. He has CCTV cameras set up to cover the whole street, automatic metal locks on his doors and windows, and still believes somehow that he is invincible and that no one will try to harm him.
The Purge supposedly is a way for America to release all the tension and angst that has built up until that point in the year. Once they have committed murder on this night, they feel 'refreshed' for the remainder of the year and can go about their business with minimum stress. It is also something of a 'survival of the fittest' situation, as the targets are most likely to be underprivileged, poor people who need to be 'got rid of' to make way for a world of millionaires and high flyers. Anyone think this seems a bit too 'Holocaust-like' for comfort?? If they don't have the right precautions in place to keep themselves safe at home then they don't have a leg to stand on. The only thing to be done is pray that you survive the night.
This is one of those films that stays with you for days afterwards. I cannot stop thinking about it.
See this.

The Firm - 2009 ** 1/2

I've seen a few football hooligan films, and it never ceases to amaze me how anyone can justify this type of behaviour. I don't really understand the point of it or the film, except that it's been made to highlight the fact that there are men out there who's lives revolve around when they can next batter someone in with a baseball bat. The Firms are different teams (typically) and they all come together regularly to fight each other. You can tell one firm from the other by their clothes (the lead character of the film has a ridiculous haircut and an even worse dress sense) and the main firm favour FILA, whilst other firms favour adidas or Kappa.
It's just violence for the sake of violence, and I thought it was pointless.

Freddy Got Fingered - 2011 **

For such a cult film with a massive following I thought this was going to be hilarious, but in all honesty I can't understand what all the fuss was about, and only raised a smile a couple of times throughout the whole film. Tom Green overacts, but not in a clever, 'I'm taking the mickey out of this kind of film' way, more in a total lack of understanding what funny means. The famous quotes you hear bandied about come swift and fast, without really standing out (give me Bogart's last line in 'Casablanca' any day) and I was left straight-faced by the whole film.

Oz - The Great and Powerful 2013 **** 1/2

I absolutely loved this. If it's Disney you know it's going to be pretty darn good. And it was. It's the prequel to 'The Wizard of Oz' and explains how Oz winds up in the Emerald City. Certain parts are very clever, hinting at areas of the original film that you have to do a double take on. Oscar Diggs is a small town magician, and when he is hurled into Oz after a hurricane he gets mistaken for a great and powerful wizard. The city and all it's riches will be his, if only he can take down the real 'Wicked Witch.' But who is she??

Wonderful graphics, very like 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus' and Danny Elfman's score is brilliant and fitting as always.

I can see how people might be divided in their reviews of this film, but I thought it was very well done. 

(HORROR) Dark Skies - 2013 ****

I wouldn't normally count sci fi as one of my favourite movie genres, in fact I tend to try and and avoid it if at all possible. 'Dark Skies' was different. It was frightening and real and I found myself thoroughly disturbed by the end. A family begin to witness strange and abnormal activities taking place in their home, added to which, their son has started to behave in a very peculiar way, seeing things, staring into space and drawing pictures of grey men in his room who he says want to take him away. Before long, the family are starting to realise that something otherworldly is happening, and they are absolutely powerless to stop it. 

This isn't a particularly original film, but it's really scary and well done. I liked it. One of the better films of the year. 

Fatal Instinct - 1993 ****

I do love spoofs and parodies and this encapsulates both! Sean Young plays the crazy, bunny boiler femme fatale who becomes obsessed with a lawyer after she has a brief affair with him in the style of 'Fatal Instinct' (which was at it's peak when the film was made). You could actually make a list of every crime/thriller noir that this film makes references to as there are at least 20 in the mix to look out for. Armand Assante is good as the male lead, with a perfect voice for the over-scene narration that was so popular in so many noirs. A funny film, and it tests your knowledge of other famous thriller noirs from cinema history. 

Adam's Rib - 1949 *****

I'm ashamed to say I've never seen 'Adam's Rib' the whole way through, something kept putting me off. Probably Katherine Hepburn who grows more annoying with each film that I see her in. Sometimes I've even had to turn a film off because she is taking up too much screen time. Never fear, she was hilarious in this and complimented Spencer Tracey so very well. 'Adam's Rib' is one of a number of films Tracey and Hepburn did together and you can tell by now how comfortable they are together. Their screen chemistry is perfect, rivaling another of my favourite couples - William Powell and Myrna Loy.
Both act as rival lawyers, defending and prosecuting Judy Holliday who tried to shoot her husband after discovering him with another woman. Tracey believes her guilty of attempted murder full stop, whereas Hepburn takes the sympathetic side of a hen-pecked wife who discovers her husband is an adulterer.
Initially able to separate work from home, the two start off well, but as time goes on, they both become frustrated with each other at court, each believing the other will jeopardize their chances of winning the case which then spills into their home life. The film is fast-paced, intelligent screwball at it's strongest.

Conflict - 1945 ****

A hidden gem. Critics said that this was a strange film for Bogart to be in. Totally unlike his Sam Spade personalities. I think it was brilliant, and I found the storyline to be immensely exciting. Bogart plays an unhappily married man who is in love with his wife Katherine's sister Evelyn. He decides to murder Katherine in the hopes of starting a relationship with Evelyn but things go horribly wrong when he starts to believe he is seeing traces of Katherine everywhere. Of course he cannot go to the police to tell them his fears because they are hoping she will be found alive and so he begins to live a nightmare which threatens to send him mad.
Excellent movie. Overlooked and understated.