Category Archives: Reviews

FILM REVIEW: Bryan Cranston, Helen Mirren in ‘Trumbo’

Posted on February 5, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The infamous treatment of filmmakers in Hollywood during the communist witch hunt of the 1940s and 1950s should have made for a powerful movie but Jay Roach’s “Trumbo” misses the target.

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FILM REVIEW: Quentin Tarantino’s ‘The Hateful Eight’

Posted on January 8, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Quentin Tarantino’s western “The Hateful Eight” reveals him as a horrible sham who relies on the skills of talented filmmakers to make his pictures look and sound great despite his absence of talent as a … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Frank Loesser’s ‘Guys and Dolls’

Posted on December 20, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – If you like musical theatre, beg, borrow or steal a ticket to see the Chichester Festival Theatre’s dazzling production of Broadway classic “Guys and Dolls”, which opens at the Savoy Theatre on Jan. 6 and … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: Saoirse Ronan in John Crowley’s ‘Brooklyn’

Posted on December 12, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – A finely nuanced performance by Saoirse Ronan as a young Irish ex-pat in New York is one of the many pleasures of John Crowley’s warm and entertaining “Brooklyn”.

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FILM REVIEW: Daniel Craig as James Bond in ‘Spectre’

Posted on December 11, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The latest James Bond film, “Spectre”, has grossed around $800 million around the world, so it’s clear that the filmmakers know what sells. It’s just a shame that it’s not really a James Bond film. … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: Danny Boyle’s ‘Steve Jobs’

Posted on December 9, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Danny Boyle apparently blames the box-office failure of his film “Steve Jobs” in the U.S. on the decision by distributor Universal Studios to break it wide too early.  Universal reportedly blames the film’s leading actor, Michael … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: Howard Hawks’ ‘Only Angels Have Wings’

Posted on May 16, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – With a sparkling new 4K digital restoration, “Only Angels Have Wings”, directed in 1939 by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant, Jean Arthur and Rita Hayworth, is back in UK cinemas thanks to distributor Park … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’

Posted on January 29, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett “Kingsman: The Secret Service” could put the nail in the coffin of secret agent movies just as “Blazing Saddles” put the kibosh on westerns in the 1970s. It takes the increasingly absurd violent action of recent James … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: Damien Chazelle’s ‘Whiplash’

Posted on January 16, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett “Whiplash” is a cracking little picture that draws on the philosophical notion that you can achieve anything so long as you’re willing to sacrifice everything else, including blood. A sort of “Full Metal Drumkit”, in which percussion … Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: Michael Keaton in ‘Birdman’

Posted on December 26, 2014 by admin

By Ray Bennett Alejandro González Iñárritu’s “Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” is a scintillating evocation of artistic crisis. It’s a surrealistic black comedy about the creative fears of a movie star whose career in comic-book blockbusters has long … Continue reading →

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