Category Archives: Film

The time I asked Robert Wagner about mortality

Posted on February 10, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett “What the hell kind of question is that?” It’s 1985 and I’m sitting with Robert Wagner, who turns 85 today, in his luxury trailer on the Warner Bros. lot where he was making the shortlived TV series … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Interviews, Memory Lane, Recalling ..., Television | Tagged 'Colditz', 'Hart to Hart', 'To Catch a Thief', Audrey Hepburn, Natalie Wood, Robert Wagner | Comments Off

20 Gene Hackman films you must see

Posted on January 30, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett With most movie stars it’s not very difficult to sort out a Top 10 of your favourite films but Gene Hackman’s exceptional 40-year career has included so many terrific performances in such a wide range of films … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Film, Memory Lane, Recalling ... | Tagged Gene Hackman, William Friedkin | 2 Comments

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 →

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Kingsman: The Secret Service', 20th Century Fox, Colin Firth, Jane Goodman, Mark Strong, Matthew Vaughan, Samuel L. Jackson, Sophie Cookson, Taron Egerton | Comments Off

‘Boyhood’, ‘Under the Skin’ top London critics’ awards

Posted on January 19, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett The London Critics’ Circle Film Awards on Sunday shared the plaudits among several films including “Boyhood”, which won three prizes, and “Under the Skin”, which won two.

Posted in Film, News | Tagged 'Boyhood', 'Under the Skin', Jonathan Glazer, London Critics' Circle Film Awards, May Fair Hotel, Michael Keaton, Miranda Richardson, Richard Linklater, Stanley Tucci, Timothy Spall | Comments Off

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 →

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Whiplash', Damien Chazelle, J.K. Simmons, Miles Teller, Sony Pictures | Comments Off

Miranda Richardson to receive Critics’ Circle’s top prize

Posted on January 13, 2015 by admin

Delighted that the wonderful Miranda Richardson will be honoured at the Critics’ Circle Film Awards on Sunday. Sat next to her at a Fox dinner at the Toronto International Film Festival two or three years ago and she is delightful company … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, News | Tagged Bafta Film Awards, Critics' Circle Film Awards, May Fair Hotel, Miranda Richardson, Oscars, Toronto International Film Festival | Comments Off

Peter Cook’s pact with the devil for Dudley Moore

Posted on January 9, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett There’s a general view that comic genius Peter Cook, who died 20 years ago today, was a bitter and unhappy man who resented the film success of his former partner Dudley Moore. That’s not how he appeared … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Interviews, Memory Lane, Television, Theatre | Tagged 'Beyond the Fringe', 'Good Evening', 'Not Only ... But Also', 'Two for the Road', Dudley Moore, Peter Cook | Comments Off

Elvis: The man who fell to earth and changed the world

Posted on January 8, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett Little more than 10 years after the end of World War II, Great Britain was a cold, grey place in 1956 when Elvis Presley, who would have been 80 today, dropped from the sky. He changed everything.

Posted in Film, Memory Lane, Music | Tagged 'The Sanibel Sunset Detective', Charlie Rich Jr., Elvis Presley, Graceland, Ron Base, Sam Phillips | Comments Off

My picks for the best in film in 2014

Posted on December 31, 2014 by admin

By Ray Bennett My Top 10 Films of 2014 Grand Budapest Hotel, Under the Skin, Birdman, Into the Woods, The Imitation Game, Big Eyes, Nightcrawler, Only Lovers Left Alive, The Theory of Everything, Pride.

Posted in Comment, Film | Tagged 'Big Eyes', 'Birdman', 'Into the Woods', 'Nightcrawler;, 'The Theory of Everything', 'Under the Skin', Grand Budapest Hotel, Only Lovers Left Alive, Pride., ‘The Imitation Game’ | Comments Off

How Linwood G. Dunn blew up the Eiffel Tower

Posted on December 27, 2014 by admin

By Ray Bennett Linwood G. Dunn blew up the Eiffel Tower for $64, bombed Moscow and shot up ships and planes in both world wars, and got away with it. Dunn, whose birthday was 110 years ago today, was one … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Interviews, Memory Lane, Recalling ... | Tagged 'The Great Race', Linwood Dunn Theater, Linwood G. Dunn | Comments Off