Blow Out (1981)

A biography of Quentin Tarantino that I owned when I was 15 informed me that Blow Out (1981) was Tarantino’s favourite performance by John Travolta, the film he cited to convince the actor to trust in his comeback with Pulp Fiction (1994). After so many years of hearing that it was great from critics (especially Pauline Kael’s loving review […]

Prime Cut (1972)

At under 90 minutes running time, Prime Cut (1972) is efficient and taut like its mob enforcer protagonist Nick (Lee Marvin, another great role as a measured tough). Yet there’s also an original streak of perverse humour throughout, more than likely helped by director Michael Ritchie (who’d go on to specialise further in comedy with classics like The […]

The Irishman (2019)

The first time I watched I Heard You Paint Houses aka The Irishman (2019) was in a cinema thanks to The Backlot. When it ended, I felt like I had lived a lifetime and my head was heavy like a brick. Second viewing was weeks later on Netflix and it’s a long epic that carries […]

Atlantics (2019)

Winner of the Grand Prix at Cannes this year, Atlantics (2019; Atlantique) has been released by Netflix to stream. The directorial debut of Mati Diop, the film is set in Dakar, Senegal, and observes the coastal terrain where a looming hotel is under construction in the distance. Initially the style of the film is docu-drama, […]

Zama (2017)

Set in the late 18th century, Zama (2017) is about Don Diego de Zama (Daniel Giménez Cacho), a magistrate working in a colonial outpost near the Paraguay River. The opening image sees him in a classic pose of authority, tricorne on his head, sword in his holster, gazing out at the water. The next two […]