Megan Is Missing (2011)
As a kid I was an absolute gorehound but the older I've gotten the more my tolerance for onscreen violence has waned. What disturbs me most now is any kind of violence towards children so this found footage effort was particularly hard to watch.
The fact it's partially based on a real-life case makes it all the more horrifying and even more exploitative. It tells the tale of two fourteen year old girls who disappear after befriending an older boy on the internet. The movie is schizophrenic in tone, the satirical feel of it's fake news reports are in stark contrast to the rest of the film's darkness. Twentysomething actress Amber Perkins is wholly convincing as a teen and her vulnerable performance will literally break your heart. I've seen some tough stuff over the years but the final twenty minutes of this film are probably the most disturbing, depressing and just plain sad I've ever sat through. If you have a daughter you'll never let her leave the house after watching this.
6/10
Deadlier Than The Male (1967)
I'm a huge fan of the "Bulldog Drummond" series from the thirties and this is the first of two updatings of the character made in the sixties. I also love trashy sixties movies, in fact to me Sixties cinema is all about hot Euro-chicks, Hammer monsters, and Elvis churning out B-musicals. So why didn't I enjoy this? Well strange as it may seem it just takes itself far too seriously. Give me the tongue in cheek tone of "The Man From Uncle" anyday. Richard Johnson is well cast though as Drummond; he had rather unwisely turned down the role of James Bond for "Dr. No".
4/10
Some Girls Do (1969)
The sequel to "Deadlier Than The Male" is a far more enjoyable romp. They've ramped up the humour and the political incorrectness and it's got much more of a "Man From Uncle" vibe. As far as I'm concerned women have never looked better than in the sixties and the hip to waist ratio of the female cast here is second to none. The awesome theme song will be stuck in your head for days.
6/10
Our Day Will Come (2010)
Tired of being the butt of society's jokes, two redheads set off on a nihilistic rampage across the grim landscape of Northern France. They plan to catch the ferry to Ireland where they believe everyone is of ginger persuasion. As a resident of Ireland I can tell you they'd be seriously disappointed. Vincent Cassell is fantastic as the elder of the pair and the film's first half is thoroughly gripping. As is so often the case with this type of tale it meanders into violence in the final act.
5/10
Ghost Rider (2007)
I had avoided this one like the plague, it was made at a time when Cage was on an unprecedented run of shit films. There's been some terrible superhero movies in the past few years but this beats them all. Absolute garbage. Sorry folks but you won't be getting a review of it's sequel, life is far too short and precious.
1/10
Albatross (2011)
There are two things British films do well; grit and charm, and this has oodles of the latter without a hint of schmaltz or sentimentality. "Downton Abbey" star Jessica Brown Findlay and Felicity Jones are two teens who become friends over a summer in a small coastal town. Little does Jones know but Findlay is shagging her father, a writer living off the success of a twenty year old novel, played brilliantly by the great German actor Sebastian Koch. Findlay and Jones absolutely glow on screen and I predict these two are going to become household names very soon.
6/10
