Mike Croaker

A terrific example of strong, character driven screenwriting. Perfectly cast, paced, and with solid performances from the whole cast, ARCADIAN works as a coming of age, suspense and horror film all at once.

The first act is an outstanding example of on-screen tension building. The sudden shift that follows, soon becomes its own thing, drawing us further in again. The wildly untangled final act has its merit, but feels like a sharp, more formulaic, veer away from the more original genre work that goes before.

Gyllenhaal’s performance never falters in this tight and compelling trip through the mean streets of LA. A terrific screenplay and cast; Director, Dan Gilroy delivers a gritty and deeply considered thriller.

Near flawless in every possible way. RIPLEY is a stunning visual achievement, with each frame beautifully considered and realised. The writing is superb, the performances, outstanding. This is first class storytelling from clear masters of their respective crafts.

More solid than not, with a relatively strong first act. Unfortunately, it all begins to unwind gradually from there. The initial premise of a WWII haunted house story felt compelling and fresh to the genre. A shame that the setup is largely betrayed by a patchy, unnecessarily complex, third act plot twist.

Tim Blake Nelson and Stephen Dorff each deliver some of the best performances of their entire careers in this tightly paced gem of a film. Gripping, gritty and clearly made with heart, OLD HENRY is a damn fine piece of film making in every possible way.

It was always going to be a reach to both compliment and reposition the Apes franchise. The past three films are stunning achievements in character grounded storytelling. KINGDOM falls short in touching similar depths and meaning. It soars in seamless CGI and delicate ‘tips of the hat’ to original material but ultimately falters with screenplay, pacing and character depth. Clearly made with love and respect for all that has come before but missing the shot for launching an all new chapter.