Much Ado about Nothing (1993) review

 Number 858 on the top 1000 films of all time is Kenneth Branagh's 1993 adaptation of William Shakespeare's play 'Much Ado about Nothing.'

Don Pedro (Denzel Washington) and his noblemen Benedick and (Kenneth Branagh) Claudio (Robert Sean Leonard) are visiting their friend Leonato (Richard Briers) in Messina Sicily, after having crushed a rebellion by Pedro's half-brother Don John (Keanu Reeves.) In Messina, Pedro acts as match-maker, deciding to match Benedick and Leonato's niece Beatrice (Emma Thompson) who both seemingly hate each other. He also decides to match Claudio with Leonato's daughter Hero (Kate Beckinsale.)

Much ado about nothing is the best way to describe this film. It was beyond tedious. Granted, I'm not a Shakespeare fan, so I'm no doubt ignorant of the play's cultural significance. Call me a philistine, but I don't think that Shakespeare translates well to the big screen. At least not in its current form.

With Hamlet, Branagh ripped the dialogue straight from the folios. No doubt he did something similar here, as the dialogue was so expository. And it just went on and on. It was so verbose it was like the characters were reciting the dictionary. Plus Branagh and Thompson monologuing endlessly bored me beyond belief. This might have been okay for the 1500's, but not in 2024. Not even in 1993 when this was released. I'm not saying that I need gunfights and explosions, but I need more drama than Benedick trying and failing to figure out how a deck chair works.

Plus, this dialogue made the film so slow. It crawls toward a conclusion that I couldn't have cared less about - probably because I didn't care about the characters. Maybe if I was seeing it on stage, it would be different. But as I didn't care about the characters, I wasn't at all engrossed in the conflict. I say conflict, but a will they/won't they between either an annoying couple or a soppy one hardly makes the biggest stakes int he world.

It didn't help that Keanu Reeves was positively awful as Don John. True, as the villain, he doesn't really do much. He does some scheming in the shadows, promptly disappears, only to be caught and smirk at the camera at the end of the film. But Reeves never looked comfortable with the Shakespearean dialogue. No wonder he got a Razzie nomination.

I'm sure there are some Harold Bloom types out there ready to denounce me as a philistine, but this film was really much ado about nothing.

Transamerica review

 Number 834 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2005 comedy-drama 'Transamerica'.

Sabrina "Bree" Osborne (Felicity Huffman) is a transwoman in Los Angeles who is soon going to have surgery to fully complete her transition. However, a week beforehand, she discovers that she has a son Toby (Kevin Zegers) who has just been arrested in New York City. He prostitutes himself to feed his drug habit. Bree flies to New York to bail him out of jail with the intention of driving him back to the West Coast.

Can we just discuss the Felicity Huffman shaped elephant in the room. I question whether she was miscast. I don't mean how she as a cis-woman was cast as a trans character - this was the early noughties after all. But I found it strange that a woman, full stop, was playing a trans woman. It would have made more sense to have cast a man in the past. At the very least they wouldn't have needed to worry about a prosthetic penis.

Having said that, Felicity Huffman was good as Bree. She endeared the character with a lot of humanity. But also a lot of resolution. Despite the protestations of her mother, she is sure of who she is and what she wants. And that's to complete her surgery. Yet she is also internally conflicted, determined to keep her true identity to Toby a secret.

Kevin Zegers was equally good as Toby. He is your standard emotionally confused and frustrated teenager. But he is also effectively an orphan who never had any proper parents to take care of him. When he discovers that Bree has lied to him, in more than one way, he initially rejects her, before slowly changing his mind.

I think the two were great together. They had good chemistry, as two people who were just trying their best to make things work. I've heard some who would class this as a road film, which would be an accurate description. Over the long drive back to LA, the two discover a lot about each other.

This was a powerful and sensitive character drama that earned Felicity Huffman her only Oscar nod. Since her involvement in the college admissions scandal, I don't think she'll be getting anymore anytime soon.

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert review

 Number 826 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 1994 Australian road-comedy film 'the Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert.'

Adam "Felicia" Whitely (Guy Pearce) and Anthony "Mitzi" Belrose (Hugo Weaving) are two drag queens in Sydney Australia. Joined by their transsexual friend Bernadette (Terrence Stamp,) the three embark on an epic road trip to Alice Springs under the promise of a new show. They travel in a bus they name Priscilla. Along the way they discover new things about themselves and each other.

This was a quiet, but powerful film about a topic that you wouldn't have often seen in 1990's cinema. This and Philadelphia are the only 90's films that I can think of that so brilliantly tackle the theme of LGBTQ+ identity. In fact, Priscilla was lauded for its positive portrayal of the LGBTQ+ community. It would have been all too easy to have mischaracterised the characters as either gross cartoons or helpless victims, but Felicia, Mitzi and Bernadette are neither.

They are all fully fleshed-out humans with their own flaws and imperfections. Yes, they have all experienced traumatic events yet they stay positive. This is no more evident than with Adam who gets his own back on his abusive uncle by trapping his ping pongs in a bath drain. Far from being a victim, he has lots of agency. And when he adopts his Felicia persona, he becomes larger-than-life. Yes, he is obnoxious and annoying, but that's supposed to be the point. He is unapologetically himself.

This contrasts with the transsexual Bernadette who is more reserved and cynical about life. But like everybody else she is just looking for acceptance which she eventually finds in her love interest of Bob. Terrence Stamp was excellent in the role.

Mitzi is somewhere in-between the two, often acting as a mediator to their quarrelsome way. If anything it showed the versatility of Hugo Weaving. A few years later, he would go onto play the bad guy in the Matrix and then the elf-lord Elrond in the Lord of the Rings. The same can be said for Guy Pearce who has played a range of characters.

Along the way, the trio experience horrific trans/homophobic abuse - again these themes were tackled with care and sensitivity. But there was also plenty of laughs to stop things getting too dour like with Bob's mail-order Filipina wife. And, of course, the costumes were just brilliant. No wonder it won the best Costume Design Oscar.

I did enjoy Priscilla. If I were to describe it in three words, it would be "absolutely fabulous, darling." 

The Proposition review

 Number 824 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2005 Australian Western 'The Proposition.'

Charlie Burns (Guy Pearce) is the leader of a group of outlaws in 1880's Australia. After a gunfight with the police leaves all but he and his younger brother Mike (Richard Wilson) dead, Captain Stanley (Ray Winston) makes Charlie a proposition. Bring his older brother Arthur (Danny Huston) to justice or watch his younger brother Mike be executed.

This is an Australian film, filmed in Queensland, directed by Brisbanian John Hillcoat, written by singer and fellow Aussie Nick Cave and starring Geelong actor Guy Pearce. Just so we're clear, this film was set in Australia, directed by an Australian, written by an Australian and starring an Australian, so why did none of the principle cast have Australian accents? Guy Pearce and Danny Huston are Irish, for some reason. Meanwhile, Ray Winston, Emily Watson and John Hurt all use their native English accents.

The Western is such an Australian genre that it was a brave stylistic choice to relocate it to Australia even though there is no reason why it shouldn't work. However, this was a countermanded by the lack of Australian accents. It was a weird choice that didn't make sense.

However, the film's true weakness was its pacing. Some scenes dragged while others were rushed. The Proposition had some serious sagging middle-part syndrome. Charlie agrees to Captain Stanley's proposition and he goes to search for Arthur. Arthur finds him first and any narrative momentum just stops. Instead, the two exchange barbs, as we are introduced to the interchangeable members of Arthur's gang. 

The two then break Mike out of prison which is where Hillcoat started overcompensating for the sluggish middle with a rushed prison-break. The slow parts were too slow and the fast parts were too fast.

It didn't help that the actors lacked chemistry with one another. I had a hard time believing that Ray Winston and Emily Watson were husband and wife. Richard Wilson isn't afforded a single scene with Danny Huston. Plus, in his scenes, with Guy Pearce, he did little else but cry and whimper. That was it. We didn't get to see the two act like brothers.

Granted the Proposition had some gorgeous cinematography - it failed as a subversion of the Western genre with its cowboys and Indians being transplanted to Australia. It was mired by weird accents and poor pacing. 

Ne Le dis a personne (Tell no one) review

 Number 753 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2006 French adaptation of Harlan Coben's thriller of the same name.

Dr Alexandre Beck (Francois Cluzet) is a paediatrician in Paris who is slowly recovering from the murder of his wife eight years prior. However, when he discovers that his wife might actually be alive, he is hurtled into a dangerous and mysterious world.

This is the second adaptation of Harlan Coben's work that I have seen after Netflix's Safe. The two both have a doctor protagonist investigating the disappearance of a loved on. Both adaptations are incredibly complicated I wonder if it's fair to describe Coben as one of those crime writers who's too clever for their own good.

Don't get me wrong - I did enjoy Ne le dis a personne, as much as I understood it. And I'm not just talking about the fast-spoken French, but the complicated plot line that often took precedence over the characters especially the female characters.

Beck has a number of different women in his life from his sister to his sister-in-law to his lawyer, but they all blended into one with no distinguishable features. I also found it unlikely that a middle-class doctor like Beck would have an unexpected friend/ally in the local gangster Bruno who feels indebted to Beck after he treated his haemophiliac son. Whenever Beck is in trouble Bruno is the deux ex machina come to save the day. Honour among thieves, I guess?

I think I just about understood everything by the end of this fast-paced crime thriller. Perhaps convoluted, overly-complicated plots is just the nature of the genre and I best get used to it.

Mud review

 Number 814 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2012 coming-of-age drama 'Mud.'

Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) are two teenage boys living in rural Arkansas. Upon finding a seemingly abandoned boat, they then meet its owner Mud (Matthew Mcconaughey) a fugitive hiding here after killing a man. The two boys agree to help Mud escape, as well as reunite him with his lost love Juniper (Reese Witherspoon). Michael Shannon, Paul Sparks and Ray Mckinnon all co-star.

This was an impressive film. It was probably one of the best depictions of a lost innocence that I have seen since Stand by Me. Ellis and Neckbone are instantly likeable. Sure, they are innocent and naive like many teenagers, but it's obvious that they are still good kids. Ellis is always ready to stand up for what's right even if that backfires on him.

I also think Mud avoided the pitfalls of many other coming-of-age dramas. Its protagonists aren't cocky little jerks like the Breakfast Club or annoying chipmunk-voiced pre-teens *cough cough* like the Goonies, but it also avoided the cliche of its teenage protagonists having neglectful parents. Ellis' father played by Ray Mckinnon and Neckbone's uncle Galen (Michael Shannon) are by no means perfect, but they're not down-and-out and baddies either. This is what made them human.

The real baddie was Carver (Paul sparks) the brother of the man that Mud killed. Sparks was great in a villainous role - in many ways, he was the opposite of the caring Mud.

Mud's characters, in many ways, heralded a transition for Mcconaughey - away from the romcoms he was best known for and into the more dramatic roles that he is best-known for now. It was in 2013 that he won his best-acting Oscar for the Dallas Buyers Club. He's just as good there as he is in Mud.

The cinematography was also spectacular. It conveyed the isolation and remoteness of the small world that our characters live in. In many ways, it is like its own eco-system where Ellis and Neckbone can enjoy their adolescences. Sheridan and Lofland were great in the lead roles displaying a maturity and a great chemistry with one another.

If I were to criticise the film for anything, it would be the inclusion of Reese Witherspoon. It seemed like the only direction she received was to stand around and look pretty. She's won an Oscar. She could have done something more than that. Otherwise, this was an excellent coming-of-age drama that I enjoyed immensely. 

Buffalo '66 review

 Number 815 on the top 1000 films of all time is Vincent Gallo's 1998 independent-drama 'Buffalo '66.'

Billy Brown (Vincent Gallo) has just been released after a five-year prison sentence. He kidnaps tap dancer Layla (Christina Ricci) and coerces him into pretending to be his wife while they have dinner with his parents. The two form an unlikely relationship.

This was a strange film. It was surreal in both its subject matter and visual style yet it kind of worked. Despite the hokey plotline, it was still quite entertaining. 

This was despite how Billy and Layla's relationship was completely absurd. Maybe the 90's was a simpler time, because if a man snatched a girl off the street in 2024 and asked her to pretend to be his wife, he would get a kick in the crotch and a face full of pepper spray. Maybe he would form a twisted connection to her, but there's no way she would reciprocate his feelings.

But that's exactly what happens in Buffalo '66 even though it doesn't make any sense. It's not like Billy Brown is a hoodlum with a heart of gold. He kidnaps Layla and is constantly rude and abusive to her. He is controlling, coercing and a borderline bully. It didn't help that the two lacked chemistry - probably due to how Ricci and Gallo clashed behind the scenes. Although Ricci was good, it seemed like Gallo was playing every East-Coast Italian-American mob stereotype ever. Considering he worked for the mob as a kid this all makes sense.

This criticism notwithstanding, the film's surrealism is what made it watchable. This was no more present than the famous family dinner scene where Layla sees how dysfunctional Billy's parents are - played by Angelica Huston and Ben Gazarra. His mum can't remember that her son has a chocolate addiction. His dad is more interested in Layla than his wife. This gave the film a lot of off-the-wall humour.

I'm really not sure what to make of Buffalo '66. The storyline was complete nonsense. And the leads had no chemistry yet it was still entertaining and memorable.

Menace II Society review

  Number 807 on the top 1000 films of all time is the Hughes' brother 1993 teen-crime drama Menace II Society.

Caine Lawson (Tyrin Turner) and Kevin "O-Dog" Anderson" (Larenz Tate) are two boys growing up in the rough streets of Crenshaw, Los Angeles. Together they need to navigate the dangerous life of gang violence and drugs.

To any budding film-makers out there, I'll give you some unsolicited advice. Don't do what the Hughes Brothers did and have your two main characters shoot to death an innocent Korean couple who are just running their shop. It isn't a great way to get me to care about your characters. It's not like it was an accident or the boys felt guilty; on the contrast, O-Dog constantly boasts about his crime.

It was a bad start and things only got worse from there. Menace II Society offered a superficial surface look at a deeply-nuanced issue. It's difficult not to draw comparisons to the the 1991 Boyz n the Hood which has similar subject matter.

The main comparison is one of quality. Whereas Boyz n the Hood was good, Menace II Society was not. Tonally, it was all wrong. The Hughes Brothers, wanting to contrast with the hopeful Boyz n the Hood, were aiming for a more nihilistic tone. Yet, I detected little nihilism. It wasn't like the characters were bitterly resigned to their situations; they were embracing them. O-Dog constantly shows the CCTV footage of him shooting the Korean couple to anybody who's interested. Again, why am I supposed to care about or like this character?

The dialogue was also incredibly ham-fisted. I was rolling my eyes so much that at point they got stuck in my skull. It reminded me of Green Street Hooligans where Charlie Hunnum had to recite the Cockney rhyming dictionary.

It didn't help that the actors didn't believe what they were saying either. All round, the acting wasn't great. I want to say something about Jada Pinkett Smith who debuted in this film, but Will doesn't like it when his wife's name is in other people's mouths.

I didn't like this film at all. The characters were horrible, the dialogue was corny and there was nothing nihilistic about it.

Of Mice and Men (1992) review

 Number 730 on the top 1000 films of all time us Gary Sinise's 1992 drama 'Of Mice and Men.;

Based on John Steinbeck's story of the same name, we watch George (Gary Sinise) and his intellectually disabled friend Lenny (John Malkovich) try to find work during America's great depression. They then find work on a Californian ranch.

The reputation of this film precedes it. Many English school children study it for their GCSEs. I've never read it, but I knew the story and the ending. However, this didn't make things any less tragic. Where Gary Sinise succeeded was by taking a well-known story and distilling it to its base elements. Naturally, things were changed, but the core story remained the same.

It can't be easy both directing and starting in the same film, but Gary Sinise succeeded there too. George had to play a fine balancing line between looking after the emotionally immature and fragile Lenny, but also appeasing his new employer, more, in particularly, his nasty son Curly (Ray Walston.) The film also looked great, as Sinise captured the remote Californian landscape.

But I think the true star was John Malkovich who played Lenny with a great vulnerability and a great humanity. In many ways, Lenny was a gentle giant who didn't know his own strength.

I already knew how his story ended, but that didn't make it any less sad to see on-screen. And that was down to Malkovich's performance and Sinise's direction.

The Counterfeiters review

 Number 606 on the top 1000 films of all time is the German historical war drama 'The Counterfeiters.'

This film is based on the true-story of Operation Bernhard. During the Second world war, the Nazi's plan to destabilise the British economy by flooding it with fake currency. To achieve this goal, they coerce captured jews to help them - the chief among these is renowned counterfeiter Salomon "Solly" Sorowitsch (Karl Markovics.)

The Counterfeiters won the 2007 Best Foreign Language film Oscar. I can see why. It is a quiet, but powerful story about the lengths that people will do to stay alive. Solly is just one of a group of Jews exploiting their skills to save their own lives.

Plenty of questions are raised about the morality of what the counterfeiters are doing, least of all from former Nazi dissident Adolf Burger (August Diehl) who is the first to point out the relative luxury that they are living in - in comparison to the Jews not lucky enough to be in their positions.

Solly's office is at the back of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. We often get chilly reminders of how he and the other Jews are in a special type of bubble - far enough away to be protected by the Nazis, but close enough to hear how the rest of their people are being massacred. It was a clever juxtaposition which reminded us that horror was never far away.

The different prisoners all have their own reasons to submitting to the Nazi demands yet they all felt human and believable. This is especially true of Solly who very much eschewed your standard hero archetype. Despite Burger's many attempts to spur him into rebelling, he stubbornly refuses.

I do think that the film could have used an extra ten or fifteen minutes to wrap up the ending, as everything was rushed. Otherwise, this was a quietly powerful about a little-known part of the Second World War.