Mulholland Falls

Posted in Crime, Film-Noir, Mystery with tags on July 7, 2017 by Mark Walker

Director: Lee Tamahori.
Screenplay: Pete Dexter.
Starring: Nick Nolte, Chazz Palminteri, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Jennifer Connelly, Melanie Griffith, John Malkovich, Treat Williams, Kyle Chandler, Andrew McCarthy, Bruce Dern, Louise Fletcher, Daniel Baldwin, Ed Lauter, Titus Welliver, Richard Sylbert, Virginia Madsen, William Petersen, Rob Lowe.

“This is L.A. This is my town. Out here you’re a trespasser. Out here I can pick you up, burn your house, fuck your wife, and kill your dog. And the only thing that’ll protect you is if I can’t find you. And I already found you”.

Released in 1996, Lee Tamahori’s Mulholland Falls has largely been overshadowed by the Oscar winning L.A. Confidential – which followed a year later. Although I often find fault with the Academy, on this occasion, I’m not going to split hairs with them and argue that Tamahori’s film is as good, because it’s not. But that’s no shame in Tamahori’s efforts as, for me, L.A. Confidential is one of the best films over the last 20 years. Mulholland Falls is a very admirable attempt that doesn’t deserve to have become a forgotten addition to L.A. themed noir.  Continue reading →

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Triple 9

Posted in Action, Crime with tags on June 27, 2017 by Mark Walker


Director: John Hillcoat.
Screenplay: Matt Cook.
Starring: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Woody Harrelson, Anthony Mackie, Aaron Paul, Norman Reedus, Clifton Collins Jr, Kate Winslet, Gal Gadot, Teresa Palmer, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michelle Ang, Terence Rosemore.

“You’re a bank manager. You should be smart enough to know that the monster has gone digital. Be careful what you instagoogletweetface”.

After his relentlessly grim debut The Proposition and it’s equally grim follow-up, The Road, director John Hillcoat carved a reputation as a less than cheery filmmaker. However, he was clearly one with an undeniable ability to capture a time and place. His third feature – Lawless – proved again that he had a great eye for detail – even though it was lacking a depth of narrative. With Triple 9, Hillcoat, yet again, showcases his gritty realism but it suffers the same problems in terms of the story. Continue reading →

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The Straight Story

Posted in Drama with tags on June 19, 2017 by Mark Walker


Director: David Lynch.
Screenplay: John Roach, Mary Sweeney.
Starring: Richard Farnsworth, Sissy Spacek, Harry Dean Stanton, Everett McGill, Jane Galloway-Heitz, Ed Grennan, Jack Walsh, Bill McCallum, Kevin Farley, John Farley, John Lordan, Leroy Swadley.

“The worst part of being old is remembering when you was young”

Walt Disney and David Lynch are two names that you wouldn’t ordinarily expect to see involved on the same project. Disney is, of course, the leading production brand for family entertainment and Lynch’s work couldn’t be further from that magical and innocent material. However, that’s exactly what we’re looking at with The Straight Story which is a complete change of direction from the usually dark and disturbing Lynch and he proves to his naysayers that he’s entirely able to construct something of a different nature altogether.  Continue reading →

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INLAND EMPIRE

Posted in Horror, Mystery with tags on June 6, 2017 by Mark Walker


Director: David Lynch.
Screenplay: David Lynch.
Starring: Laura Dern, Justin Theroux, Jeremy Irons, Harry Dean Stanton, Julia Ormond, Mary Steenburgen, Grace Zabriskie, Peter J. Lucas, Karolina Gruszka, Jan Hencz, Krzysztof Majchrzak, Ian Abercrombie, Jerry Stahl, Diane Ladd, William H. Macy, Jordan Ladd, Kat Turner, Kristen Kerr, Terry Crews, Nastassja Kinski, Scott Coffey, Laura Harring, Naomi Watts.

“I figured one day I’d just wake up and and find out what the hell yesterday was all about. I’m not too keen on thinkin’ about tommorow. And today’s slipping by”

“A dream of dark and troubling things” is how Lynch himself described his directorial debut Eraserhead in 1977. It’s fitting then that his first and (so far) last film share similarities with this description. In fact, this is probably the most coherent thing you can take from INLAND EMPIRE (Lynch insists the title is capitalised). Even the marketing executives had no idea how to promote the film and, in the end, decided to punt it with the vaguest of taglines: A woman in trouble. The rest is basically up to the individual viewer. But make no mistake, INLAND EMPIRE lands you squarely in Lynchland.  Continue reading →

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Free Fire

Posted in Action, Crime with tags on June 1, 2017 by Mark Walker


Director: Ben Wheatley.
Screenplay: Ben Wheatley, Amy Jump.
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Sharlto Copley, Armie Hammer, Brie Larson, Sam Riley, Michael Smiley, Jack Reynor, Baboo Ceesay, Noah Taylor, Enzo Cilenti, Mark Monero, Patrick Bergin.

“I told you, I don’t wanna work with anyone who’s carrying a loaded weapon”


In a short space of time, Ben Wheatley has fast became one of the most interesting and intriguing of director’s and it’s beginning to look like he wants to try his hand at many genres. Kill List was a heady mix of kitchen-sink drama and horror, Sightseers was a black comedy, High Rise was a dystopian morality tale on class divide and now with Free Fire, he sets out to deliver an unashamed action piece.  Continue reading →

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Polished Performances

Posted in Uncategorized with tags on May 18, 2017 by Mark Walker


• Actor: Edward Norton
• Character: Derek Vinyard
• Film: American History X


Continue reading →

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The Voices

Posted in Comedy, Drama with tags on May 15, 2017 by Mark Walker


Director: Marjane Satrapi.
Screenplay: Michael R. Perry.
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Anna Kendrick, Gemma Arterton, Jacki Weaver, Ella Smith, Sam Spruel, Paul Chahidi, Stanley Townsend, Adi Shanker, Valerie Koch.

“Friday I had a pretty cushy gig. Had lots of friends, I was the office hottie… now I’m a severed head in a fridge. Sucks to be me…“

In 2007, director Marjane Satrapi delivered the autobiographical, coming-of-age animation Persepolis. It garnered her an Oscar nomination, making her the first woman to receive a nomination in the Best animated category. Foreign language films, Chicken with Plums and The Gang of the Jotas followed after but these two films slipped under the radar. Now, though, she tackles the American market with a blackly comic, serial killer tale.  Continue reading →

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