The Cynical Cinephiles

Director: Steven Spielberg Cast: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Jermain Clement, Penelope Wilson, Rebecca hall, Rafe Spall, Bill Hader. Spielberg. An adaptation of a beloved Roald Dahl classic. Fantastic and promising trailers. The combination of these ingredients alluded to sure-fire success, but the result is less appetising than one may have hoped for. Orphan Sophie's dreary life takes a turn for the fantastical when she is captured by a giant and taken to a land where they roam and inhabit. After a period of understandable sacredness and insecurity, Sophie learns that her captor is a caring and endearing individual and affectionately gives him the nickname BFG (that's Big Friendly Giant, in case you've been living under a rock). Not only is an unlikely friendship formed, but Sophie's presence soon attracts unwanted attention from nymphs-eating giants, and she and BFG must take drastic measures to rid the beasts from the land. Whenever the film seems to float ou...

Director: Paul Feig Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon, Chris Hemsworth. Since its very announcement through to the release of its trailers, the re-boot of the 1984 Ghostbusters has been the cause of much contention, particularly amongst fanboys who bemoan that the re-boot has "ruined their childhood", acting as if this films very existence erases that of the original. As you may recall, I was not a fan of the first trailer released for the film, but thankfully, it was misrepresentative of the final product. After being fired from her position as a Professor at Columbia University due to the republication of a book she co-wrote positing the existence of paranormal activity, Erin Gilbert (Kristen Wiig) teams up with physicists Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy) and Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon) and MTA worker Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones) to prove that the dead live amongst us. The appeal of this film is largely anchored by the talented cast...

Director: A.J Bayona Starring: Liam Neeson, Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, Sigourney Weaver The bewitching trailer for A Monster Calls  leads one to believe it could be the rarest of beasts, most coveted by many a filmmaker; a movie that executes stunning visual effects whilst maintaining a beating heart. The plot hinges on a young boy, Conor, (MacDougall) as he struggles to carry an emotional mass as his mother (Jones) deteriorates from terminal illness, and he is forced to live with his stony grandmother (Weaver), meanwhile suffering at the hands of bullies at school. He finds unlikely solace in a monster (Neeson); a brobdingnagian anthropomorphic tree. The movie appears to be a far cry from the litany of light-hearted family-friendly films that champion style over substance; this one could be a balance of the two. A home video shows us a mother and her young son, water-colour painting together in what ...

Director: Damien Chazelle Cast: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone. As soon as the simple, melodic chords of the piano were introduced and the circular fade-in transition revealed the picturesque landscape of Los Angeles, I was sold on this trailer, and heck, the whole film altogether. La La Land centres around the talented jazz musician Sebastian (Gosling) and aspiring actress Mia (Stone) as they attempt to navigate the cruel and choppy waters of Hollywood as well as their own budding romance. Not only based on the strength of this premise and this first teaser trailer, I have a strong instinctual feeling that I'm going to fall head over heels for this film because of the incredible talent of writer/director Damien Chazelle. Having delivered one of the best films of 2014 with Whiplash  (remarkably shot in 19 days - not really relevant, but impressive, right?), I have every confidence that his sophomore film will live up to the excellence of his first. Although the trailer is comple...

Director: Daniel Ragussis Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Toni Collette, Tracy Letts Any and all attempts by Daniel Radcliffe to shake off his Boy-who-lived associations should be encouraged. I for one would be greatly dispirited should his acting career be diminished by the Potter series being his only memorable turn - perish the thought! I don’t find his talents to be particularly astounding, he just seems like a nice guy and I fancy him a bit. Inspired by real events,  Imperium  follows Nate Foster (Radcliffe), an FBI agent gone undercover as a member of a white supremacist organisation, in order to expose their attempt to make a dirty bomb. Toni Collette and Tracy Letts also star, as (respectively) seasoned agent Angela Zamparo, and Dallas Wolf, leader of the white supremacy movement.   The trailer opens with a perturbing wide shot of two swastikas and a crucifix aflame in a field at night. This is shortly followed by Radcliffe shaving his head, images...

Director: Liza Johnson Cast: Michael Shannon, kevin Spacey, Alex Pettyfer, Colin Hanks, Johnny Knoxville, Evan Peters. Based on the meeting between the iconic Elvis Presley and the shamed Richard Nixon on December 21 1970, Elvis and Nixon  embellishes the infamous fable and presents an engaging and entertaining film, largely thanks to the starry duo. However, it takes an extended period of time before the duo appear together on screen, and at times, the build up can feel like a drawn out process. We spend a lot of time with Elvis (Michael Shannon) and his trusted confidant Jerry Schilling (Alex Pettyfer), who is given his own B storyline; he's conflicted between his duty to his dependent pal and the desire to return home and propose to his girlfriend and finally meet her parents. This deviation from the central storyline is most unwelcome and will test the patience of even the most subdued audience member. Do I care about the personal life of Elvis' frankly dull friend? Mo...

Director: Whit Stillman Cast:  Kate Beckinsale, Chloe Sevigny, Xavier Samuel, Emma Greenwell. Whit Stallman may not be a name you recognise in the realm of filmmaking, but after the overwhelming critical acclaim lavished upon Love and Friendship , expect his presence around Hollywood to explode. In 18th century England, the underhand and manipulative, albeit appeasing, Lady Susan Vernon (Kate Beckinsale) sets her sights on the eligible Reginald De Courcy and proves to be unafraid to use every devious trick in her arsenal to secure his romantic companionship. Love and Friendship is based on Jane Austen's Lady Susan , a novel not published in the author's lifetime and is one of her last works to be adapted to the big - screen. With the novel written in the unique epistolary form, one can only imagine the challenges of adapting the material into a feature - length film. However, the material is deftly guided and crafted by writer/director Stallman as he creates an entirely ...