Movie of the Month

This is not the usual place for movie reviews, but The Anonymous Journalist discloses why he is so excited about his latest cinematic experience. Rest assured, it must have something special about it to even get mentioned on The Blob.

From the first few seconds I knew I was watching a quality vid. It’s lovely when that happens. Just the style of the opening shots win you over from the get-go. The main lead was excellent in DEAD MAN’S SHOES, another British movie, and in this, only the second time I have ever seen him, he was no letdown either.

The great thing about British movies, apart from being able to relate to the enhanced realism more, is recognising familiar faces. More often than not, they’re fringe actors, coming into their own, rather than typecast veterans from Hollywood who play themselves more than the characters they are portraying.

Samuel L Jackson is a perfect representation of someone who turns up on set and simply plays himself (not always a bad thing). His persona has far outgrown the gravity of any fictional character. Take Lecter, for example, an even more extreme case, whose best character has BECOME himself, and overtaken the already irrepressible Sir Anthony Hopkins – it doesn’t matter what picture he's in, he will always, unmistakably, be HANNIBAL THE CANNIBAL.

Familiar faces from British soaps and brand new total unknowns are a blessing, for me. It’s nice to recognise locations and accents.

THE HEAVY was pure quality. It showed you London in daylight, the kind of bright outdoors flick I enjoy, in comparison to dark films such as Alien Vs Predator and whatnot where you’re straining to see what’s going on in places you have no connection with. It never does too much, this, either – it touches you just slightly, without getting soppy, only suggestively hinting at romance/devotion/all the teary stuff, rather than going overboard on it. There are some big names in this, and they perform better than I’ve seen them elsewhere. Personal Bests, I call performances like that.

It’s a macho movie, this, but it has its thinking cap on. It’s full of pace and punch and panache, and even has a TVR as the star car. As a first feature from a director, I'd say he absolutely nailed it. Keep it in mind for when you're browsing the Blockbuster shelves, if you still visit Blockbuster. Is Blockbuster still going?

A.J's Diet Status Today: Quaker Oats with Water, Chicken & Vegetable Stir Fry with White Rice, 3 Rounds of Wholemeal Toast with Clover Light, Bran Flakes with Skimmed Milk, Jelly Babies Smoothie with Marshmellows and Northumberland Fudge flavoured Treacle.