Everything in its Right Place

The Death of Stalin I don’t think Armando Iannucci could have picked a better adaptation than Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin’s graphic novel The Death of Stalin. The film has the same name and essentially from the very outset quickly becomes The Thick of It but with consequences: you don’t just lose your job, you die. Doing what it says on the tin, the film follows the last day or two, the death and the immediate aftermath of Russian dictator Joseph Stalin, in which all his underlings battle it out discreetly to be the next to step in his shoes. Labelled as a dark comedy, the darkness comes from the truth in Russia at this time. However much it makes hilarious jokes (and it is hilarious by the way) this deceit, death and division was simply the way Russia operated at that time. But you don’t need to know that to enjoy the film. Though seeming specific and historical, Iannucci gives you all you need in the opening titles and even if you missed that, all you really need to ...

The Golden Lion, The Weight and The Pick-up Truck It certainly, I think, is not a good idea to drop acid and go to the pub. Someone in our midst had offered the prospect of a football match and back in the miserable front room of the battered house it had rushed to us in a coat of wonder, with us all thinking of the green and the glory of the ultimate game. Everyone embracing and becoming transfixed with our own nostalgic elements, my main one being quite randomly the voices of excited commentators (Aguerooooo), which became amplified by the trip and the blandness of our environment. One of the present company was transfixed by the idea of the smell of the stands on match day and kept mumbling about steak and kidney pies. Of course, we were all to spaced and none of us thought to mention that these smells would not be present at our local dive of a pub. The cut through the park on the way to The Golden Lion was a mesmerising one. Nature and hallucinogens always collide with the m...

Marvel… Just one viewing of  Captain America: Civil War,  no matter your level of familiarity with Marvel studios, will leave you wondering at just how they managed to make it. It is one example amongst many others that nails a franchise blockbuster. Sure, it contains an inherently conservative plot, but the delicateness of crafting a film that can be followed by a newcomers and yet still contain varying wealth’s of knowledge for avid to fanatic watchers, as well as advertising for films to be released two years from now, is, forgive the pun, something to be simply marvelled at. The plot is following the events of  Avengers: Age of Ultron  and the aftermath of saving the world, where in doing so they destroyed a city and took lives. A political analogy is even there for America and its interference, Segovia (the city destroyed) much like Iraq for America. Thus, the various heroes (and there are literally so many) are split between Captain America; who does...

SCREEN BLACK Sounds of SEX. The man’s GRUNTS dominant, the woman’s feeble. FADE IN: INT. HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT A low rate room. Sounds of the street seep through the thin windows. An Austin university jumper and other clothes lie on the bed, along with FREDERIC and CATHERINE who are in the missionary position. Frederic is early 30s, balding and appealing only in the face. Catherine is mid 20s, pretty in an unconventional way. INT. BATHROOM - NIGHT Grimy white tiling and shoddy plaster. The ceiling light hangs lower than it should. Catherine stands crying at the bathroom mirror pulling at her hair. She yanks her CROSS NECKLACE from her neck and throws it in the bin. She deliberates for a time, then picks it back up. INT. HOTEL ROOM - DAY Frederic standing naked throws clothes and bags on to the bed, waking Catherine. CATHERINE I thought we were going to the river to fish today? FREDERIC Well we’re not. We’re leaving for Madrid ...