Abbie watches stuff

Reviews, articles and ramblings about films, TV shows and more

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Starfish (2018) review: Melancholy, monsters and mood music

Starfish (2018) review: Melancholy, monsters and mood music

Director: A.T. White Cast: Virginia Gardner, Christine Masterson, Eric Beecroft

Aubrey Parker (Virginia Gardner) is mourning the death of her best friend, Grace. Completely grief-stricken, Aubrey wants to feel close to Grace again, so she breaks into her apartment. Once there she begins to immerse herself into Grace’s world, surrounding herself with memories of her friend. She finds a telescope…

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A bit about my mental health, Dials Festival and why sharing is important

A bit about my mental health, Dials Festival and why sharing is important

It has been a long time since I have written anything on here. My first post for over a year isn’t even about me watching anything, it’s more about why I’ve not been writing anything and why I am again now.

This isn’t going to turn my blog into a mental health blog, there are lots of those out there, all doing it incredibly well and sharing important messages to their audiences. Instead I just…

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Beast (2017): A slow-burning, dark noir-fairytale that will both thrill and un-nerve

Beast (2017): A slow-burning, dark noir-fairytale that will both thrill and un-nerve

Director: Michael Pearce Writer:  Michael Pearce Stars:  Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, Geraldine James 

Set in an insular, seemingly idyllic community on Jersey, Michael’s Pearce’s darkly disturbing thriller makes the very best of the claustrophobic setting. During the opening few minutes Moll (Jessie Buckley) relates a tale of killer whales being trapped in captivity and going slowly mad as…

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Isle of Dogs Exhibition and Noodle Bar at The Store X

Exhibition entrance Full size Noodle Bar Spots Miniature Noodle Bar Megasaki city set Real humans for scale Kobayashi’s bath More humans Kobayashi Park (with lots of cats in the dumpster) Little Pilot’s crash (up close so you can see the newspaper print) Sumo! Temple of cats Kobayashi rally (this is surprisingly large) Science! “That dog has no smell” People with drummers Dogs Science bar Trash…

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A Quiet Place (2018): A masterful showcasing the power of silence

A Quiet Place (2018): A masterful showcasing the power of silence

Director: John Krasinski Writers: Bryan Woods (screenplay by), Scott Beck (screenplay by) | 3 more credits » Stars: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Noah Jupe, Millicent Simmonds “If they hear you, they hunt you”; the seemingly simple premise for A Quiet Place manages to bring out a lot of scares and a surprisingly engaging emotional drama to boot to what could have been a B movie horror. John…

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Isle of Dogs (2018) review: Audacious, futuristic rebellion adventure (with stop-motion dogs)

Isle of Dogs (2018) review: Audacious, futuristic rebellion adventure (with stop-motion dogs)

Director: Wes Anderson Writers: Wes Anderson (screenplay) Stars: Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton  In Japan, in the not-too-distant future, the dog-hating Mayor of Megasaki island has banished all dogs to nearby Trash Island. As part of the cat-loving Kobayashi dynasty the Mayor tells his citizens he is protecting them from the perils of Canine Flu and Sout Fever, which have infected…

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Veronica (2017) review: Claustrophobic and unnerving Spanish coming of age horror

Veronica (2017) review: Claustrophobic and unnerving Spanish coming of age horror

Director: Paco Plaza Writers:  Fernando Navarro, Paco Plaza Stars:  Sandra Escacena, Bruna González, Claudia Placer Set in Madrid in 1991 and based (extremely loosely) on true events, Veronica tells the chilling supernatural tale of the 15 year-old titular heroine and a series of unexplained events taking place over a few days. Veronica is the carer for her three younger siblings, while their…

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Paddington 2 (2017): A joyous future festive favourite

Paddington 2 (2017): A joyous future festive favourite

Director: Paul King Starring: Ben Whishaw, Hugh Grant, Sally Hawkins, Hugh Bonneville The 2014 Paddington film took everyone by surprise. Having had to recast the voice of Paddington himself when Colin Firth stepped away from the project, many already sceptical folk were worried the end product might be a bit of a mess. However it ended up being in many critics top ten lists of the year and Ben…

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Blade Runner 2049 (2017): A breathtakingly beautiful sci-fi sequel

Blade Runner 2049 (2017): A breathtakingly beautiful sci-fi sequel

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve Starring: Ryan Gosling, Robin Wright, Harrison Ford, Jared Leto, Ana De Armas, Sylvia Hoeks Ridley Scott’s 1982 dystopian sci-fi epic Blade Runner saw Harrison Ford playing Deckard, one of the titular blade runners, who had been tasked with hunting down and killing four replicants, (extremely life-like androids), who had escaped from the colonies and were now posing…

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The Limehouse Golem (2017): Gore and greasepaint in Old London Town

The Limehouse Golem (2017): Gore and greasepaint in Old London Town

Director: Juan Carlos Medina  Writers:  Peter Ackroyd (novel), Jane Goldman (screenplay) Stars: Olivia Cooke, Eddie Marsan, Douglas Booth , Maria Valverde, Daniel Mays, Bill Nighy, Set in the gloomy East End of London, The Limehouse Golem is a gory Victorian whodunnit with a gloriously twisted difference. Directed by Juan Carlos Medina (director of 2012 film Painless) the film is based on a 1994…

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Baby Driver (2017) review: Car Car Land*

Baby Driver (2017) review: Car Car Land*

Director: Edgar Wright Writer: Edgar Wright Stars: Ansel Elgort, Jon Bernthal, Jon Hamm  *I thought of this pun during the film, then was disappointed to discover Edgar Wright had already used it for an event he curated at the BFI. GREAT MINDS is what I say. It’s not stealing. Really. Synopsis: “A talented, young getaway driver (Ansel Elgort) relies on the beat of his personal soundtrack to be…

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My Cousin Rachel (2017) review: Weisz impresses in Du Maurier's classic 'Did she or didn't she?'

My Cousin Rachel (2017) review: Weisz impresses in Du Maurier’s classic ‘Did she or didn’t she?’

Director:  Roger Michell Writers:  Daphne Du Maurier (novel), Roger Michell (adaptation) Starring: Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Holliday Grainger Synopsis: “The story of a young Englishman, Philip (Claflin) who plots revenge against his mysterious, beautiful cousin, Rachel (Weisz), believing that she murdered his guardian. But his feelings become complicated as he finds himself falling under the…

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Lady Macbeth (2017) review: Macabre melodrama

Lady Macbeth (2017) review: Macabre melodrama

Director:  William Oldroyd Writers: Nikolai Leskov (based on the novel by), Alice Birch (screenplay)Starring: Florence Pugh, Naomi Ackie, Christopher Fairbank, Cosmo Jarvis Synopsis: “Rural England, 1865. Katherine is stifled by her loveless marriage to a bitter man twice her age, whose family are cold and unforgiving. When she embarks on a passionate affair with a young worker on her husband’s…

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Wonder Woman (2017): Kick-ass empowering comic-book fun

Wonder Woman (2017): Kick-ass empowering comic-book fun

Director: Patty Jenkins  Writers: Allan Heinberg (screenplay) Zack Snyder (story by)  Jason Fuchs Stars: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen  The plot synopsis “An Amazon princess, Diana, (Gal Gadot) finds her idyllic life on an island occupied only by female warriors interrupted when a pilot (Chris Pine) crash-lands nearby. After rescuing him, she learns that World War I is…

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I, Daniel Blake (2016) review: a passionate and gut-wrenching look at modern Britain

I, Daniel Blake (2016) review: a passionate and gut-wrenching look at modern Britain

Director: Ken Loach   Writer: Paul Laverty (screenplay) Stars: Dave Johns, Hayley Squires, Sharon Percy Ken Loach has long been a fearsome and tireless campaigner for political change, giving a voice to those in society who might otherwise be overlooked, through films which merge drama and reality. When ‘I, Daniel Blake’ won the BAFTA for Outstanding British Film Loach took the opportunity to…

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Free Fire (2017) review: A distinctly British twist on an American classic

Free Fire (2017) review: A distinctly British twist on an American classic

Director: Ben Wheatley  Writers: Amy Jump, Ben Wheatley Starring: Sam Riley, Michael Smiley, Brie Larson, Armie Hammer, Cillian Murphy, Sharlto Copley, Jack Reynor, Babou Ceesay and more… “An arms deal goes spectacularly and explosively wrong. Justine (Brie Larson) has brokered a meeting in a deserted warehouse between two Irishmen and a gang led by Vernon (Sharlto Copley) and Ord (Armie Hammer),…

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Mustang (2015) review: A powerful, magical feminist masterpiece

Mustang (2015) review: A powerful, magical feminist masterpiece

Director: Deniz Gamze Ergüven Writers: Deniz Gamze Ergüven, Alice Winocour Stars: Günes Sensoy, Doga Zeynep Doguslu, Tugba Sunguroglu Mustang is a film which (as is the case with many foreign language flicks) has taken a while to make its way over to the UK. First released in France back in June 2015, after a successful showing at Cannes, ‘Mustang’ was actually only released in select UK theatres…

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