One Sentence Films

Single sentence film and TV reviews.

[onesentencefilms]

The Judge (2014)

The Judge really doesn't do anything new - we've seen courtroom dramas before and plenty of rural, black-sheep-come-home dramas for that matter too; but with a cast this strong all you need is a good story to watch them play out and that is where The Judge delivers, with Robert Downey Jr. giving his best performance this side of Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang (2005) and holding his own against Robert Duvall and a cast of character actor heavyweights including Vincent D'Onofrio, Vera Farmiga and a delightfully unlikeable Billy Bob Thornton.

[onesentencefilms]

Sabotage (1936)

Hitchcock later felt he'd made a mistake in his handling of the key set piece in this film but I think he was being too hard on himself - when you watch it today you can criticise some of the acting (Oscar Homolka 'waking up' is comically over-acted) but the London locations are well used and Hitchcock's decisions and their impact on his small cast still have an emotional impact.

[onesentencefilms]

The Canyons (2013)

In The Canyons Bret Easton Ellis provided the screenplay (a sexy, dark Hollywood tale of jealousy, mistrust and control) and Paul Schrader directed (I particularly like an early, overhead tracking shot along a bar) but the two creative forces don’t seem to gel and neither does Lindsay Lohan who gives a decent enough performance but is acted under the table by porn superstar James Deen who, as Christian, is a revelation; and while it looks great, has an excellent soundtrack and is much better than the critics would have you believe, it just isn’t as good as it should be, although millennials who don’t like the story can always enjoy playing spot the porn star (or film director) among the supporting cast.

[onesentencefilms]

Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)

Barbara Stanwyck gives possibly her best performance in this beautifully shot, gripping and intense film noir where bravura tracking shots rival those of Max Ophüls, Dario Argento or even Brian De Palma; but it is her performance around which the film revolves and that moved me from intensely disliking her character to feeling genuine sympathy for her in the film’s final, frantic minutes.

[onesentencefilms]

Cosmopolis (2012)

David Cronenberg is the master of bringing unfilmable books to the screen (Naked Lunch (1991), Crash (1996), Spider (2002)) and, like the book that inspired it, Cosmopolis is a difficult proposition with dense dialogue, characters kept at a distance, the ever-present possibility of violence and the creeping sense that at any moment things will fall apart but it's also Cronenberg's most stylish film since eXistenZ (1999) and in its darkness is a compellingly watchable tale of our times delivered by a stellar supporting cast and an outstanding Robert Pattinson.

[onesentencefilms]

Elizabethtown (2005)

Strangely unpopular on its release, Elizabethtown has the stellar soundtrack that we've come to expect from Cameron Crowe’s pictures but it is also a playfully quirky, feel-good romance that isn't afraid to venture into darker emotional territory; and while some people write off Dunst’s character as a generic manic pixie dream girl I actually really like her in this.

[onesentencefilms]

Maniac (2012)

In Sin City (2005), Elijah Wood proved he could play a convincingly dark character and here he goes much further - Maniac has a good score and is shot in an original, if slightly gimmicky, POV style similar to Robert Montgomery's Lady in the Lake (1947), but it is also a graphically violent, extremely dark portrait of a seriously deranged young man and as difficult to watch as you might imagine.

[onesentencefilms]

Bojack Horseman | Season 1 (2014)

Bojack Horseman, star of the 1990s sitcom Horsin’ Around, is now an alcoholic has-been actor desperately trying to get his career back on track and, as we follow his day to day life and get to know his inner circle, we experience one of the sharpest and (laugh-out-loud) funniest satires of Hollywoo(d) and modern American culture in years.

[onesentencefilms]

Trailer Tuesday | Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Official Teaser

The name strikes me as slightly unwieldy and this teaser, full of well-to-do British accents, brooding looks and hints of Star Wars music, really doesn't give much away or, sadly, leave me all that excited despite the return of ATATs.

[onesentencefilms]

Ex Machina (2015)

For his directorial debut, writer Alex Garland delivered an intelligent and thought-provoking sci-fi masterpiece that proved that not only can he deliver on story but that he truly understands the visual side of cinema and how to create an atmosphere that keeps the viewer guessing.

[onesentencefilms]

The X Files S10 E01 | My Struggle (2016)

I worried that The X Files wouldn’t translate to the present day but the show works as well as ever because the shadowy government and big brother surveillance that was fiction in the show's earlier seasons is now reality; because the brilliant chemistry between the returning cast has not faded; and because the show acknowledges the years off the air so the characters are now older, a little more weary and while they still want to believe, they’ll take a lot more convincing this time round – The X Files works because it has aged with its audience and changed with the times while staying true to its origins.

[onesentencefilms]

Permissive (1970)

Permissive is let down by poor characterisation, uneven pacing and some laughably poor dialogue (never has the word ‘man’ be overused so much in such a short space of time, man); and while some of its stylistic flourishes work, the setting is moderately interesting and some of the songs (provided by forgotten British rock bands of the period) are pleasant enough, I have the feeling it will be of interest mainly as a relatively watchable time capsule of a now lost London rather than an entertainment.

[onesentencefilms]

Dredd 3D (2012)

Forget the Stallone adaptation, with excellent utilisation of 3D, stylish visuals, creative action sequences and a compelling, contained setting, Keith Urban and Olivia Thirlby bring Alex Garland’s tightly plotted script to life in the Dredd movie we’d been waiting for.

[onesentencefilms]

Best of Enemies (2015)

If embarrassingly petty, extremely pretentious pseudo-intellectuals belittling each other’s intelligence is your thing then this documentary on the television sparring of William F. Buckley Jr. and Gore Vidal will be of interest; for everyone else the put downs and inherent interest of the politics of the 1960s should make it worth your time; for political junkies it’s a must-watch.

[onesentencefilms]

Featuring beautifully designed images and a very literary narrator, Todd Field’s Little Children masterfully explores the repressed desires and frustrated ambitions of suburban captives Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson, but in a sea of perfect performances it is Jackie Earle Haley who steals the show as Ronnie and becomes the most sympathetic character.

[onesentencefilms]

Le Mépris | Contempt (1963)

Beautifully photographed by Raoul Coutard and with an instantly recognisable score by Georges Delerue, Bardot gives her career-best performance in Godard’s masterpiece which takes autobiographical elements, including a failing marriage and crass, interfering Hollywood producers, to create his best film and only flirtation with big budget, mainstream cinema.

[onesentencefilms]

Suspiria (1977)

Truly a love or hate film, Dario Argento’s Suspiria is a visually stunning assault on the senses; featuring one of the best opening sequences in cinema and probably horror’s greatest soundtrack, it is equal parts fairy tale and art film with a bold colour palette and an atmosphere that grips from the very first frame.