#philip french

[silentlondon]

Young cinema

This week, I had the honour of delivering the Philip French Memorial Lecture at the Cinema Rediscovered festival in Bristol. Due to the strange times that we are living in, the lecture was livestreamed as well as being held in person at the Watershed Cinema. My task for the lecture was to talk about the role of critics in reframing film heritage. I spoke a little about Silent London, and also…

View On WordPress

[nextwavefutures]

The Runaway Bride (1999)

The Runaway Bride (1999)

Moments #1. I keep forgetting which films I see, so here’s a small project. In the spirit of the film critic Manny Farber, who thought that film was about moments, I’m going to try to do a short post about a particular moment in the film when I watch something. Think of it as a deliberate strategy to try not to write too much.

The Runaway Brideteams up Richard Gere and Julia Roberts nine years…

View On WordPress

[susurrus-of-my-mind]

In an era of increasingly anonymous, score-driven critical consensus, the distinctive analytical voice of Philip French will be sorely missed. Although we never met, his generous championing of my early work was vital in helping my films get noticed at a time when I didn’t have access to marketing budgets and wide distribution. His passing is a great loss for everyone who cares about film, but particularly for today’s emerging film-makers, who might have benefited from his thoughtful, considered writing as I did.

Christopher Nolan remembering famous British film critic Philip French (August 28, 1933 - October 27, 2015)

[video-jam]

Lift to the Scaffold (or Elevator to the Gallows if you’re in the US), ‘the first movie of the French New Wave’ (Philip French), is on new release and has been touring cinemas in the UK. Its success has been largely attributed to a bleak score from Miles Davis, described by jazz critic Phil Johnson as "the loneliest trumpet sound you will ever hear, and the model for sad-core music ever since. Hear it and weep."

Incredibly, the music was improvised in its entirety during the course of a single night. Davis gave the musicians only a few rudimentary harmonic sequences he had assembled, and, once the plot was explained by its director Louis Malle, the band improvised without any precomposed theme, while edited loops of the musically relevant film sequences were projected in the background. Jason Wood (new film programmer for HOME in Manchester) notes in this article that ‘work continued from 10 at night until five in the morning, the music amounting to about 18 minutes in total in the film (a 2003 soundtrack reissue later compiled a further 40 minutes of out-takes), scored directly to screen.’

See a (brilliant) trailer for the film here. 

[iamdoingmydegree]

Tamara Drewe (2010) review by Philip French at the Guardian

[existimatum]

Philip French’s “The World’s End—Review” Is Well Written and Satisfying

★★★⅓☆

3.43 stars for Philip French’s 334‑word review of “The World’s End” on Observer [UK]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/jul/21/the-worlds-end-review

Philip French’s “The World’s End—review” is a fulfilling adventure for the senses. With its occasional pictorial nuances teamed up with a wise length, this review does not ruffle too many feathers.

French slips and spills the beans on perhaps the main plot twist this movie has but he doesn’t go into a full-blown massacre of details. ‘Tis but a scratch that heals up quickly as French moves right along to the core of his review.

Readers will have an excellent picture in mind of this film while on their way to the theaters. French’s use of vernacular such as “boozy” and “dreary” light up the proceedings and will spark the imaginations of his audience. French clearly knows how to work his way around with words.  

For those who enjoy a review brought to life with colorful words to paint a picture, this is the review for them. The faux pas that French commits in revealing the twist is quickly hidden behind the curtain, with a distraction of character analysis and cliffhanger hints to try to make up for it all.

The trailer that is at the helm of this review contains the spoiler that French faltered on—but in much greater detail. Readers will have to watch at their own risk.

Buy Tickets: fandango.com/theworldsend_159769

Original Post: e.xst.ma/tm/64N5

More Reviews: e.xst.ma/t/m/770783489

Rotten Tomatoes: rottentomatoes.com/m/770783489

IMDB: imdb.com/title/1213663

[existimatum]

French’s “Kick-Ass 2—Review” Too Bitter to Swallow

★★½☆☆

2.5 stars for Philip French’s 238‑word review of “Kick-Ass 2” on Observer [UK]

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/aug/18/kick-ass-2-philip-french

Philip French’s “Kick-Ass 2—review” may take an extra moment to figure out. The opening sequence is confusing to say the least. French describes a situation to the audience but it ultimately just leaves the audience dumbfounded. Is he trying to be witty? Is he telling a joke? What is going on is not clear and one may be forced to reread the intro a few times over to catch what he was throwing. This reviewer did so, but with no success.

French gets to reviewing the movie and it starts to feels like everything is falling into place. Finally. Except French does all but expose key scenes in the film. And out of nowhere too! He doesn’t even bother to warn the reader. It’s just thrown in the middle and completely blindsides the reader.

French can write but he wastes his talent on confusing attempts of humor. The tone turns bitter quickly and can be off-putting.

Readers who want to read a review that is clear and without some MAJOR spoilers should just move right along. French completely misses the point here—maybe his bitterness was too strong for him this time around.

Buy Tickets: fandango.com/kickass2_157960

Original Post: e.xst.ma/tm/95PL

More Reviews: e.xst.ma/t/m/771313870

Rotten Tomatoes: rottentomatoes.com/m/771313870

IMDB: imdb.com/title/1650554

[existimatum]

Philip French’s Lackluster “I Give It a Year—Review” Falls Short

★★⅓☆☆

2.38 stars for Philip French’s 221‑word review of “I Give It a Year” on Observer [UK]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/feb/10/give-it-a-year-review

Philip French’s “I Give It a Year—review” opens with a literary quote about marriage that draws in his readers. This is the high water mark for the review, and it fails to ever come close again. The review falls short and delivers a less than desirable outcome.

French does well to use strong, bold language when conveying his displeasure of the film but he fails to back up these convictions of his with specific examples. The review is half-baked and doughy on the inside. Its feels like French is attempting to do little more than confirm a belief that he feels his audience already has. As if they‘ve already seen the film and agree with him.

With its lack of detail and un-reasoned conclusions, there is little that will be missed by not reading this review. There is no consistency and French does little to branch off from the foundation he set in the beginning. Feel free to toss this write up in the lackluster review bin.

The final word of the review, through a formatting quirk, appears to be completely disconnected from the rest of the review’s body. This lack of care is sadly indicative of the whole review. One would do well to stay as disconnected with this review as the final word.

Buy Tickets: fandango.com/igiveitayear_164027

Original Post: e.xst.ma/tm/6S4N

More Reviews: e.xst.ma/t/m/771307235

Rotten Tomatoes: rottentomatoes.com/m/771307235

IMDB: imdb.com/title/2244901