Change Your Image
rogercreagh-617-800434
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
The Go-Between (1971)
Establishment Twaddle
Belongs with Wuthering Heights and Brief Encounter (and many more) as English establishment nostalgic propaganda for the status quo.
Its all ok cos sometimes relationships across class divides are fruitful. Social mobility is possible so snobbery is ok.
No basis is given for any kind of relationship between the Bates character and the Christie one - apart from people saying "he's a bit of a ladies man" - so presumably she is bound to fall for him. The toffs are all unpleasant (to each other and as people) and the plebs are caricatures. (the shot of them sitting on a bench watching the cricket match is particularly insulting).
There is nothing of merit here.
Bait (2019)
Nails the problem with bleddy second home owners trashing our communities
Technically a fascinating piece of film making using B&W and unusual choice of shots to provide an elliptical view of the narrative with space for the viewer to consider. As with reality there is no absolute truth here.
As a story about the interaction between the characters it has considerable subtlety and shows all the participants as essentially flawed and very human.
As a story about the major issue of the way the tourism "industry" trashes our communities, distorts our home lives, and creates massive suppressed resentment against those who come across the Tamar for two weeks or two months and make no contribution it is a powerful contribution.
By and large the behaviour of all of the visitors is at best deeply patronising and arrogant - just like real life.
The sooner we get rid of these parasites the better. And I imagine that the same feelings exist everywhere that tourists go, it is not a problem peculiar to Cornwall, although it is probably at its worst in the UK here.
Stalker (1979)
Has not stood the test of time
Considering I have been wanting to see this for nearly forty years it was a huge disappointment. Nothing happens. There is no meaning. There is no drama. There is almost no story. Nothing is explained. It is tedious beyond belief. The mis-en-scene which may have seemed innovative in 1979 is now tired and done far better in many recent film and tv dramas. How did the director of Andrei Rublev sink to this?