Reviews by Jeff Robson

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Going South (2009)

  Review preview for Going South

  It’s tempting to summarise this review as: slap them, they’re French.

  Tensions flare as a group of four twenty-somethings take a road trip to the south of France.
• 
  Heartbeats (2010)

  Review preview for Heartbeats

  Dolan – in all his incarnations – has proved himself a name to watch here.

  Two close friends find the bond between them tested when both fall in love with the same man.
• 
  Senna (2010)

  Review preview for Senna

  The film’s undoubtedly a dream ride for any boy racer.

  Documentary about the three-times world champion Formula One driver.
• 
  Blitz (2011)

  Review preview for Blitz

  The film has some undoubted visual flair.

  A troubled, uncompromising detective tracks a serial killer targeting police officers.
• 
  The Way (2010)

  Review preview for The Way

  Quirky, moving and reflective, The Way also offers a long-overdue opportunity for a true screen icon to deliver a star turn.

  An American optician is prompted by family tragedy to undertake the ‘Camino’ pilgrimage to the Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela.
• 
  Water For Elephants (2011)

  Review preview for Water For Elephants

  The film’s an unashamedly full-on exercise in manipulating your emotions, giving you an event every five minutes and keeping Kleenex in business.

  An old man recounts his experiences with a travelling circus in the 1930s – and his love for the ringmaster’s wife.
• 
  Sweetgrass (2009)

  Review preview for Sweetgrass

  It plunges you right into a Midwest midwinter, where wind and snow scour a starkly beautiful landscape and a built-in woolly jumper is a prerequisite for survival.

  A year in the life of a flock of sheep and the people who tend to them.
• 
  Armadillo (2010)

  Review preview for Armadillo

  Always moving and often downright terrifying it reminds us once again of some uncomfortable truths.

  A documentary charting the experiences of Danish soldiers in Afghanistan.
• 
  Deadmeat (2011)

  Review preview for Deadmeat

  The budget limitations are painfully obvious and the dialogue wooden in the extreme.

  An ex-convict vows revenge on the gang who caused his brother’s death.
• 
  Terry (2011)

  Review preview for Terry

  There’s no doubt that Nevern captures the constant sense of danger, mixed with moments of anarchic exhilaration, that make up the world of people like Terry – the editing is frenetic and the soundtrack suitably pumped-up.

  A film student follows a small-time criminal for a college project.
• 
  Soul Men (2008)

  Review preview for Soul Men

  The two actors bring a wealth of experience and comic timing to their roles – Mac the constantly-hustling control freak riffs nicely off Jackson’s laid-back free spirit persona.

  Two soul singers are tempted out of retirement to perform at a tribute gig.
• 
  Zebra Crossing (2008)

  Review preview for Zebra Crossing

  Holland’s directing shows a lot or flair and promise, often finding a striking image or unusual angle in his stark cityscapes.

  A young man growing up in south London tries to escape from a life of crime and violence.
• 
  Frankie Boyle: If I Could Reach Through Your TV And Strangle You, I Would (2010)

  Review preview for Frankie Boyle: If I Could Reach Through Your TV And Strangle You, I Would

  His timing’s impeccable and he knows how to work an enormodrome like the Apollo as well as the most intimate upstairs room.

  Frankie Boyle’s latest (and, he says, last) stand-up tour, filmed at the Hammersmith Apollo.
• 
  Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - Part I (2010)

  Review preview for Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - Part I

  Yates conjures up a succession of ‘follow-that’ face-offs which equal the opening salvo for edge-of-the-seat bravura.

  As the forces of evil take over the wizarding community, Harry and his friends are forced to go on the run – and hunt down the magical items that could allow Voldemort to be destroyed.
• 
  Richard Herring: Hitler Moustache (2010)

  Review preview for Richard Herring: Hitler Moustache

  This is challenging comedy in the best sense.

  Richard Herring’s latest one-man show, about reclaiming the toothbrush moustache from its most infamous wearer.
• 
  127 Hours (2010)

  Review preview for 127 Hours

  If, like me, you’re a fully paid-up member of the Boyle fan club, this still has all the things you go to his movies for – imagination, heart, humour and a constant desire to try something new.

  The truer story of Aron Ralston, a climber who had to resort to desperate measures when trapped by a boulder.
• 
  It's Kind Of A Funny Story (2010)

  Review preview for It's Kind Of A Funny Story

  It’s kind of a good film, but it’s kind of an irritating one too.

  A New York teenager with suicidal tendencies strikes up friendships when he finds himself placed on the hospital’s adult psychiatric ward.
• 
  Stolen (2009)

  Review preview for Stolen

  One comes away from it with the definite sense that there’s a story here which needs to be told, but which a lot of powerful interests would rather remained hidden.

  Saharawi refugees in the Algerian desert speak out about slavery, and two filmmakers find themselves in unexpected danger.
• 
  The Ballad Of Mott The Hoople (2010)

  Review preview for The Ballad Of Mott The Hoople

  Ramshackle, poignant and very British but capturing the sheer joy of being allowed to make music and prat about on stage for a living.

  Mott the Hoople members Verden Allen, Dale Griffin, Mick Ralphs, Overend Watts and Ian Hunter tell the story of their band at a 2009 reunion gig.
• 
  Never Let Me Go (2010)

  Review preview for Never Let Me Go

  Never Let Me Go arrives trailing a lot of hype and carrying a considerable weight of expectation. Happily, it more than delivers.

  Adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's best-selling novel about love and loss.
• 
  The Nine Muses (2010)

  Review preview for The Nine Muses

  It’s definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, having more the feel of a gallery installation than a feature film.

  A poetic exploration of mass immigration in postwar Britain.
• 
  Howl (2010)

  Review preview for Howl

  The real standout performance is Franco’s.

  The story of Allen Ginsberg’s ground-breaking poem is told through a mixture of reconstruction and animation.
• 
  Amigo (2010)

  Review preview for Amigo

  A beautifully observed study of a small community remaining united in the face of seismic shifts.

  Set during the American-Philippine war as the head of a bario has to answer to both the Americans and the Filipino patriots, with deadly consequences.
• 
  Perrier's Bounty (2009)

  Review preview for Perrier's Bounty

  The plot meanders and doesn’t stand up well to scrutiny.

  A Dublin wastrel finds his troubles piling up when he attempts to pay off a debt to a gangster.
• 
  Bronco Bullfrog (1969)

  Review preview for Bronco Bullfrog

  A harsh but tender portrait of lives that are defined and confined by geography and circumstance.

  A young apprentice in late 60s East London drifts into petty crime and dreams of escape.
• 
  Salt (2010)

  Review preview for Salt

  If it weren’t so po-faced it might pass as a bit of good, guilty fun.

  A CIA agent goes on the run when a Russian defector names her as a deep cover assassin set to trigger a plot against the United States.
• 
  Wah Do Dem (2009)

  Review preview for Wah Do Dem

  If you’re in the mood for an original riff on a familiar tune, you could do worse than hop on board.

  A young American tourist is robbed in Jamaica and his attempts to reach the American Embassy in Kingston turn into a surreal odyssey.
• 
  The Man Who Would Be King (1975)

  Review preview for The Man Who Would Be King

  An amazing piece of work.

  Two schemers plot a coup in the Middle East.
• 
  In The Land of the Free... (2010)

  Review preview for In The Land of the Free...

  Jackson’s narrative, like the film as a whole, is committed but calm, letting the facts speak for themselves. And the mood and atmosphere of Louisiana, and America, in its most turbulent years is vividly conveyed.

  Probe into the case of the Angola 3 - who were convicted in the US of murdering a prison guard, despite no physical evidence or credible eye witnesses.
• 
  Vigo (1998)

  Review preview for Vigo

  While it doesn’t quite get to the heart of the enigma, it’s still a striking and heartfelt film in its own right.

  While being treated in a TB sanatorium, aspiring filmmaker Jean Vigo meets a beautiful fellow patient.
• 
  Cleo From 5 To 7 (1961)

  Review preview for Cleo From 5 To 7

  Many filmmakers would be happy to have this as their crowning glory; considered as a debut it’s little short of astonishing.

  A young French singer wanders the streets of Paris while waiting for the results of a cancer screening test.
• 
  Ditching (2009)

  Review preview for Ditching

  If you found The Road just that little bit too feelgood, then Ditching could be the film for you.

  In a post-apocalyptic Ulster, a group of travellers try to find vital medicine.
• 
  From Paris With Love (2010)

  Review preview for From Paris With Love

  Crass, lazy, predictable stuff.

  A low-ranking official at the US embassy in Paris teams up with a special agent to foil a terrorist plot.
• 
  Dirty Oil (2009)

  Review preview for Dirty Oil

  A committed but controlled piece of documentary film-making that makes its case in a sober, factual manner.

  A documentary investigation into a Canadian oil operation which campaigners claim is destroying the environment – and residents’ health.
• 
  Solomon Kane (2009)

  Review preview for Solomon Kane

  Solomon Kane has a respect for its source material and a willingness to balance its money shots with proper story-telling that transcend its genre limitations.

  A pirate who forfeits his soul to the Devil renounces evil but is forced to take up arms again to protect a Puritan family.
• 
  The Unloved (2009)

  Review preview for The Unloved

  A striking and inventive piece of work that many more experienced directors would give their right arms for.

  After being beaten by her father, a young girl is taken to a children’s home.
• 
  Sons Of Cuba (2009)

  Review preview for Sons Of Cuba

  Definitely one of the best pieces of ‘non-fiction cinema’ i’ve seen in a long while.

  Children at Havana’s state-run boxing academy prepare for the national championships.
• 
  Father Of My Children (2009)

  Review preview for Father Of My Children

  Hansen-Love prefers to make her points through gesture and nuance and the film is all the better for it.

  A French producer struggles to balance completing his roster of films with the demands of his young family.
• 
  OSS 117: Lost In Rio (2009)

  Review preview for OSS 117: Lost In Rio

  The team’s eye for a good sight gag and ear for an unwittingly crass pronouncement remains intact, as does their intimate knowledge of, and obvious affection for, the movies they’re sending up.

  A top French secret agent hunts a Nazi war criminal in Rio and meets a beautiful woman with an agenda of her own.
• 
  Crooked House (2008)

  Review preview for Crooked House

  Gatiss is obviously a born storyteller, with a knack for boiling a tale down to its essentials, but throwing in enough red herrings and incidental details to keep the viewer pleasantly puzzled.

  A cursed house draws three sets of characters through the ages.
• 
  Taking Woodstock (2009)

  Review preview for Taking Woodstock

  A loving and gently funny take on one of the defining moments of America’s counter-culture era.

  The story of the youngster who set the wheels in motion for the iconic music festival.
• 
  Bright Star (2009)

  Review preview for Bright Star

  A poignant and rewarding tale.

  The poet John Keats meets the woman who is to become the love of his life.
• 
  A Single Man (2009)

  Review preview for A Single Man

  Firth produces a subtle and deeply moving performance.

  A middle-aged college professor tries to come to terms with the death of his long-term boyfriend.
• 
  The Informant! (2009)

  Review preview for The Informant!

  Soderbergh has great fun playing with the conventions of the conspiracy thriller.

  A high-ranking executive contacts the FBI with details of price-fixing in the food industry. But their investigation reveals more than they bargained for.
• 
  Coffin Rock (2009)

  Review preview for Coffin Rock

  A garbled, unsatisfying mess that lacks any credibility or genuine suspense.

  A psychopath targets a woman who is seeking fertility treatment.
• 
  The Spell (2009)

  Review preview for The Spell

  A real misfire that ends up looking like a cross between a below-par Hammer House Of Horror episode and one of the ‘scary’ photo stories from Jackie.

  A young girl from a broken home becomes involved in black magic, with sinister results.
• 
  The Firm (2009)

  Review preview for The Firm

  The rucks have a grim, handheld intimacy which shows how clumsy, ugly and bloody terrifying a mass brawl can be.

  A teenager growing up in 1980s London falls under the spell of the charismatic leader of a ‘firm’ of football hooligans.
• 
  Marlene (1984)

  Review preview for Marlene

  Schell makes a virtue of necessity and constructs the film as a fragmented and elusive Chinese puzzle.

  An unconventional documentary about the life and work of the legendary German actress and singer.
• 
  The End - Confessions Of A Cockney Gangster (2008)

  Review preview for The End - Confessions Of A Cockney Gangster

  The names and job titles might read like a Guy Ritchie synopsis, but it soon becomes clear this is an altogether darker, more sober look at the criminal life.

  Members of the East End underworld talk about their life and times.
• 
  Man Of Iron (1981)

  Review preview for Man Of Iron

  A crucial historical document, but also a great film.

  At the height of the Solidarity movement, a Polish TV journalist is assigned by the government to undermine an independent trade union leader.