Reviews by Merlin Harries

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  The Act Of Killing (2012)

  Review preview for The Act Of Killing

  Unquestionably and understandably harrowing, in places unbearably so, this reflection upon acts of murder, genocide and torture, told by the perpetrators themselves, is a masterpiece.

  People responsible for the mass murder of suspeced Communists at the onset of the military regime in 1965 are challenged to restage their actions and question the pride they still take in them.
• 
  The Hangover Part III (2013)

  Review preview for The Hangover Part III

  Reckless, feckless and, above all, utterly irredeemable.

  The Wolfpack try to rescue their pal.
• 
  Perlasca: The Courage Of A Just Man (2002)

  Review preview for Perlasca: The Courage Of A Just Man

  The highest accolade one could bestow on Negrin’s production is that it is a worthy tribute to this incredible story.

  It is the real story of Giorgio Perlasca (Luca Zingaretti). During the 1920s he was an Italian Fascist supporter...
• 
  The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

  Review preview for The Place Beyond The Pines

  Cianfrance should be commended for offering audience something increasingly rare, something truly epic.

  On discovering that he has a baby son, a circus motorcycle stunt rider approaches responsibility by robbing banks, but runs afoul of a corrupt politician.
• 
  The Last Days Of Dolwyn (1949)

  Review preview for The Last Days Of Dolwyn

  An intriguing picture, with plenty of heart.

  Villagers mount a campaign after a water company threatens to flood them out.
• 
  Valley Of Song (1953)

  Review preview for Valley Of Song

  Valley Of Song is a pleasing if utterly unchallenging delight.

  A village competition leads to rivalry and romance in a local choir.
• 
  Rust And Bone (2012)

  Review preview for Rust And Bone

  Rust And Bone is the rarest of cinematic delights - poignant, provocative and profoundly visceral.

  A bare-knuckle boxer embarks on a relationship with an injured whale trainer.
• 
  The Walking Dead (2011)

  Review preview for The Walking Dead

  The Walking Dead has arguably marked a pivotal point of evolution in the horror genre; the discerning cinema-goer now shying away from the more pedestrian gore-fest, in favour of more meaningful character-driven narratives.

  Police officer Rick Grimes leads a group of survivors in a world overrun by zombies.
• 
  Our Paradise (2011)

  Review preview for Our Paradise

  Morel struggles to bring shallow and uneven characters to life in what is ultimately an awkward and outlandishly graphic drama.

  A murderous sex worker strikes up a bond with a youngster he meets by chance.
• 
  The Mission (2009)

  Review preview for The Mission

  Bratt delivers the performance of his career.

  A father in San Francisco's Mission District, struggles to come to terms with his son's sexuality.
• 
  The House By The Cemetery (1981)

  Review preview for The House By The Cemetery

  The House By The Cemetery will, as would be expected, offer viewers a shocking and gut-churning expose of Fulci’s directorial penchant for gore.

  A deranged killer lives in the basement of an old mansion and pops out occasionally to commit grisly murders that include beheadings...
• 
  In The Dark Half (2011)

  Review preview for In The Dark Half

  A hauntingly allegorical tale of grief and tragedy, the fiction feature debut of director Alastair Siddons is a chilling and poignant masterpiece.

  The lives of a young girl and a grief-stricken father are brought together and haunted by a death.
• 
  Snow White And The Huntsman (2012)

  Review preview for Snow White And The Huntsman

  A gripping, exhilarating rollick through a medieval wasteland.

  The huntsman ordered by a jealous queen to kill the young princess Snow White instead trains her as a warrior who can lead a rebel army.
• 
  How I Spent My Summer Vacation (2012)

  Review preview for How I Spent My Summer Vacation

  Gibson effortlessly resumes the back-talking bad-ass of Riggs and Porter with self-assured aplomb

  A tough criminal imprisoned in a foreign jail learns how to survive from a nine year old boy.
• 
  Battleship (2012)

  Review preview for Battleship

  If you’re looking for explosive, mind-boggling special-effects driven set-pieces coupled with broodingly patriotic one-liners from Neeson et al, you won’t be disappointed.

  A film based on the board game (yes board game) of the same name, in which a fleet of ships battle an unknown enemy.
• 
  Perfect Sense (2010)

  Review preview for Perfect Sense

  McGregor gives all the indications of a high-calibre Hollywood lead going through the motions to exercise his art house/indie proclivities, while Green’s turn as Susan the scientist is gauche and, at times, inexplicable.

  A chef and an epidemiologist fall in love, just as the world is falling apart.
• 
  Love On A Pillow (1962)

  Review preview for Love On A Pillow

  An enjoyable and whimsical romance

  A young woman falls for a suicidal man.
• 
  The String (2009)

  Review preview for The String

  Leaves a lingering sense of a TV movie punching above its weight.

  A closeted gay man finds himself under pressure from his over-bearing mother, who wants him to get married.
• 
  Lipstick On Your Collar (1993)

  Review preview for Lipstick On Your Collar

  Potter succeeds here in providing a truly imaginative and artistically inspired piece of television and, while the series eludes the tangible success of his previous work, it embodies some of his best writing and brilliantly creative verve.

  A Whitehall intelligence office clerk finds the Suez crisis can't compete with dreams of romance.
• 
  Lilith (1964)

  Review preview for Lilith

  The clear highpoint of Lilith is Seberg’s performance which carries the picture along.

  A troubled ex-soldier takes a job as a counsellor at a mental institution and finds himself falling for a patient.
• 
  The Andromeda Strain: The Complete Miniseries (2008)

  Review preview for The Andromeda Strain: The Complete Miniseries

  The pace of the story moves in almost Herculean strides and, in covering a complex plot at pace, it manages to avoid the common error of leaving the viewer behind.

  It’s a bad day to be human.
• 
  Love On The Ground (1984)

  Review preview for Love On The Ground

  The greatest achievement is perhaps that the far-reaching illusions constructed around the experience of the central characters do not distract from what is an enjoyable film.

  Jacques Rivette’s 1980s comedy mystery, where life imitates art.
• 
  Superbad (2007)

  Review preview for Superbad

  Though some of the jokes may border on the grotesque, this only adds to the flavour of what is a truly hilarious and entertaining movie.

  An ode to friendship in the final night of high-school leads to a party never to be forgotten.
• 
  Hell And High Water (1954)

  Review preview for Hell And High Water

  A genuinely enjoyable jaunt.

  Communist Cold War thriller, starring Richard Widmark as an ex-submarine captain turned mercenary.
• 
  Senso (1954)

  Review preview for Senso

  Though first impressions may hint towards a simple matinee romance, Senso is subversive in the extreme.

  Self-destructive period romance.
• 
  Great Expectations (1946)

  Review preview for Great Expectations

  The true mastery of Lean’s adaptation lies in the natural accentuation of human drama despite the pervading influence of social satire in Dickens' work.

  Classic adaptation of Dickens' novel about a orphan who finds a mystery inheritance propels him into high society.
• 
  Die Hard 4.0 (2007)

  Review preview for Die Hard 4.0

  In terms of action cinema you’d be hard pressed to find anything more visually stunning.

  John McClane takes on internet terrorists.
• 
  Murder! (1930)

  Review preview for Murder!

  For the fans of Hitchcock’s work it is always worth indulging in his early cinema if only to witness the evolving mastery of the genre.

  A man who helped convict a woman of murder becomes convinced by her innocence.
• 
  The Evil That Men Do (1984)

  Review preview for The Evil That Men Do

  Far too little action and far too much driving around.

  Charles Bronson's assassin comes out of retirement to avenge the death of a friend.
• 
  Tell Them Who You Are (2004)

  Review preview for Tell Them Who You Are

  A truly rare opportunity to take a very personal journey into the life of one of Hollywood’s greats.

  Acclaimed cinematographer Haskell Wexler is the subject of his son Mark’s documentary focussing on their complex relationship and his father’s illustrious career.
• 
  The Ozu Collection: Volume Four (2007)

  Fourth collection in the series, celebrates Ozu's later work, including Late Autumn and An Autumn Afternoon.
• 
  An Autumn Afternoon (1962)

  A father who is dependent on his daughter comes to realise that she needs to find a life of her own. Out to own as part of The Ozu Collection: Volume 4.
• 
  Late Autumn (1960)

  A widow tries to persuade her daughter to wed, even though it means she will be left alone. Re-released in cinemas in 2010.
• 
  Kidnapped (1971)

  Review preview for Kidnapped

  Without doubt a real winner.

  Fatalistic yet charming adventure yarn.
• 
  Unborn But Forgotten (2002)

  Review preview for Unborn But Forgotten

  A tacky and disappointing rip-off.

  Scary website kills pregnant women in South Korea!
• 
  Blade Runner: The Director's Cut (1982)

  Review preview for Blade Runner: The Director's Cut

  From the costumes to set design, Scott’s film remains without equal, retaining a timeless look for more than 20 years.

  Rick Deckard is a Blade Runner, an elite cop trained to hunt down and ‘retire’ rogue replicants, android beings designed to be ‘…more human than human’.
• 
  Quadrophenia (1979)

  Review preview for Quadrophenia

  If you’re after a movie to rock your world then Quadrophenia is the ticket.

  "I don't give a monkey's arsehole about Mods and Rockers. Underneath, we're all the same, 'n't we?" Special edition of the cult classic.
• 
  Funeral Parade Of Roses (1969)

  Review preview for Funeral Parade Of Roses

  A predictable twist on the old Greek legend.

  Sixties Japanese avante garde take on the Oedipus legend.
• 
  Battlestar Galactica: The Movie (1978)

  It's Star Wars, Jim, but not as we know it!
• 
  Prime (2005)

  Review preview for Prime

  If you’re planning a cosy night in with a movie you would be hard pressed to find a less engaging romantic comedy.

  A generation gap rom-com, with therapy, religion and good sex.
• 
  The Champions: The Complete Series Special Edition (1968)

  Review preview for The Champions: The Complete Series Special Edition

  Excels in not taking itself too seriously while offering a refreshingly imaginative collection of adventures.

  Sixties series mixing spy and sci-fi gets all-singing, all-dancing release.
• 
  Dylan Thomas: Return Journey (1990)

  One man show dedicated to the life of one of Britain’s greatest ever poets.
• Due South: The Complete Second Series (1995)

  A Canadian Mountie with superhuman detective abilities, a hard-nosed street cop from the Windy City and a deaf wolf. Together, they fight crime!
• The Hidden Blade (2004)

  Conflicts of love and loyalty for a good samurai.
• 
  Ab-normal Beauty (2004)

  Portrait of the artist as a troubled soul.
• 
  Seven Years In Tibet (1956)

  Review preview for Seven Years In Tibet

  The footage of his stay among the Tibetan nobility reflects the undeniable warmth and generosity of a people whose lives adopt an air of inherent tranquillity.

  True story of Heinrich Harrer, who escaped from a PoW camp over the Himalayas.
• 
  The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

  Review preview for The Hills Have Eyes

  Aja very sensibly stays true to Craven's initial vision but the sheer pace and intensity of some scenes will, I fear, force many of you to make rather poorly veiled trips for additional popcorn.

  A family fall foul of mutants in the desert.
• 
  V For Vendetta (2005)

  Review preview for V For Vendetta

  An entertaining action thriller that has lofty aspirations to be politically insightful and relevant.

  In the near future, Britain is a fascist state into which a mysterious, masked terrorist dares to fight fear with flames