Reviews by Owen Van Spall

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Into The Abyss: A Tale Of Death, A Tale Of Life (2011)

  Review preview for Into The Abyss: A Tale Of Death, A Tale Of Life

  An intriguing if uneven journey into a strange, violent and very sad part of modern America.

  Werner Herzog's powerful exploration of violence and its consequences, told through Death Row inmates and others close to their crimes.
• 
  Iron Sky (2011)

  Review preview for Iron Sky

  Sadly, there is not a funny enough script or any particularly amusing performance to provide a backbone to hang the visualisations on, leaving Iron Sky as a more of a showcase for what low-budget filmmaking can achieve in terms of effects.

  Nazis return from a 70-year sabbatical on the Moon back to Earth, where they plan to violently return to power.
• 
  It Follows (2014)

  Review preview for It Follows

  A simple but compelling dynamic... the execution is superb.

  A teenager finds herself having strange visions and becomes convinced that something dangerous is following her.
• 
  I Come With The Rain (2008)

  Review preview for I Come With The Rain

  Though directors should be praised for being willing to experiment with genre, Tran Anh Hung's effort simply doesn't coalesce.

  A former cop goes on the hunt for a missing boy.
• 
  Ilo Ilo (2013)

  Review preview for Ilo Ilo

  Ilo Ilo is a quietly assured first feature that marks the director out as a bright new talent.

  A family struggles to deal with the impact of the financial crisis.
• 
  The Imitation Game (2014)

  Review preview for The Imitation Game

  The kind of period drama that screams “festival launch” but doesn’t trust its audience enough to tell its story subtly or with any surprises.

  Alan Turing helps crack the Enigma code.
• 
  Inherent Vice (2014)

  Review preview for Inherent Vice

  This is the tail end of the good times, Doc and his cohort seem as though they are fading out.

  A drug-fuelled detective investigates the disappearance of an ex-girlfriend.
• 
  The Interrupters (2011)

  Review preview for The Interrupters

  Fascinating, haunting and often very tense, The Interrupters is a solid piece of social comment that gets the camera intimately into the action, and it suffers only in that such an issue demands more be brought into the camera's scope.

  A story of ex-gang members who are now protecting their communities from the violence they themselves once employed.
• 
  In A World... (2013)

  Review preview for In A World...

  Despite the idiosyncratic characters, smart insider observations and interesting setting there are also too many laugh moments relying on off-the-shelf stereotypes.

  An underachieving vocal coach is motivated by her father, the king of movie-trailer voice overs, to pursue her aspirations of becoming a voice-over star.
• 
  It's A Wonderful Afterlife (2010)

  Review preview for It's A Wonderful Afterlife

  The result of this clunky genre mash is at best endearingly silly, working most successfully when approached with no critical faculties operating at all.

  A middle class suburban widow would kill to see her daughter married - literally!
• 
  I, Anna (2012)

  Review preview for I, Anna

  Given the Rampling family pedigree there are certain expectations of quality, and Southcombe largely lives up to the promise with this sharply stylish crime mystery that gives plenty of space for Rampling to flex her acting muscles.

  A detective falls for a woman who may be mixed up in a murder case.
• 
  Jason Bourne (2016)

  Review preview for Jason Bourne

  The powerfully cathartic ending of The Bourne Ultimatum is a long shadow to get out of, and this film never quite manages it.

  Bourne tries to uncover the secrets from his past.
• 
  Jayne Mansfield's Car (2012)

  Review preview for Jayne Mansfield's Car

  Brought up a notch by a fine cast, some genuinely funny scenes and a curious darker streak that lies beneath the laughs.

  Sixties set drama sees a culture clash between two families.
• 
  Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)

  Review preview for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

  So riddled with logic gaps, dumb character decisions and simple confusion about how we should view the entire conceit, that the actual genetic recreation of dinosaurs from 65 million years ago starts looking believable in comparison.

  When Owen and Claire return to Isla Nublar, they stumble on a conspiracy that threatens the Earth.
• 
  Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)

  Review preview for Jodorowsky's Dune

  Jodorowsky, amazingly vigorous at 84, is never anything less than captivating, funny, and passionate when on screen.

  A documentary about Alejandro Jodorowsky's failed attempt to adapt Frank Herbert's famous science fition novel Dune for the big screen.
• 
  Joe (2013)

  Review preview for Joe

  An evocative sense of place is one of the film’s strongest aspects, though it features three excellent lead performances.

  When an ex-con meets a teenager who looks to him for inspiration, he has to decide, once and for all, what to do with his life.
• 
  Julia's Eyes (2010)

  Review preview for Julia's Eyes

  Though his film is beautifully shot and well acted, Morales sadly lets things fall apart somewhat in the last third.

  A young woman who is slowly losing her sight fears she is being stalked as she investigates the death of her sister.
• 
  The Keeping Room (2014)

  Review preview for The Keeping Room

  An artfully constructed and effective thriller with a feminist spine.

  On the American frontier a young woman is forced to go to any means to defend her kin from the ravages of the barbaric outside world.
• 
  Keyhole (2011)

  Review preview for Keyhole

  It's surreal, impenetrable, hysterical, stylish, ludicrous, it's more like a dream or a train of thought from Maddin's mind, beamed right onto celluloid.

  A criminal undertakes a surreal and supernatural journey through his own house.
• 
  Keep The Lights On (2012)

  Review preview for Keep The Lights On

  A gently paced but unsparing and unglamorous portrait of a gay relationship where love doesn't and perhaps never could conquer all.

  An autobiographically inspired story of a passionate long-term relationship between two men driven by addiction and secrets but bound by love and hopefulness.
• 
  Kill List (2011)

  Review preview for Kill List

  Kill List manages to blend its study of friendship, masculinity, violence and family with a hitman road movie wrapped inside a horror mystery. This is quite some achievement.

  A hitman's moral compass becomes badly skewed.
• 
  The Kings Of Summer (2013)

  Review preview for The Kings Of Summer

  A sweet and relatable film with an evocative setting, ultimately very hard to dislike.

  Three teenagers decide to build a fort and live wild.
• 
  Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter (2014)

  Review preview for Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter

  As Kumiko’s journey takes her deeper into Minnesota, the breathtaking ‘Americana’ landscapes and intriguingly surreal score work together to suggest a heightened state, or a fable.

  A young Japanese woman obsessed with Fargo heads to Minnesota in search of lost treasure.
• 
  Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck (2015)

  Review preview for Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck

  Morgen creates a vivid, colourful and quite poignant rush through a life that was, at once, explosively creative and deeply troubled.

  Portrait of the Nirvana frontman, featuring home video footage.
• 
  Legend (2015)

  Review preview for Legend

  The fast pacing allied to some dark humour and a few absurd moments certainly makes for entertaining viewing, even though over time you keep waiting for the film to hit some deeper note.

  The story of gangsters the Kray twins.
• 
  The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby (1947)

  Review preview for The Life And Adventures Of Nicholas Nickleby

  If this rather workmanlike adaptation has any standout aspects, it is probably the performance of Cedric Hardwicke as Ralph.

  A teacher on his uppers absconds from a workhouse with a persecuted child.
• 
  Lilting (2014)

  Review preview for Lilting

  Minor quibbles aside, this is a strikingly confident, graceful and sensitive piece of work.

  A bereaved mother and the boyfriend of her son find a connection.
• 
  Late Night (2019)

  Review preview for Late Night

  Ganatra’s film falls short in many ways despite having the best of intentions.

  A late-night talk show host’s world is turned upside down when she hires her only female staff writer. Originally intended to smooth over diversity concerns, her decision has unexpectedly hilarious consequences as the two women separated by culture and generation are united by their love of a biting punchline.
• 
  La La Land (2016)

  Review preview for La La Land

  This film might wear its heart on its sleeve, but it is technically slick, well-acted, and laced with ear-friendly tunes. It is, in short, a proper musical.

  A jazz pianist falls for an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.
• 
  Leave No Trace (2018)

  Review preview for Leave No Trace

  One thing I particularly enjoyed was that it balances its study of Will with an exploration of Tom’s coming of age, while never making Will’s decision to drop out morally clear-cut.

  A father and daughter find themselves searching for a place to call their own after their off-the-grid lives are discovered by the authorities.
• 
  Lizzie (2018)

  Review preview for Lizzie

  This is a grim, austere story of the pressure cooker of frustration, rage and fear that results when the patriarchy squeezes just as tight as the corsets of the time.

  Lays bare the legend of Lizzie Borden to reveal the much more complex, poignant and truly terrifying woman within — and her intimate bond with the family’s young Irish housemaid, Bridget Sullivan.
• 
  The Losers (2010)

  Review preview for The Losers

  Clichéd archetypes these characters might be, but the cast playing them are immensely likeable and, most importantly, funny.

  A special forces team are out for vengeance after being left for dead by their handler.
• 
  The Lost Bladesman (2011)

  Review preview for The Lost Bladesman

  It is a shame that this lushly shot martial arts epic suffers from a confusing plot and some awkward dialogue that overwhelms good performances, fine action scenes and a dark take on the often glorified Chinese warlord period.

  A legendary warrior struggles to break free of the warlord who hopes to control him.
• 
  The Look Of Silence (2014)

  Review preview for The Look Of Silence

  A haunting and powerful piece of work that, with its altered focus, complements The Act Of Killing as opposed to feeling like a simple extended edition of that film.

  Consideration of Indonesian genocide.
• 
  Lost And Found (2010)

  Review preview for Lost And Found

  A quiet, gentle film that encourages reflection.

  A series of stories are linked by people visiting the lost and found office in a railway station.
• 
  The Lost Weekend (1945)

  Review preview for The Lost Weekend

  Milland is rarely off screen, and his work here is every bit worth that Academy award.

  The desperate life of a chronic alcoholic is followed through a four day drinking bout.
• 
  Lupe Under The Sun (2015)

  Review preview for Lupe Under The Sun

  Reyes establishes a sense of the well-worn ritual that Lupe has acclimatised to, as well as showcasing the restraints on his existence due to poverty and his outsider status.

  Portrait of a Mexican migrant who spent his life working in California, away from his family back home.
• 
  Lymelife (2008)

  Review preview for Lymelife

  While it might be a bit too heavy handed in terms of symbolism and part of a very crowded genre, Lymelife isn't guilty of any major sins either.

  Set in the 1970s, a unique take on the dangers of the American dream seen through the innocent eyes of a 15-year-old boy.
• 
  Madonna (2015)

  Review preview for Madonna

  This gloomy film certainly has the power of its rage and anguish, but it could have used some restraint too.

  When a Jane Doe is marked for heart transplant a nurse tries to find out about her life.
• 
  Make More Noise! Suffragettes in Silent Film

  Review preview for Make More Noise! Suffragettes in Silent Film

  An illuminating and funny compilation of 21 silent-era archival pieces.

  Archive footage from 1899-1917 showing women on film.
• 
  The Man From Nowhere (2010)

  Review preview for The Man From Nowhere

  Not without its clichés and flaws, but it is gripping, kinetic entertainment from start to finish.

  An ex-con is drawn back into drug smuggling after a family is kidnapped.
• 
  The Martian (2015)

  Review preview for The Martian

  The Martian’s real strength lies in its good-natured attitude.

  An astronaut becomes stranded on a mission to Mars.
• 
  Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House of God (2012)

  Review preview for Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House of God

  Gibney assembles interview subjects who offer a fascinating insight into how the Vatican functions behind its large exterior walls.

  Fresh scrutiny of child abuse in the Catholic Church, with deaf victims bearing witness.
• 
  Milius (2013)

  Review preview for Milius

  It is the duality in the myth that makes Milius so fascinating, regardless of what you think of his politics.

  A look at the life of filmmaker, John Milius.
• 
  Mademoiselle Chambon (2009)

  Review preview for Mademoiselle Chambon

  Mademoiselle Chambon will appeal more to those who prefer their 'affair drama' narratives slow-burning and the characters almost painfully restrained.

  Jean, his loving wife and son live a simple, happy life. At his son's homeroom teacher Madamoiselle Chambon's request, he volunteers as substitute teacher and starts to fall for her delicate and elegant charm.
• 
  Mandy (2018)

  Review preview for Mandy

  The film only lives up to about 80% of the promise whereas I wanted 150%.

  Pacific Northwest. 1983. Outsiders Red Miller and Mandy Bloom lead a loving and peaceful existence. When their haven is savagely destroyed by a cult, Red is catapulted into a phantasmagoric journey filled with bloody vengeance.
• 
  Meek's Cutoff (2010)

  Review preview for Meek's Cutoff

  Along with her eye for composition, Reichardt also deserves praise for the focus on the smaller period details.

  Drama tracks a wagon train on the 1840s Oregon Trail.
• 
  Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence (1983)

  Review preview for Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence

  Bowie and Sakamoto acquit themselves well, their otherworldly appearance and rougher edges in acting ability feel quite appropriate for the characters they are playing - outsiders.

  Study of brutality in a Japanese PoW camp
• 
  Metropolis (1927)

  Review preview for Metropolis

  The restored footage adds much more to the experience that is Metropolis.

  In a future city strictly divided into rulers and ruled, a rich young man falls in love with a revolutionary from the forbidden depths. Reconstructed and restored and back on re-release this autumn.
• 
  Midnight Son (2011)

  Review preview for Midnight Son

  Midnight Son is atypical, funny and intriguing.

  Twisted romance with a vampiric edge.