Reviews by Paul Griffiths

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  The City Of Violence (2007)

  Review preview for The City Of Violence

  Despite some crunching, frenetic fight scenes in the denouement, City of Violence is unfortunately a lacklustre affair.

  Casinos and corruption in Korean crime thriller.
• 
  The Hitcher (2007)

  Review preview for The Hitcher

  Bush and Knighton are underwhelming.

  The thumb's out for a second time around the block.
• Pervert! (2005)

  Review preview for Pervert!

  This is strictly for the cheap booze-addled and maturity-lite brigade.

  The flaccid spirit of Russ Meyer lives on - just.
• 
  Typhoon (2005)

  Review preview for Typhoon

  It all amounts to an overly busy mish-mash.

  Blustering Korean action adventure with political undertones.
• 
  Fearless Hyena (1979)

  Review preview for Fearless Hyena

  Chan delivers a martial arts film of truly dazzling fight sequences that proves his physical and technical prowess, whilst injecting something very un-Lee, something very Chan. The humour.

  A gem from Jackie Chan’s fast-punching back catalogue.
• 
  Hand of Death (1976)

  Quality period kung fu with some modern day masters.
• 
  The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros (2005)

  Review preview for The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros

  A tender, temperately dramatic look at a young person exploring his burgeoning feelings and adolescent sexuality.

  Low budget, endearing look at a young boy’s first crush.
• 
  Black Christmas (2006)

  Review preview for Black Christmas

  There are only a couple of jolts, assisted by a screamishly loud soundtrack, and as for the gore rating, it is laughable compared to other recent horror releases.

  Remake of the original festive 1974 slasher horror flick.
• 
  CSA: The Confederate States Of America (2004)

  What if the American south had won the Civil War?
• 
  To Die In San Hilario (2005)

  Review preview for To Die In San Hilario

  As the inevitability of events tips towards simple life lessons you realise this slice of entertainment is weaker than it promised to be.

  A gangster finds new life in a town waiting for him to die.
• 
  Big Bang Love: Juvenile A (2006)

  Boy meets boy in a surreal prison for convicted murderers.
• 
  Sword Of Doom (1966)

  Review preview for Sword Of Doom

  A film of exceptional power and beauty, with panning landscapes, intense close ups and inventive angles combined with a masterful command of broodingly lit and shaded cinematography.

  Dark tale of a lone, deadly samurai.
• 
  The IT Crowd (2006)

  Review preview for The IT Crowd

  All seven episodes had me laughing out loud a couple of times.

  Channel 4 comedy about computer support staff.
• 
  Sleeping Dogs (2006)

  Review preview for Sleeping Dogs

  The real power lies in his singularly creative script.

  An offbeat indie comedy about love, lies and your pets.
• 
  Branded To Kill (1967)

  Japanese surrealist hitman tale from the 1967.
• 
  Romanzo Criminale (2006)

  Review preview for Romanzo Criminale

  At nearly two and half hours long Placido has gone for an epic Italian sweep of friendship, violence and political corruption.

  Gritty tale of organised crime and murky Italian politics.
• 
  Black Book (2006)

  Paul Verhoeven returns to Europe for an epic wartime tale.
• 
  A Comedy Of Power (2006)

  Review preview for A Comedy Of Power

  A polished, satisfyingly involving whole that avoids any mainstream trappings and credits the audience with intelligence and maturity.

  Investigating fraud amongst France's fattest fat cats.
• 
  A Good Year (2006)

  Review preview for A Good Year

  Crowe's too substantial a lead man to fit into these Hugh Grant-ish shoes.

  Gentle drama about a ruthless investment banker who inherits his uncle's French estate.
• 
  Scenes Of A Sexual Nature (2006)

  Review preview for Scenes Of A Sexual Nature

  Light and dissatisfying.

  Everyone's at it on Hampstead Heath.
• 
  The Grudge 2 (2003)

  Review preview for The Grudge 2

  Trying to terrify you with nothing more than a wig knocks any serious attempt at the frighteners out the window.

  The chain of J-horror continues. Shimizu's original sequel is out to own on double-disc DVD just in time for his US remake.
• 
  Relative Strangers (2006)

  Review preview for Relative Strangers

  A painful watch.

  An adopted son finds his real parents and more than he had hoped for.
• 
  The Page Turner (2006)

  Review preview for The Page Turner

  Both Catherine Frot and Deborah Francois deliver excellent performances... the tension between the two visibly crackles.

  A concert pianist's past returns to unravel her present.
• 
  The Devil Wears Prada (2006)

  Review preview for The Devil Wears Prada

  Despite the costumes being ab fab, darling, the plot's no blazing trendsetter.

  A young journalist struggles to survive in the cut-throat world of fashion.
• 
  Trust The Man (2005)

  Review preview for Trust The Man

  The forced 'joke to serious point to joke' dialogue is painful and too unnatural to be credible.

  Love and relationships in Manhattan.
• 
  Aardman's Darkside (2006)

  Review preview for Aardman's Darkside

  For animation aficionados there’s plenty here to watch and take notes from, rewind and take more notes.

  Forget your Creature Comforts - this is Aardman animation for over-15s only.
• 
  A Better Tomorrow II (1987)

  Review preview for A Better Tomorrow II

  The plot is generally weak and at times would verge on the incomprehensible if you hadn’t seen the first Tomorrow.

  John Woo’s 80s gun-toting, triad-splattering sequel.
• 
  Hoodwinked (2005)

  The truth about Little Red Riding Hood.
• 
  Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

  A dysfunctional family's road trip to a beauty pageant.
• 
  Look Both Ways (2005)

  Review preview for Look Both Ways

  A real treat.

  Award-winning Aussie indie sees urban lives revolving around a tragic incident. Now out to own on DVD.
• 
  Akeelah and the Bee (2006)

  Review preview for Akeelah and the Bee

  This is all about building on a blueprint of predictability and then going for the heartstrings as much as possible.

  Young Akeelah learns more than letters on the way to the National Spelling Bee.
• 
  The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)

  Era evoking and provoking with the Fifties S&M pin-up
• 
  Out On A Limb (2005)

  Review preview for Out On A Limb

  It's Robert Heath's feature debut and he handles things with enough conviction and style to mark himself out as a name to remember.

  Game serving of British black comedy.
• 
  Angel-A (2005)

  Review preview for Angel-A

  Sadly, the non-stop nature of the Besson film machine still seems to be affecting his quality control.

  Paris & philososphy, black & white, rom & com.
• 
  Little Manhattan (2005)

  Review preview for Little Manhattan

  Kicking off with a fine one-two of gags, inventive credits and intelligently paced laughs, Little Manhattan thankfully has a deliberate game plan.

  The spirit of The Wonder Years lives on in another New York rom-com.
• Snack Bar Budapest (1988)

  Review preview for Snack Bar Budapest

  The plot is blatantly holey and wholly bland.

  Gangsters, hotels and hookers - European 80s-style.
• 
  Dave Chappelle's Block Party (2005)

  Dave Chappelle holds a once in a lifetime free street party in Brooklyn.
• 
  Thank You For Smoking (2005)

  Review preview for Thank You For Smoking

  The debuting Reitman handles the film with inventive style and confident assurance.

  Satire on smoking and spin.
• 
  Feed (2005)

  Easy queasy flick about big being beautiful.
• Secuestro Express (2005)

  Review preview for Secuestro Express

  Brash, disorientating, aggressive, shaken, in your face, the handheld DVCAM brilliantly conveys the intensity of the couple's rocked world.

  Gritty kidnap and ransom nightmare for two well-heeled socialites, dragged through the Venezuelan ghettos.
• 
  The Omen (2006)

  Review preview for The Omen

  Unfortunately some scissors-happy imp must have got into the editing room and snipped out the best bits.

  The Antichrist rises again to terrify a new generation and bring about the Apocalypse... now
• 
  Lady Vengeance (2005)

  Review preview for Lady Vengeance

  Again and again Chang-wook and his cinematographer, Jeong Jeong-hun, deliver scenes and frames of singular cinematic style and beauty.

  Revenge is ugly and intricately planned in South Korea. Now out to own as part of the Vengeance Trilogy box set.
• Love + Hate (2005)

  Review preview for Love + Hate

  Savage is undone by his untrained actors.

  Racial tensions and secret romances in a desolate northern English urban cityscape
• 
  The Magician (2005)

  Documentary filmmaker follows a Melbourne thug about his business.
• 
  Tristan & Isolde (2006)

  Review preview for Tristan & Isolde

  Flounders about through a lack of individuality.

  A Dark Ages take on Romeo and Juliet, with naked nursing and energetic swordplay
• 
  Death Line (1972)

  Review preview for Death Line

  Could be a treat for discerning genre fans.

  Cult horror re-emerges after 30 years down the tube.
• 
  Shooting Dogs (2005)

  Review preview for Shooting Dogs

  What occurred is realised with sincere, unpresumptuous performances and admirably restrained direction.

  The Rwanda genocide revisited.
• 
  Under The Skin (1997)

  Review preview for Under The Skin

  Jarring and unsettling at times, this is a cut above most film debuts, for director and star.

  An exploration of grief and identity through an experiment in feminist cinematic expression.
• 
  Creep (2004)

  Review preview for Creep

  Smith's screenplay is solidly constructed to deliver well-above-average scares.

  A Brit chiller that will drag you down the tube, screaming and kicking.
• 
  The Chorus (2004)

  A French music teacher brings new meaning to the lives of his troubled charges.