Reviews by Paul Griffiths

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium (2007)

  Review preview for Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium

  Sadly, this Emporium is less than wonderful and the more you look past its colourful packaging, the emptier you find the box.

  Can a magical toy shop survive the loss of its creator?
• 
  Nights And Weekends (2008)

  Review preview for Nights And Weekends

  This film really touches you, in a way that isn't anywhere near as mawkish as that may sound.

  A twenty-something couple struggle with a long-distance relationship.
• 
  The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)

  Era evoking and provoking with the Fifties S&M pin-up
• 
  No Through Road (2008)

  Review preview for No Through Road

  This grisly Australian torture horror ably shows that you don’t need all manner of fiendish contraptions to deliver on the jumps and jolts.

  A violent nightmare begins when a man finds a terrified woman hiding in his wardrobe.
• 
  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
• 
  Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War On Journalism (2004)

  Documentary about bias on the Fox News channel.
• 
  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.
• 
  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.
• 
  Perfect Creature (2007)

  Review preview for Perfect Creature

  An admittedly brave shift away from the standard expectations but there’s not really that much of any weight or innovation going on to be pondered.

  Vampires and humans are co-existing peacefully, until the killings start.
• 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.
• 
  Phobia (2008)

  Review preview for Phobia

  A nice riff on Asian horror’s ethereal connections subtly loops the episodes together, but the simple morality tales make for an uneven whole.

  Portmanteau horror.
• 
  Portrait Of A Zombie (2012)

  Review preview for Portrait Of A Zombie

  The requisite staples are undead and present and while tasty chutzpah abounds, ultimately the film doesn’t deliver a totally satisfying meal.

  A family is ostracised by the local community after deciding to care for a son who has become a zombie, whilst his pregnant girlfriend still hopes the local priest will marry them.
• 
  Poetry (2010)

  Review preview for Poetry

  Poetry is by turns a serene and haunting piece.

  A grandmother discovers poetry and begins to reassess the world around her.
• 
  The Project (2008)

  Review preview for The Project

  Despite the important message, you're left with the feeling that it hasn't actually told us anything new or created anything fresh.

  Fictional tale of naïve filmmakers trying to make a documentary about inner-city New York.
• 
  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.
• 
  Reservation Road (2007)

  Review preview for Reservation Road

  Reservation Road is really only ever going from A to B and, despite the offer of some intriguing ideas, never moves far from its initial premise.

  Two fathers cope with the consequences of tragedy.
• 
  Resurrecting The Street Walker (2009)

  Review preview for Resurrecting The Street Walker

  A strangely compelling and, at times, disturbing watch.

  A wannabe filmmaker becomes obssessed with an unfinished snuff film.
• 
  A Road Stained Crimson (2012)

  Review preview for A Road Stained Crimson

  Tetsuhiko Nono’s remarkable Japanese indie debut signals him as a cine-literate writer and director of verve, invention and visual panache.

  A former hitman trying to live a quiet life finds himself blackmailed at the same time as a boy arrives in desperate need of his guidance.
• 
  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.
• 
  Salvage (2008)

  Review preview for Salvage

  Thematically there’s a little marrow in these foraged, splintered bones and the committed playing from McIntosh gives them some lumps of meat, but the tendons that would hold them together are cotton thin.

  A divorced mum faces trouble when a military experiment goes wrong.
• 
  Saturn In Opposition (2007)

  Review preview for Saturn In Opposition

  Moving and stimulating in turns, perhaps because of the potent espresso of Italian acting talent it serves up, Saturno Contro is an effective European ensemble piece.

  A group of friends in Rome discover than happiness is transient and grief a great healer.
• 
  The Savages (2007)

  Review preview for The Savages

  There are incisive moments of poignancy, but this is a pleasurably modulated and intelligent comedy throughout.

  A brother and sister must cope with their elderly father’s increasing care needs.
• 
  Savage Grace (2007)

  Review preview for Savage Grace

  Always engrossing, at times decidedly uncomfortable viewing, Savage Grace is accomplished cinematic storytelling that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.

  Accomplished telling of a real life upper class family's disturbing meltdown.
• 
  Scenes Of A Sexual Nature (2006)

  Review preview for Scenes Of A Sexual Nature

  Light and dissatisfying.

  Everyone's at it on Hampstead Heath.
• 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.
• 
  Shooting Dogs (2005)

  Review preview for Shooting Dogs

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

  The Rwanda genocide revisited.
• 
  The Singer (2006)

  Review preview for The Singer

  The Singer is a healthy reminder of the unequivocal natural force that Depardieu can summon when he's in focus and on target.

  A nightclub singer falls in love with a much younger woman.
• 
  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.
• 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.
• 
  Someone Else (2009)

  Review preview for Someone Else

  Someone Else marks Newall as a filmmaker with evident talent.

  A woman recounts her fear of being watched.
• 
  Savage (2011)

  Review preview for Savage

  The unrelenting poverty trap of the underclasses that is exposed is no barrel of laughs, but this low-budget indie provides some compelling performances and insights.

  Kim grew up in a criminal family in the Swedish countryside. He now wants to make up for his crimes but can he escape his past?
• 
  A Serious Man (2009)

  Review preview for A Serious Man

  A fine example of the uniquely offbeat, demonstrative, allusive cinema that only Joel and Ethan Coen can deliver.

  Black comedy about a professor whose life starts to unravel.
• 
  Shrek The Third (2007)

  Review preview for Shrek The Third

  A sprinkle short of the magic dust.

  Is the third time a charm for Mike Myers' green ogre?
• 
  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.
• 
  Timber Falls (2007)

  Review preview for Timber Falls

  If you go down to the woods today, that’s one way to avoid Timber Falls.

  A couple’s camping trip turns into a gruelling nightmare.
• 
  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.
• 
  Treasure Of The Black Jaguar (2010)

  Review preview for Treasure Of The Black Jaguar

  Aside from capturing the stand-in Californian scenery well, Bruce has fun with his RED camera’s angles and speeds, whips up woozy montages, splashes the colours around and edits with a Hot Fuzz intensity.

  Two boys discover easy money is just a mirage in this desert-based caper.
• 
  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.
• 
  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.
• 
  A Thousand Kisses Deep (2010)

  Review preview for A Thousand Kisses Deep

  The plotting is bold and deliberately structured yet, given the small cast and high drama of the set up, this is an oddly cold affair.

  Caught in a timeless world of passions and betrayals, Mia searches for the truth behind a mysterious woman's death.
• 
  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
• 
  Turnout (2011)

  Review preview for Turnout

  Self-aware and as on the make as its lead, it’s an accomplished lowbudget debut.

  A small-time dealer's plan to make some quick cash backfires.
• 
  Typhoon (2005)

  Review preview for Typhoon

  It all amounts to an overly busy mish-mash.

  Blustering Korean action adventure with political undertones.
• 
  U2 3D (2008)

  Review preview for U2 3D

  If you are a fan, or enjoy new cinematic encounters, this is an intermittently awesome experience.

  The Irish mega-band take it to the Imax.
• 
  Unrelated (2007)

  Review preview for Unrelated

  An object lesson in less is more, it makes an absolute virtue of its small cast and diminutive budget.

  A middle-aged woman holidays with her bourgeois friends in Tuscany. Plus read our exclusive interview with Joanna Hogg.
• 
  USB (2010)

  Review preview for USB

  Shutaro challenges us to stay with this quietly brutish character.

  A young man agrees to participate in a dangerous experiment in order to pay off his debts.
• 
  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.
• 
  Up In The Air (2009)

  Review preview for Up In The Air

  A quick script and sharp performances all round help deliver an enjoyable, if ultimately sentimental commentary of the times.

  George Clooney stars a corporate downsizing expert who, faced with being grounded, makes one last trip in a bid to convince his employers to keep him in the air.
• 
  Veils (2008)

  Review preview for Veils

  A neat twist that brings more sonority than the seemingly simple set up would suggest.

  Will a young bride and groom’s marriage bridge their cultural divides?
• 
  Vexille (2007)

  Review preview for Vexille

  This might be familiar fare, but Fumihiko Sori and his team pull it off with sufficient visual aplomb to keep things highly entertaining.

  In 2077, Japan’s secretive, advanced bio-technology could pose an unimaginable threat.