Reviews by Sarah Artt

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Billy The Kid And The Green Baize Vampire (1987)

  Review preview for Billy The Kid And The Green Baize Vampire

  Despite its entertainingly unusual premise, Billy The Kid And The Green Baize Vampires doesn't really hang together as a story.

  Cult snooker loopy musical.
• 
  Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969)

  Review preview for Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid

  The pairing of the silent, brooding tiger-like masculinity embodied by Sundance with the quick wit of Cassidy is a classic formula.

  The witty exploits of two lovable outlaws who go on the lam in South America.
• 
  Beasts: The Complete Series (1975)

  Spooky series from the 70s.
• 
  Can Go Through Skin (2009)

  Review preview for Can Go Through Skin

  This is a film likely to divide viewers.

  A woman responds to assault by moving to the countryside and reconstructing an old farmhouse, but her sanity proves fragile.
• 
  Casanova (2005)

  Review preview for Casanova

  Go, to enjoy the expensive shots of Venice and its spectacular interiors and the camped up performances from Irons, Ledger and Platt.

  Has the serial seducer finally met his match?
• 
  The Constant Gardener (2005)

  Review preview for The Constant Gardener

  The acting and dialogue are quite astonishingly intelligent and well done.

  A diplomat uncovers a web of deceit as he investigates the death of his wife.
• 
  Confetti (2006)

  Magazine wedding competition becomes improv mockumentary with tennis balls.
• 
  Dam Street (2005)

  The experiences of a vulnerable young women in Eighties China.
• 
  First Love (2006)

  A teenaged girl becomes involved in a spectacular bank robbery.
• 
  Giallo (2009)

  Review preview for Giallo

  It is a hilarious and somewhat knowing form of overkill and there is much to delight the giallo aficianado here.

  As a killer stalks and kidnaps beautiful young women, how far will the local detective have to go to stop him?
• 
  Harmony And Me (2009)

  Review preview for Harmony And Me

  Suffers from a lack of narrative tension.

  Existentialist low-budget comedy "about one of life's losers".
• 
  Holy Lola (2004)

  Review preview for Holy Lola

  Carre and Gamblin infuse their performances with an intimacy that feels real.

  The heartache, anguish, paperwork and corruption of adopting a baby in Cambodia.
• 
  Horsefingers 3: Starfucker (2008)

  Review preview for Horsefingers 3: Starfucker

  A delight from beginning to end.

  A young woman dresses up to please her lover - in unusual ways.
• The Horseman On The Roof (1995)

  A romantic flight from cholera on horseback through Provence in 1832.
• 
  In Her Shoes (2005)

  Review preview for In Her Shoes

  Surprisingly complex for a mainstream chick flick.

  Sex, shopping and eating. What more could you ask for? Jimmy Choo stilettos?
• 
  King Of India (2009)

  Review preview for King Of India

  This is a film about children who are comforted by strangers.

  A glimpse into the world of the Nats - an ancient community of Indian street performers.
• The Last Trapper (2004)

  Review preview for The Last Trapper

  A quietly observed documentary.

  Living with nature and dogs in the cold, old north (Canada).
• 
  A Light In The Fog (2008)

  Review preview for A Light In The Fog

  We need to see more diversity from the Iranian filmmakers here in the West.

  Story of a widow and her sick dad, who live in isolation.
• 
  Mad Hot Ballroom (2005)

  Review preview for Mad Hot Ballroom

  While the subject matter is fascinating and one cannot help but be cut up in the children's successes and failures, Mad Hot Ballroom lacks structure.

  Competitive ballroom dancing for the ethnically diverse pupils of Washington Heights.
• 
  The Maid (2008)

  Review preview for The Maid

  Catalina Saavedra gives a wonderful performance as the frustrated Raquel.

  A servant goes to extreme lengths to stay with the family she's obsessed with - and to get rid of the competition.
• 
  Milk (2008)

  Review preview for Milk

  There are many rich images on offer here.

  Coming-of-age drama about a young boy struggling to get by in a rural economy.
• 
  My Neighbours The Yamadas (1999)

  Review preview for My Neighbours The Yamadas

  A sweet, funny, delicately drawn series of family adventures.

  Funny, delicately drawn animated vignettes of married life in Japan.
• 
  Mutual Appreciation (2005)

  Review preview for Mutual Appreciation

  In addition to his fine acting performance as Lawrence, Bujalski has also penned a witty script and turns in some accomplished directing in his sophmore effort.

  A young musician struggles with his attraction to his best friend's girlfriend.
• 
  Nollywood Babylon (2008)

  Review preview for Nollywood Babylon

  The charm of this film lies in its unpretentious mode of letting the filmmakers, artists and historians speak for themselves.

  Welcome to the wacky world of Nollywood, Nigeria's bustling home-grown movie industry.
• 
  Pardon My French (2009)

  Review preview for Pardon My French

  This is a charming first feature-length offering from writer/director Fillières.

  A black comedy about the relationship between a woman and a female stalker.
• 
  Pontypool (2008)

  Review preview for Pontypool

  McDonald has once more created a unique and entertaining film that will be appreciated by fans of the zombie film and the quirky comedy alike.

  A radio DJ tries to track the source of a virus which turns people into zombies.
• 
  Romance & Cigarettes (2005)

  Review preview for Romance & Cigarettes

  A hilarious, shocking, and in the end, moving film.

  Blue Collar musical comedy about infidelity, redemption, romance and cigarettes.
• 
  Rumor Has It (2005)

  Review preview for Rumor Has It

  Aniston... spends much of the picture grimacing and stroking her stomach, rather as if she is about to be ill. Perhaps this is because she realised she was now contractually obligated to finish the picture.

  The Graduate - 20 years on? Or boring and uneventful rubbish.
• 
  Sami Blood (2016)

  Review preview for Sami Blood

  This is a powerful film that not only resonates with the recent cycle of films concerning rebellious girls, but with films made by indigerous peoples.

  A Sámi girl experiences racism in the 1930s.
• 
  Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic (2005)

  Review preview for Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic

  Silverman jokes about the things we are all supposed to take seriously and which female comics rarely discuss.

  Comedienne Sarah Silverman muses on race, politics and America.
• The Simpsons - Season 6 (1995)

  Homer and his family's odyssey continues.
• 
  Skin (2006)

  Review preview for Skin

  Visually stunning to watch and impeccably styled.

  A young Portuguese woman battles the constraints of racial and class prejudice.
• 
  Shadowlands (1993)

  Review preview for Shadowlands

  A quiet, moving film.

  A late flowering of romance for the dry academic who created Narnia
• 
  Shopgirl (2005)

  Review preview for Shopgirl

  Everything that should be funny, or touching, is just sad.

  A bored sales assistant gets caught in a love triangle with Steve Martin's wealthy geezer and Jason Schwartzman's geek.
• 
  The Song Of The Dead Children (2008)

  Review preview for The Song Of The Dead Children

  It is difficult to surmise at times whether the gritty realism here is deliberate, or merely the landscape of an angry teenager's violent fantasies.

  A group of siblings respond to a family tragedy by rejecting adult authority and exercising their own brutal form of justice.
• 
  Summer Palace (2006)

  Review preview for Summer Palace

  An exquisite film from one of the great up-and-coming Chinese directors.

  Coming of age in Eighties Beijing.
• 
  Surrogate (2008)

  Review preview for Surrogate

  There are sensitive and alluring performances from both Etinger and Wolf.

  The relationship between a troubled man and the woman who gives him sexual therapy.
• Top Spot (2004)

  Memories of abuse and teenage dreams in Margate by the artist Tracey Emin.
• 
  The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005)

  Review preview for The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

  Ambitious, but also deeply flawed.

  A Texas ranch herd crosses the border by mule with a hostage and a corpse.
• 
  Upstairs, Downstairs: The Complete First Series (1971)

  Review preview for Upstairs, Downstairs: The Complete First Series

  Each episode feels self-contained, allowing the viewer to dip in and out without having to watch in sequence.

  Classic drama series about the upper classes and their servants.