The Sugarland Express

 

The Sugarland Express 1974

• Director: Steven Spielberg
• Cast: Goldie Hawn, Ben Johnson, Michael Sacks, William Atherton
• Why? Goldie Hawn
• Seen: Once or twice before. Now 25 July 2026                     

 

          This is Spielberg’s first feature film (Duel was made for TV).

          Goldie Hawn and her husband are both jailbirds. They kidnap a cop and force him to drive to Sugarland to kidnap their baby from the foster parents.

          Based on a true story. People sure can do idiotic things. And I don’t mean just the kidnappers.

          Goldie Hawn does what Goldie Hawn does, plays a ditzy vulnerable loser, with a Texas accent.

2 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Dead Don't Hurt

 

The Dead Don’t Hurt 2023

• Director: Viggo Mortensen
• Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Vicky Krieps, Solly McLeod, Garret Dillahunt, Danny Huston, Colin Morgan
• Why? Colin Morgan and Viggo Mortensen
• Seen: 24 July 2026                     

 

          Not a fan of westerns I’m going to give this a try because of Morgan and Mortensen and because it’s supposed to be different.

          Mortensen plays a newly widowed sheriff, Holger Olsen, who turns in his star and leaves the corrupt town with his son.

          Flashbacks show his romance with Vivienne (Krieps) who became his wife and died in the film’s first scene.

          Morgan plays her pompous, arrogant and cruel fiancé. Who she dumps for Holger. Morgan does it well but it’s not really his kind of character.

          It’s mostly a kind of love story, which also doesn’t usually interest me.

          Slow and low-key with nice nature scenes.

 

 

3* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last Chance Harvey

 

Last Chance Harvey 2008

• Director: Joel Hopkins
• Cast: Emma Thompson, Dustin Hoffman, Eileen Atkins, Kathy Baker, Bronagh Gallagher
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 17 July 2026                      

 

          Harvey (Hoffman), an American, is in London for his daughter’s wedding. He’s about to lose his job as a composer of advert jingles. (Thompson), unmarried as her mum (Atkins) and colleague (Gallagher) never let her forget, has a boring job.

          Of course they meet. Fate, you know. And all that. If it was anyone but Thompson it would be unbearable. The views of London help a little.

 

2* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Hand of Dante

 

In the Hand of Dante 2025

• Director: Julian Schnabel
• Cast: Oscar Isaac, Al Pacino, Gerard Butler, John Malkovich
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 14 July 2026                      

 

          Having recently bought, but not read, The Divine Comedy, and seeing the film mentioned by a FB film nerd friend. I have to see this film. A good cast, too.

          Maffia, murder, a lost but now found Dante manuscript.

          Great cast but booooooring. And very macho too.

          I hope the actual book is better.

 

1 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Help

 

The Help 2011

• Director: Tate Taylor
• Cast: Viola Davis, Emma Stone, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain, Allison Janney, Cicely Tyson, Sissy Spacek
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 9 July 2026  

 

          Skeeter (Stone) is young, rich, white and ambitious. She wants to write, seriously, unlike her ditsy rich white friends, who are all married mums, and mean. And racist.

          Skeeter decides to write about the black maids. Reluctantly Aibeleen (Davis) and Minny (Spencer) agree to help. This is dangerous, for blacks and whites both, but especially for the blacks.

          It could have been a ‘white-liberal-do-gooder-saves-the-poor-black-maids’ film but it succeeds in not being that. Primarily because of the superb acting.

 

4* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Into the Wild

 

Into the Wild 2007

• Director: Sean Penn
• Cast: Emile Hirsch, Catherine Keener, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Jena Malone, Kristen Stewart, Hal Holbrook
• Why? Interesting subject
• Seen: 6 July 2026  

 

          Chris (Hirsch) leaves his well-to-do but dysfunctional family to live the life of a hobo. He hates society and romanticises nature, which, granted, is spectacular and wonderful, especially in Alaska where he ends up.

          True story but kind of boring film with a variety of irritating characters, including Chris himself.

 

2 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cold Comfort Farm

 

Cold Comfort Farm 1995

• Director: John Schlesinger
• Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Eileen Atkins, Ian McKellan, Rufus Sewell, Stephen Fry, Joanna Lumley
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 4 July 2026  

 

          Flora (Beckinsale), a young society girl in financial straits, seeks out relatives in the countryside to gain life experience so that she can become a writer. She finds herself on a farm near ruin, populated by several eccentric individuals.

          With this cast one expects great things. Sadly, this is only somewhat entertaining.

 

2* of 5