Cargo

 

Cargo 2017

• Director: Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke
• Cast: Martin Freeman, Simone Landers, Susie Porter, Kris McQuade, Anthony Hayes, Caren Pistorious·       
• Why? Martin Freeman
• Seen: 7 November 2025      

       We don’t realise this is an Australian zombie film in until about half an hour in. Then we learn that it takes exactly 48 hours for one bitten to turn into a zombie. They even have wrist bands counting down the hours.

       Andy (Freeman) is bitten. He has 48 hours to get his baby Rosie to safety. His only hope is to get her to an aboriginal group who have so far succeeded in fending off the zombies.

       It’s more than a zombie film. It’s about racism, human values and love.

       Freeman is, as always, terrific. They all are. 

4 ½ * of 5   

 

 

 

 

 

The Fever

 

The Fever 2004

• Director: Carlo Gabriel Nero
• Cast: Vanessa Redgrave·       
• Why? Vanessa Redgrave
• Seen: 6 November 2025      

       Some viewers hate this film (1*) because it criticises capitalism, quotes Marx and blames the rich western world for the poverty in the third world.

       That’s what’s good about it.

       Redgrave plays an unnamed woman, wealthy and cultured, who eventually sees the reality of poverty and suffering in the world when visiting an unnamed country at war.

       It’s an unusual film because much of it is narrated directly by the woman into the camera.

       It works for me. 

4 * of 5   

 

 

 

 

 

Champion

 

Champion 2022

• Director: Mona Achache
• Cast: Kendij Girac·       
• Why? Possibly interesting
• Seen: 5 November 2025 

       Zack (Girac) has a loving girlfriend, a loving family, a good job as a carpenter with his dad, he’s an appreciated boxing trainer for both boys and girls.

       What most people don’t know, not even his mother, is that he can’t read or write.

       It’s a strong film about a real problem for millions in our literate world. 

4 * of 5   

 

 

 

December Boys

 

December Boys 2007

• Director: Rod Hardy
• Cast: Daniel Radcliffe       
• Why? Originally Daniel Radcliffe
• Once before. Now 3 November 2025 

       Again young Daniel Radcliffe is an orphan, this time in a Catholic orphanage in Australia. The four December boys, all with birthdays in December, are sent on holiday to a couple who live by the sea.

       It’s quite boring, really. It’s Radcliffe’s first film after Harry Potter and he does a decent job with what he’s given. 

2 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Så som i himlen/As It Is in Heaven

 

Så som i himlen 2004

• Director: Kay Pollak
• Cast: Michael Nyqvist, Frida Hallgren, Helen Sjöholm, Lennart Jähkel, Ingela Olsson, Niklas Falk·       
• Why? Recommended by LJ. Also Michael Nyqvist
• Seen: 2 November 2025      

Daniel (Nyqvist, a world renowned director, suffers a heart attack and must quit touring. He moves to his childhood village in northern Sweden and takes over the local amateur choir. He must face conservative Christians, a hostile vicar and wife abusers, but he teaches the choir the essence and necessity of music. A lovely film about music and life, and I love Michael Nyqvist.      

4* of 5

 

 

Temple Grandin

 

Temple Grandin 2010

• Director: Mick Jackson
• Cast: Claire Danes, David Strathairn, Catherine O’Hara·       
• Why? Recommended by LH
• 30 October 2025 

       A biopic about the brilliant autistic woman who humanises the slaughter industry by inventing devices to calm the cattle, fighting against general cruelty to animals, especially cows, and cruel male chauvinism.

       A terrific film, and the best Claire Danes I’ve seen. 

4* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

27 Nights

 

27 Nights 2025

• Director: Daniel Hendler
• Cast: Marilú Marini, Daniel Hendler·      
• Why? Mentioned by LJ
• Seen: 28 October 2025 

       Martha (Marini), 83 years old, has spent 27 nights in a mental hospital. Her daughters want to have her re-admitted because she is dement, because she has delusions, and because she likes to party with young men.

       An expert Leandro (Hendler) is called in to evaluate her mental health.

       Martha is rich and a very unpleasant person. But a mental hospital? 

2 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chariots of Fire

 

Chariots of Fire 1981

• Director: Hugh Hudson
• Cast: Nicholas Farrell, Ian Charleson, Ben Cross, Ian Holm, Alice Krigel, John Gielgud·       
• Why? I don’t remember if I liked it
• Seen: Once before. Now 26 October 2025 

       In the 1924 Olympics a Christian and a Jew are rivals for a running medal. Since I’m an atheist, I couldn’t care less who won.

       So dull. How could this possibly win the Oscar for best film over Reds or Atlantic City is truly a mystery. The acting is good though. 

2* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Belle

 

Belle 2013

• Director: Amma Asante
• Cast: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Penelope Wilton, Emily Watson, Tom Wilkinson, Miranda Richardson, James Norton, Tom Felton, Sam Reid·       
• Why? Recommended by fellow film nerd LH
• Seen: 25 October 2025 

       Belle (Mbatha-Raw) is the daughter of a black slave and a white father, who loved both. She is raised by her rich white aristocratic family in England, who love her but she is not allowed to dine with them, especially if there are guests. The she meets a white man who fights against the slave trade.

       The elite cast of British actors add pondus to this based-on-a-true-story film of ethnicity, gender and class. 

4* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

 

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 2024

• Director: Tim Burton
• Cast: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe·      
• Why? The first one
• Seen: 24 October 2025 

       Lydia (Ryder), now a widow with a teen-aged daughter Astrid (Ortega), returns to the house with her step-mother Delia (O’Hara) when the father dies. Meanwhile, Beetlejuice (Keaton) is having troubles of his own.

       The story is messy but OK, the returning cast works well, but it’s the sullen Ortega, who doesn’t believe in ghosts until… who lifts the film.

       And it’s still Tim Burton. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beetlejuice

 

Beetlejuice 1988

• Director: Tim Burton
• Cast: Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, Jeffrey Jones
• Why? Good film
• Seen: Twice before. Now 21 October 2025 

       A loving young couple Barb (Davis) and Adam (Baldwin) die in a car crash and end up trapped in their house as ghosts. A horrible new family moves in who are going to refurbish the whole place. Barb and Adam decide to do something about it. They are helped by the bio-exorcist Beetlejuice (Keaton).

       Anyone who has seen the film will never forget the ‘Day-O’ scene or the wonderfully Goth emo teenager Winona Ryder, the only one who can see the ghosts.

       It’s Tim Burton. It’s weird.      

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonnie and Clyde

 

Bonnie and Clyde 1967

• Director: Arthur Penn
• Cast: Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Michael J Pollard, Gene Hackman, Estelle Parsons·       
• Why? A classic
• Seen: Several times before. Now 20 October 2025 

       They rob banks. Not that they get much, it’s the Depression, after all, and they’re rather bumbling bank robbers. Mostly they goof off and kill cops. They’re infamous, and hunted. True story, sort of. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Thursday Murder Club

 

The Thursday Murder Club 2025

• Director: Chris Columbus
• Cast: Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Celie Imrie, Ben Knightley, Naomi Ackie, Daniel Mays, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Tom Ellis, Jonathan Pryce, David Tennant·       
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 18 October 2025 

       It must be confessed that I gave up on the book early on (I’m planning on giving it another try because I’m quite fond of Richard Osman).

       A group of pensioners in a luxury home for the elderly solve murders. Cosy. But unremarkable, despite the cast. 

2 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Promise

 

The Promise 2016

• Director: Terry George
• Cast: Oscar Isaac, Christian Bale, Charlotte Le Bon·       
• Why? The cast
• Seen: 17 October 2025 

       A love triangle against the background of the Armenian genocide by the Turks during WWI. A grim history, difficult to portray but this is a valiant, if flawed, effort.

 4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zone of Interest

 

Zone of Interest

• Director: Jonathan Glazer
• Cast: Christian Friedel, Sandra Hüller·      
• Why? The subject
• Seen: 16 October 2025 

       Rudolf (Freidel) is a devoted father living with his loving wife (Hüller) and children in a fine villa with a beautiful garden. On the other side of the wall is Auschwitz of which Rudolf is the commandant. The chimneys and smoke can be seen, and ignored, from the garden.

       It is a chilling and frightening reminder that human monsters look like the rest of us. And who knows what we have in us? 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Woman in Cabin 10

 

The Woman in Cabin 10

• Director: Simon Stone
• Cast: Kiera Knightley, Gut Pearce, David Ajala·       
• Why? Kiera Knightley
• Seen: 14 October 2025 

       The book was OK. Maybe Knightley can lift it.

       Journalist Laura (Knightley) is doing a report on a luxury yacht. She sees a woman being thrown overboard but nobody believes her.

       Yes, Knightley and the rest of the cast lift it. It’s better than the book. That happens sometimes. 

3 ½ * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Club the Next Chapter

 

Book Club the Next Chapter 2023

• Director: Bill Holderman
• Cast: Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Mary Steenburgen, Candice Bergen·       
• Why? In memory of Diane Keaton
• Seen: 13 October 2025 

       The four friends from the previous film, which I have not seen nor want to, meet again and go to Italy before Jane Fonda’s wedding. That alone renders it 0*, but otherwise it’s slightly entertaining. Keaton does her job. 

2* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reds

 

Reds 1981

• Director: Warren Beatty
• Cast: Warren Beatty. Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson·     
•  Why? Great film. Now in memory of Diane Keaton who died yesterday.
• Seen: Once or twice before. Now 12 October 2025 

       This is an account of the socialist ant-war movement during WWI, the Bolshevik revolution and the splintered left after the war. It is also a great love story of John Reed (Beatty) and Louise Bryant (Keaton, both journalists renowned for their eye-witness reports from the early revolution. Beatty and Keaton are outstanding but I really don’t like Jack Nicholson in the role as Eugene O’Neil. What a sleaze. Loses the film a *. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Papicha

 

Papicha 2019

• Director: Mounia Medour
• Cast: Lyna Khoudri, Shirine Boutella·     
• Why? Good reviews
• 10 October 2025 

       Algerian film about the oppression of women. Four young university students defy the laws, dress in skimpy Western clothes and go dancing. Girls just wanna have fun? I expected something deeper, and at times it does show the grimmer side of the oppression but it’s still not as good as I expected. 

3* of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sweet Sixteen

 

Sweet Sixteen 2002

• Director: Ken Loach
• Cast: Martin Compston, Michelle Coulter, Annmarie Fulton, William Ruane·      
• Why? Loach
• Seen: Once before. Now 9 October 2025 

       Liam (Compston) scrounges to make money so he and his mum will have somewhere to live when she gets out of prison. Meantime, his stepdad beats him bloody for not smuggling drugs into the prison.

       It’s grim, desperate, tragic, heart-warming. It’s Ken Loach. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

# Alive

# Alive 2020

• Director: Il Cho
• Cast: Yoo Ah-In, Park Shin Hye·      
•  Why? Recommended by fellow zombie nerd SJJS
• Seen: 7 October 2025 

       Young Jun-u (Ah-In) is trapped in his flat in Seoul while outside in the streets zombies carry out their murderous rampage.

       It becomes more a study on how to survive a siege, isolation and loneliness.

       Are there holes in the plot? Of course but never mind. I care about Jun-u and his fellow survivor Yu-bin (Shin Hye) in the flat across the street. And it’s visually stunning. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Civil War

 

Civil War 2024

• Director: Alex Garland
• Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Caely Spaeny, Nick Offerman, Nelson Lee, Stephen McKInley Hederson·       
• Why? Curious
• Seen: 6 October 2025 

       In the near future the US has collapsed after a civil war but this is more about journalists covering the evidence than the causes of the war itself. Some viewers object to this but I find it to be the film’s strength.

       It’s low-key with very dramatic moments with possibly Kirsten Dunst’s strongest performance. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf

 

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf 1966

• Director: Mike Nichols
• Cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, George Segal, Sandy Dennis·       
• Why? A classic
• Seen: Once or twice before. Now 4 October 2025 

       Martha (Taylor) and George (Burton) have an alcohol-poisoned vicious marriage which they don’t mind displaying for the young visiting couple (Sega, and Dennis). The young couple, too, become inebriated and the situation deteriorates.

       The acting is superb, especially Sandy Dennis. Both she and Taylor won Oscars. Segal and Burton were nominated, as was the film. Unfortunately my DVD jammed in the middle and I couldn’t watch the whole thing. Enough, though, to see and remember how completely depressing and impressive it is. 

4 * of 5

 

 

 

 

Soft and Quiet

 

Soft and Quiet 2022

• Director: Beth Da Araujo
• Cast: Stephanie Estes, Olivia Luccardi, Cissy Ly, Jon Beavers·       
• Why? Possibly good
• Seen: 3October 2025

       A group of Aryan women meet to spout their racist outrage. They call themselves Daughters of Aryan Unite. Racist violence against two Asian sisters ensues.

       It’s a very strong and disturbing film. 

 3 ½ * of 5