Eleanor Reviews

Director:  Sydney Sibilia Cast:  Elio Germano, Matilda De Angelis, Tom Wlaschiha Where can I watch?:   Rose Island is streaming on Netflix . Rating:  5/5 Review: Everything is a bit rubbish at the moment; every time you turn on the news, something dire is happening, and these long, dark, cold evenings aren't exactly food for the soul. I was feeling a bit glum when bae suggested Rose Island (or  L'incredibile storia dell'Isola delle Rose , to give the film it's Italian title) as the evening's viewing, and I was initially unenthusiastic at the prospect of watching a light-hearted movie about an Italian idealist who decided to build his very own island in international waters in a bid to create a place that was truly free (and maybe to win over a girl as well). However, what we discovered was an absolute gem of a film that's heart-warming and cheering in equal measure. Characterised by quirky yet wholly believable characters, some genuine laugh-out-loud lines (I ch

Director:  Patty Jenkins Cast:  Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Pedro Pascal Where can I watch?:   Wonder Woman 1984 is streaming on HBO Max . Rating:  3.5/5 Review:  2020 has been light on blockbuster action, with neither a Marvel or Star Wars film to engross audiences for the first time in years. After the confusing melee of Tenet , Wonder Woman 1984 's delayed Christmas release seems perfectly primed to wrap up this tumultuous year in a blaze of superhero glory... Only, it doesn't quite manage it. Reprising her role as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince, Gal Gadot joins forces again with director Patty Jenkins in this slightly chaotic outing which combines big 80s hair with a wish-fulfilling stone and a tragic love story (again). Bewigged, suited, booted and demonstrating his most maniacal side is Pedro Pascal as Maxwell Lord, an wannabe oil tycoon who finds his wish for success warped into global devastation. Then there's Kristen Wiig as Barbara, an overlooked colleague o

Director:  George Clooney Cast:  George Clooney, Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo, Kyle Chandler Where can I watch?:   The Midnight Sky is streaming on Netflix Rating:  3.5/5 Review: It's recognised in Hollywood that, if you, as a leading man, grow a fantastically large beard, ditch the wrinkle cream and find yourself dying of a generic terminal illness, you're playing for the Oscar. In The Midnight Sky , George Clooney ditches the Nespresso, swaps the clean shave for a large grey facial carpet and proceeds to cough and vomit whenever there's a lull in the conversation. Directing himself, Clooney is clearly gunning for an award of some kind, but, for all the strong points, The Midnight Sky is a bit all over the place to secure a place in the sci-fi/space exploration hall of fame. The story is divided in three distinct pieces: a flashback story; a post-apocalyptic wilderness characterised by Augustine (Clooney) and Iris (newcomer Caoilinn Springall); and a spaceship sequence, w

Director:  Pete Docter  Cast:  (voices) Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton, Angela Bassett Where can I watch?:   Soul is streaming on Disney+ Rating:  4/5 Review: Pixar has a knack of dealing with tough subjects in a way that doesn't terrify small children and yet somehow reduces adults to weeping wrecks. The studio's latest, released on Disney+ on Christmas Day, is no different. Joe (Jamie Foxx), a middle school music teacher, suddenly finds that his time is up and that he's heading towards the Great Beyond. Fleeing, he stumbles across the Great Before, where souls must find their 'spark' if they're to be sent to Earth. It's here that he meets 22 (Tina Fey), a soul who's been stuck in the Great Before for hundreds of years. Calamity ensues when the pair find themselves back on Earth, but not in the bodies they were expecting. As you'd expect from a Pixar , Soul is beautifully observed, from Mr Mittens' love of a sunbeam, to the golden glow of

Director:  Ben Wheatley  Cast:  Lily James, Armie Hammer, Kristin Scott Thomas  Where can I watch?:   Rebecca  is streaming on  Netflix Rating:  2.5/5 Review:  Director Ben Wheatley has a rather eclectic, and certainly unusual, back catalogue. From the darkly comic, low-budget Sightseers to the hypnotic High-Rise (a novel once considered un-filmable) and even to his star-studded turn at the helm of Free Fire , each of his movies is peppered with black humour, absurdity and a generous dollop of creativity. It seems strange, then, that his adaptation of Rebecca should be so wholly unremarkable - it actually feels as though Wheatley's flair has been stifled. At points, there are hints of his old ways, and there is an undeniable sense of unease: dogs barking at nothing; sleepwalking; a nightmare in which weeds suck our nameless protagonist (Lily James) downwards; and a grandmother who eerily claims that Maxim de Winter's (Armie Hammer) new bride isn't his wife. However, all thi

Director:  Aaron Sorkin Cast:  Eddie Redmayne. Sacha Baron Cohen, Mark Rylance, Joseph Gordon-Levitt  Where can I watch?:   The Trial of the Chicago 7  is streaming on  Netflix Rating:  4/5 Review: I'll get something off my chest straight away: I'm something of an Aaron Sorkin fangirl. As a young'un, I was subjected to VHS re-runs of The West Wing,  something that I initially rolled my eyes at but soon came to rather enjoy (President Bartlett for life, am I right?). As a would-be-wish-I-could writer, Sorkin's command of dialogue and interpersonal relationships always struck me, so seeing his name attached to this true story immediately appealed to me. Taking the director's helm for a second time, Sorkin unites an all-star ensemble cast in this poignant, oft-infuriating retelling of the court case surrounding the Chicago Seven. Playing with the timeline to reveal the actual events of the night of the 1968 riot, Sorkin expertly crafts a quick-witted, gripping and, at

Director:  Harry Bradbeer Cast:  Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin, Helena Bonham Carter Where can I watch?:   Enola Holmes is streaming on Netflix Rating:  3.5/5 Review: In the last ten years alone, we've had a fair few renditions of the Sherlock Holmes story: the Guy Ritchie/Downey Jr excursion; the truly horrendous Holmes & Watson (I just watched the trailer and decided it was trash); and the star-making BBC series (we NEVER talk about that last series, OK? Shudder). Into the mix, we now add this very 20th Century edition, which focuses on the Holmes' little sister, Enola - and I'm glad to report it's far better than the Moffat/Gatiss attempt (OK, I won't mention it again). Then again, it's probably wrong to compare Enola Holmes to those series, as it feels more similar in tone to the Ritchie/Downey outing, with action and adventure prevailing over any real clue-solving. Enter our heroine, Enola (Millie Bobby Brown). Addressing the camera a la

*** The world as we know it is under threat - time travel has been weaponised and World War Three is on the horizon... So, I've seen Tenet  and I have a question: what the bloody hell is going on? Actually, that's not true - I have many questions, but that's the main one. Upon returning from the cinema in a state of confusion and questioning my own intelligence, I took to the internet to uncover what I had just witnessed, and found that just about everyone else on the planet had spent the lengthy runtime going 'huh?'. This might partly be because Ludwig Göransson's score (no Hans Zimmer this time!) is at its loudest and most eardrum-popping when various characters are talking, or it simply might be that Christoper Nolan has created a film that is almost completely incoherent. I fear it may be the latter. It's not just that Tenet is less than the sum of its parts (there are some good sequences), it's that Nolan completely over-complicates an idea - becaus

Director:  Egor Abramenko Cast:   Oksana Akinshina, Fedor Bondarchuk, Pyotr Fyodorov Where can I watch?:   Sputnik  is streaming on  Amazon Prime Rating:  4/5 Review: The premise of an astronaut returning to earth with more than he might have bargained for is hardly original, and yet Sputnik , a Russian-language take on the sci-fi saga, somehow manages to feel wonderfully new and fresh, creating an alien film that's far and away better than anything Hollywood has churned out in recent years. Masterfully drawing us in with a suspenseful opening sequence, director Egor Abramenko (this is his first feature length film) then introduces us to our protagonist, Tatyana (Oksana Akinshina), who is facing disciplinary action of her unorthodox treatment of mental illness. Parallels can be drawn between Tatyana and Alien 's Ripley: both are no-nonsense, tough-talking scientists with an undying ambition to do the right thing, whatever the cost. Akinshina is a very engaging lead - boasting a

Director:  Andrew Patterson Cast:  Sierra McCormick, Jake Horowitz Where can I watch?:   The Vast of Night  is streaming on  Prime Video Rating:  3.5/5 Review:  As debuts go, Andrew Patterson's The Vast of Night is a pretty solid outing. Stripping away the graphics, explosions and outer-space drama that usually accompanies sci-fi films, Patterson brings it all back to basics with an eerie nighttime drama that cleverly utilises the static of retro televisions and blank screens to create a suspenseful, low budget watch. The cast is small, with just two central protagonists: arrogant radio host Everett (Jake Horowitz) and switchboard operator Fay (Sierra McCormick). Both have dreams of getting out of their old frontier town in New Mexico and, through very natural conversation (there's no forced exposition here!), their relationship develops as they begin to unpick the mysterious noise that's passing through the radio signals. Patterson focuses more on speech th

Director:  Gina Prince-Bythewood Cast:   Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts Where can I watch?:   The Old Guard  is streaming on Netflix Rating:  2/5 Review: It gives me no pleasure to say this, but The Old Guard is rubbish. This is honestly a real shame, as there's actually a lot to celebrate here: a female lead, a black female director, a gay male couple who subvert the usual queer relationship tropes usually assigned to screen, and a flourishing bond between two female protagonists that doesn't descend into backstabbing. Despite these ingredients, however, The Old Guard stumbles along rather blandly, raising more questions than it answers and failing to meet the sum of its parts. So the plot: Andy (Charlize Theron) heads up a group of immortal mercenaries who inadvertently make contact with a new 'recruit' (KiKi Layne) whilst being tracked by a big pharma company desperate to make a profit from their regenerative skills (cue Chiwetel Ej

Director:  Aaron Schneider Cast:  Tom Hanks, Stephen Graham Where can I watch?:   Greyhound  is streaming on  Apple TV+ Rating:  3/5 Review:  Based on a fictitious novel that used real events from the Battle of the Atlantic as inspiration, Greyhound , Apple's foray into World War Two big screen entertainment, is a nuts and bolts naval drama that both hits and misses in equal measure. Returning to the 1940s conflict for the third time, Tom Hanks takes on the role of inexperienced Captain Krause. Tasked with escorting cargo and troop ships across the perilous waves of the Atlantic, his job is to keep an eye out for the Nazis U-boats determined to eliminate any aid from the US. As such, there's lots of panicked sonar readings, numerous 'right rudder' or 'left rudder' commands and plenty of stressed, meaningful glances exchanged as the crew turn their binoculars to the rolling grey waves. It's pretty formulaic stuff, but Hanks' undeniable char

Director:  Jon Stewart Cast:  Steve Carell, Rose Byrne, Chris Cooper Where can I watch?:   Irresistible  is streaming on  Apple TV+ Rating:  2/5 Review: Everyone knows that the US political system is broken. Once fit for purpose, the manner in which elections of all sizes now take place is borderline corrupt, with money being the biggest winner. This is the premise of Jon Stewart's directorial debut... Only it's not just the 'premise', it's the stick with which you're repeatedly beaten with throughout this mercifully short and yet too long political parable. Steven Carell is Gary Zimmer, a Democratic spin doctor reeling from Hilary's 2016 election loss; upon seeing a heartfelt speech from a disgruntled war veteran (Chris Cooper), he decides to up sticks to help him win a mayoral title in a conservative Midwest town. Unfortunately, Republican spin doctor Faith Brewster (Rose Byrne) arrives to upset the apple cart and full blown electoral campai

Director:  George Nolfi Cast:  Anthony Mackie, Samuel L. Jackson, Nicholas Hoult Where can I watch?:   The Banker  is streaming on  Apple TV+ Rating:  4/5 Review:  Based on the real-life story of two black businessmen taking on America's systemic racism through real estate ownership, Apple Original's  The Banker sees Anthony Mackie and Samuel L. Jackson (at his most Samuel L. Jackson, minus the 'motherf*cking snakes on this motherf*cking plane') form a delightfully entertaining chalk-and-cheese relationship, with Nicholas Hoult as their white third wheel. Directed by George Nolfi and boasting a handful of screenwriters, the film wastes no time in establishing Bernard Garrett (Mackie) and Joe Norris (Jackson) as a force to be reckoned with, their Los Angeles property repertoire booming with the help of Matt Steiner (Hoult) as their customer-facing ally. The rags-to-riches scenes in which the hapless Steiner is made into a golf-loving, number-crunching, fou

Director: Roger Donaldson Cast:  Mel Gibson, Anthony Hopkins, Laurence Olivier Where can I watch?: The Bounty is streaming on Netflix Rating: 2/5 Review: The true story of HMS Bounty , the mutiny and the continued bloodline of the mutineers on Pitcairn Island is, undoubtedly, a fascinating one. It's unfortunate, then, that Roger Donaldson's attempt to bring the high sea drama to the screen is so, well, dull. Opening with paradisaical images of tropical islands under nectarine skies (punctuated with an eerie score by Vangelis of Blade Runner fame), the film starts of promisingly... And quickly loses its way. After the initial 'culture-gasm' of seeing Anthony Hopkins (the doomed captain, William Bligh) and Laurence Olivier face off in a naval court, we find ourselves aboard The Bounty , with fresh-faced Mel Gibson wrestling with the underwritten role of rebellious Fletcher Christian. There are the usual naval tropes abound: lashings for the impudent sai

Director : Anurag Kashyap Cast : Saiyami Kher, Roshan Mathew, Amruta Subhash Where can I watch? : Choked is streaming on Netflix Rating : 4/5 Review : Netflix's attempts to diversify its entertainment collection seems to have accelerated rapidly during lockdown, with a number of new international offerings becoming readily available in amongst all the nostalgic 90s releases. One such film is Choked , a Hindi-language film that centres around put-upon bank worker Sarita (the engaging Saiyami Kher) and her disintegrating marriage. Setting the scene in a tumbledown set of flats - paint-flaking ceilings and a drain that constantly leaks and gurgles are as much characters as their human counterparts - we're hurled into Sarita's tiring existence, but could salvation be at hand? Marrying Bollywood-esque musical sequences with grainy news footage capturing the fallout of Modi's monetary reforms, director Anurag Kashyap effortlessly moves from fantasy to reality,

Director:  Michael Showalter Cast:  Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani Where can I watch?: The Lovebirds  is streaming on Netflix Rating: 3/5 Review: It's fair to say that the news is pretty grim right now, so when a film comes along that requires essentially zero brain power, it comes as something of a relief. Cue The Lovebirds , another of Netflix's lockdown viewing collection in which an arguing couple become inadvertently embroiled in some form of crime syndicate on their way to a friend's dinner party. Sound familiar? That's because The Lovebirds is far from original territory - how many times have we seen the fraught couple unite the battle the odds and save their relationship? - and yet, it's not without its charms. Firstly, Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani are both very watchable screen presences, and there is certainly a fizzing level of chemistry between them that makes their relationship quite believable. Similarly, some of the smaller jokes work quit

Director:  Will Becher, Richard Phelan Cast: (voices) Justin Fletcher, John Sparkes, Chris Morrell, Amalia Vitale Where can I watch?: Farmageddon  is streaming on  Amazon Rating:  5/5 Review: Has there ever been an Aardman film that isn't a delight? Each and every one of this studio's wholesome creations has bought raucous, lighthearted entertainment to viewers both young and old, and this latest outing, Farmageddon , is no different. The plot, the story of a wayward alien longing to go home, is undoubtedly a simple one, but it's the way this understated premise is made into a real gem of a film that makes it so special. As with all Aardman creations, Farmageddon may have a U certificate, but there's plenty here for adults to enjoy too, with references to War of the Worlds, Doctor Who and Close Encounters peppered throughout. The attention to detail is also second to none, with inconspicuous asides being as humorous as the central jokes - you could rew

Director:  Bill Forsyth Cast:  Burt Lancaster, Peter Riegert, Fulton Mackay, Denis Lawson, Norman Chancer, Peter Capaldi  Where can I watch?: Local Hero is streaming on Amazon . Rating: 5/5 Review: Members of the Church of Wittertainment  will have undoubtedly heard Mark wax lyrical about Local Hero time and time again, so when it popped up during a session of mindless scrolling through Amazon's more dubious film suggestions, I had to give it a go. And what a delight it is! Wholly odd and yet undeniably charming in both its simplicity and message, this quaint tale of an oil-hungry Texas businessman falling in love with a remote Scottish coastline will get under your skin in the best way possible. If you're looking for an action-packed drama with a clear beginning, middle and end, then you'll definitely be disappointed - there isn't as story, as such, rather a series of innocent, interconnected scenes and gently humorous interactions that build into a qu

Director: Steven Spielberg Cast:  Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bruce Greenwood  Where can I watch?:  You can watch The Post on Netflix . Rating:  4/5 Review:  Spielberg. Hanks. Streep. They may be part of cinema's 'old guard' now, but there's still something reassuring about seeing these 'titans of the movies' getting together to make a film - you immediately know you're in safe hands. Taking on the momentous occasion when the female-owned Washington Post took on the US government over the publication of a damning Vietnam report, this meaty topic certainly gives our auteurs something to sink their teeth into: there are secret phone calls; tense standoffs; scenes of the printing press whirring and clanking; and Tom Hanks posturing like only Tom Hanks can. Despite the outcome being well-known, such is Spielberg's deft direction, it's still nail-biting in some sections, as characters grapple with the enormity of t

Director:  Autumn de Wilde Cast: Anya Taylor-Joy, Johnny Flynn, Bill Nighy, Mia Goth, Josh O'Connor Where can I watch?: You can rent Emma from Amazon Prime Rating:  4/5 Review: Another decade, another adaptation of Jane Austen's arguably most scathing novel, Emma. One could argue that if you've seen one, you've seen them all, and yet I would suggest that Autumn de Wilde's latest foray does indeed add something new to the canon. For starters, Anya Taylor-Joy's Emma isn't always likeable. In fact, she's comes across as far more sly and malevolent in this adaptation than in any of the others, making her salvation (not a spoiler!) all the more rewarding. De Wilde, familiar with photography and music videos, directs stylishly - each scene is dressed to the nines, the costumes are nothing short of sumptuous, and each shot could indeed be a standalone photo, such is the expert composition. The cast is ubiquitously excellent, with Johnny Flynn br

Director: Dan Scanlon Cast:  (voices) Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Octavia Spencer Where can I watch?:  You can currently stream from Amazon , but Onward will be available on Disney+ soon Rating:  4/5 Review:  Onward probably won't go down in history as one of the Pixar Greats - a release date in the middle of a global pandemic will do that for you - but that doesn't mean it's anything but a real gem of a movie. Based in a universe where magic was once prevalent but has now been cast aside in favour of cars, electricity and smartphones, this fairytale-esque parable once again proves that Pixar are masters of storytelling. When two brothers (Holland and Pratt) are given the opportunity to see their father again, they embark upon a humorous, action-packed quest involving Hell's Angels-inspired sprites, litter-eating unicorns and a driving lesson that honestly didn't look too dissimilar to my first time behind the wheel... Admitted

Director: Guy Ritchie Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Henry Golding, Michelle Dockery Where can I watch?: There are a few streaming options available - find out more here . Rating: 3/5 Review: After watching The Gentlemen , two things struck me more than ever: a) all Guy Ritchie gangster films are essentially the same and, b) Guy Ritchie would rather be a gangster than a film director, such is the blatant glorification of the violence, illegal pastimes, fast cars and slick suits on show. You already know the story: a rich marijuana farmer (McConaughey) is looking to sell his business when disaster strikes - double-crossing, shoot-outs and C-word peppered confrontations ensue before Ritchie tries to wrap it all up in a clever little bow. However, despite the lack of originality, the less tasteful sections and Hugh Grant's inconsistent accent, there is some mindless fun to be had - it looks good, it pips along at a good pace and there are a couple of chu

***** David Copperfield takes to the stage to recount his life and times, interspersed with the plethora of colourful characters he's met along the way. It's clear that Armando Iannucci loves Dickens' Victorian behemoth David Copperfield , because only someone who loves the 800-page bildungsroman could have created a film that is at once wonderfully faithful and yet wholly creative with the source text. The film begins with our eponymous hero (the charming Dev Patel) taking the stage to recount his story, something that Dickens himself also did in wildly popular tours of Britain and the United States, and it feels like another respectful nod from Iannicci (who shares screenwriting credits with Simon Blackwell) to one of the most celebrated authors who ever lived. Throughout his film, Iannucci both pokes fun at Dickens ('why am I even this scene?') and celebrates his works, giving a new lease of life to a story that most of us would bypass in the book

***** A poor family infiltrates the lives of their rich counterpart with disastrous consequences. You've undoubtedly heard of Parasite by now, but if you've somehow missed the furore about this strange, disturbing drama, allow me to bring you somewhat up to speed. Back in the summer of 2019, it picked up the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and rocketed into the spotlight. Since then, it's made history by becoming the first South Korean film to ever be nominated for Best Picture and Best Director at the Academy Awards and, at last night's SAG Awards, it shocked the cinematic world by collecting the accolade of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (yeah, quite the mouthful!). Oh, it also picked up Best Foreign Language Film at the Golden Globes and has a handful of nominations for the BAFTAs. Phew! So, what's all the fuss about? In the opening few moments, we meet a family that's fallen upon hard times - all four o

***** With their father at war, sisters Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy navigate the difficulties of growing up, bumping into some colourful characters along the way. For many generations of readers, and hopefully many more to come, Little Women has been a treasured tale. For me, first gifted the audio book and then the novel, it's a story that instantly reminds me of my childhood. When I came to study the text for my degree, the class ubiquitously agreed that it was a nostalgic treat to revisit the book again - perhaps why so few of us chose to analyse it for our end-of-module exam. Sitting in a cinema, packed with women of all ages, that same sense of nostalgia washed over me as Greta Gerwig deftly and sensitively interwove two time frames (the youthfulness of the Little Women story with the bittersweet nature of the sequel, Good Wives ), whilst simultaneously reintroducing me to some of my favourite literary creations. Let's start with the elephant in the room - Gr

***** In the midst of World War One, two young British soldiers are tasked with delivering a message that will save 1600 soldiers from certain death. Before 1917 was even released in the UK, it was already collecting accolades aplenty, with big wins at the Golden Globes in the first week of January. Plus, with nominations for Best Film and Best Director at the BAFTAs and almost guaranteed nods at the Oscars, it seems like Sam Mendes' foray into the war genre will be taking home yet more gongs before awards season is over. Naturally, when a film receives quite so much hype, the idea of going to see it can make me feel a little trepidatious - however, as a self-confessed lover of war films, there was no way I was going to miss this... I needn't have been worried: without a doubt, 1917 is one of the best films I've seen in a very long time. From the moment the central pair of young soldiers, Blake and Schofield (Dean-Charles Chapman and George MacKay, respec

***** Stuck at home after injuring himself at a Hitler Youth weekend, Jojo discovers that his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their house. The words 'comedy' and 'Nazis' are hardly bedfellows, and yet director/screenwriter Taika Waititi has somehow created a film that features both. Without doubt, it's a highly controversial movie, with Joker levels of division already popping up across the internet - even I have to admit that laughing at the opening montage in which a young boy practises his 'Heil, Hitler' felt quite uncomfortable - but I'd argue that this charming little oddity is probably the film we all need right now. Cards on the table - the film never laughs at the atrocities the Nazis committed. In fact, we see the world through Jojo's (delightful newcomer Roman Griffin Davis) eyes - a crazy, confusing place that's made all the more bizarre by the presence of his imaginary friend, Adolf Hitler (Taika Waititi). Dubbed