Everyone has a passion for music, it doesn't matter what genre, or what era, everyone has music that connects with them and will always connect. For comedian Stewart Lee, his passion is the works of Derek Bailey and the free improvisational movement. His passion is celebrated and recognised in Taking the Dog For a Walk, which is an in-depth exploration of the British free improvisation movement, from Derek Bailey to the present. I really can't praise him enough – he's used his fame and comic talent to showcase his favourite genre for people to see. He doesn't let his ego take over the documentary, he stays out the way and asks questions to his idols. His passion leaps off the screen and makes me want to fall in love with this genre just like he has. He is the anchor of the film and without him, it wouldn't be as good as it is.
by Liam McMIllen
Everyone has a passion for music, it doesn't matter what genre, or what era, everyone has music that connects with them and will always connect. For comedian Stewart Lee, his passion is the works of Derek Bailey and the free improvisational movement. His passion is celebrated and recognised in Taking the Dog For a Walk, which is an in-depth exploration of the British free improvisation movement, from Derek Bailey to the present. I really can't praise him enough – he's used his fame and comic talent to showcase his favourite genre for people to see. He doesn't let his ego take over the documentary, he stays out the way and asks questions to his idols. His passion leaps off the screen and makes me want to fall in love with this genre just like he has. He is the anchor of the film and without him, it wouldn't be as good as it is. by Liam McMillen According to the US Department of Homeland Security, around 20,000 Guatemalans illegally cross the border every year to take up residence in the US. There are many more, of course, who set out with that goal in mind but don't make it. The dangers of the journey are manifold - robbers, slavers, corrupts police, vigilante execution squads and simple exposure to the elements. Yet the American Dream - the certainty that in America anyone can achieve anything just by working hard - is very much alive in Guatemala even as it fades at home. It ensures that there will always be more prepared to try, even if it means leaving behind everything they know. by Liam McMillen Marion Vernoux's Bright Days Ahead is a telling change from the French title, Les beaux jours. The original speaks of present joys, the mistranslation — of a promised future. Both titles share an irony. The English title is the name of the seniors club which recently retired dentist Caroline (Fanny Ardant) is given a trial membership in to sample the joys of pottery, theatre, field trips, computer workshops, etc., with her contemporaries. In their camaraderie and activity they seem bound for brighter days, except that their signs of aging and loss continue to build. The women already make a game of recalling their first signs of the doom of aging. But from the future perspective, the present compromises will seem "the bright days." by Liam McMillen When I was choosing my options for college, I knew that I wanted to be a journalist. I didn't know what field, and I didn't even know if I was good enough to do it, but that's what I wanted to do. I had chosen two subjects at that time: Media Studies and English Language. Hey, what better subjects to choose than those two in this day and age of journalism? However, I was stuck for a third choice. I didn't want anything too academic because I had never really thrived in academia, but I wanted something that would look good on my CV. In the end, I went out on a whim and decided to shoot for Film Studies, a course that I didn't really know much about, but I had always liked films and I had always liked giving my opinions. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. by Liam McMillen It's easy to fall in love with this tale of the ingeniously, slightly magical story of The Young and Prodigious T.S. Spivet. The story is touching, and quite charismatic, and the little boy is presented as quite a believable genius. Without being presented as being too intelligent or arrogant and thus putting the audience off, he's both intelligent and likeable, and modest too. by Liam McMillen Everyone has gotten to that point in life where all they want to do is run. Run as far as they can. Away from everything and on their own. Zoé tries to escape herself. She travels north through bleak landscapes until she gets on a ferryboat, where a mysterious woman suddenly disappears. In the winter coat of a stranger, Zoé reaches the other side of the Channel. by Liam McMillen What a terrible shame. The genius that is Rik Mayall has been taken from us. Mayall will be known for his TV roles in The Young Ones, Bottom and Blackadder to most, but to me, his excellent work in Drop Dead Fred reigns supreme. For this reason, I say Hit-Play on the manic movie... Isn't it funny how this film, whilst massively dismissed as rubbish by critics when it was first released, has attracted a very loyal following of people who hold it very dear to their hearts - isn't that basically the definition of a cult film? Why? The special effects are terrible, it's basically a "breaking into the USA market" vehicle for Rik Mayall, and Marsha Mason looks exactly the same in the "21 years ago" flashbacks as she does in the current time-line. by Liam McMillen Ghostbusters is possibly the funniest film ever. There, I've said it. It's quite a bold statement to make, but with good cause. This film is the epitome of the 80s, but unlike most of the films around it, this film holds up. In fact, it probably holds up more than any other comedy in existence. You know how there are those movies that you see that are hysterical the first few times you see them? This one just keeps on coming. I remember when I was a kid, I wore our copy of Ghostbusters out. At the time, I thought it was a horror movie (I wasn't the brightest bulb) so I watched it constantly never realizing what it truly was. I hadn't yet caught on to a lot of the humour. A few years later in my early teenage years, I popped it in and, oh my God, I just about died with laughter. Revisiting it for its thirty-year anniversary and it's still just as funny and just as revolutionary. by Liam McMillen Ken Loach made his name making social realist films about real people, but in recent years he's also shown he can make these films accessible without holding back his themes and meanings. Jimmy's Hall, said to be his last film, brings him back to Ireland after The Wind that Shakes the Barley (for which Jimmy's Hall would be a good companion piece). Jimmy's Hall manages social realism and accessibility well – and it is a good film for Loach to go out on, but it does have its problems and Loach fans will be disappointed if this is the film he goes out on. by Liam McMillen Love her or hate her, there's no denying Angelina Jolie has run the gambit of roles in film. From heroin chic to video game character to distraught mother, Jolie has made a name for herself in dramatically different films. When she’s not working on blockbuster movies, Jolie can be found around the world working with charities and engaging in humanitarian efforts. And if that isn’t enough, she always manages to make someone’s list as one of the most beautiful women in the world. With the release of Maleficent, we look at her essential films. |
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