Films

Here's my round up of some of the films I've seen over the last week or so.

Year of the Dog (****)
From Mike White, the writer of Chuck and Buck and The School of Rock, comes a story of one woman's descent into madness. Molly Shannon turns in an understated performance, totally different from her manic turns in Saturday Night Live, as a woman whose life revoles round her little dog. When he dies she struggles to find something to cling to, but when she meets Peter Sarsgaard, she thinks she's found it. It's really downbeat and it's not for everyone, but it's charming and a strong supporting cast helps it along.

Two Days in Paris (****)
July Delpy writes, stars, directs and edits this film about a French photographer taking her insecure boyfriend back to meet her insane family. It's entertaining stuff. Delpy and Adam Goldberg make a good couple and a lot of the bickering and jealousy rings true. It's been compared to Woody Allen and Diane Keaton's comedies and that's not a bad comparison.

Hallam Foe (***)
Jamie Bell stars as the eponymous peeping tom, convinced his stepmother offed his mum. A lot of this is pompous middle-class folk I couldn't really give a toss about, but enough humour and intrigue pokes through to make it worth the time.

Run Fat Boy Run (***)
Far funnier than you may expect, Run Fat Boy Run, is certainly corny, but there are a good number of laughs in it. Simon Pegg turns in a terrific comic performance and co-star Dylan Moran has a few funny moments himself. David Schwimmer's directorial debut and co-written by Pegg and Michael Ian Black it tells the story of an overweight loser trying to win back his former sweetheart. As a love story it's not really believable, but as a comedy it works. Pegg has a lot of charm and there's enough laughs to make it worthwhile.

Atonement (*****)
A big sweeping epic set in the lead up to, and during, the Second World War. I found it completely compelling from the get-go. James McAvoy and Keira Knightley are both great in the lead roles, though the entire cast is strong. I chose not to read too much about it before I went in, having never read the Ian McEwan novel, so the twists and turns were surprising to me.

The film also looks gorgeous and the 5 minute continuous take on the beach at Dunkirk is stunning. One of the best films of the year it's the kind of film that while you're watching it, you're thinking about seeing it again.