There are only a select few movies that both test an audience’s patience and attention span, whilst also showcasing some of the most astonishing shots of terrain there are to be seen on screen. ‘American Star’ manages to proportionately draw you in with dramatic, slow panning shots of Spain’s dusty mountain landscape one minute whilst pushing you away with its likely intentional, but equally frustrating, expansive moments of silence.
Director Gonzalo López-Gallego takes the term ‘Pinter Pause’ to the extreme, with the character Wilson not even speaking a word throughout the initial 10 minutes of the movie, as well as there being frequent moments of awkward silence between pivotal characters. These silences are certainly there to give audiences adequate time to reflect on the meaningfulness of what few conversations do take place but don’t help with the difficult pacing.

That’s not to say that every film has to cram dialogue into every minute of its runtime for it to be engaging. ‘American Star’ discernibly falls into an art house category of nuanced movies that you would normally find at a film festival rather than one you would watch with your friends on a Friday night. Due to its more engaging aspects being the vibrant location and filming style.

The minimalist cast is led by veteran actor Ian McShane, known for performances in John Wick and American Gods, and the 81-year-old gives an unsurprisingly grounded performance of a most unlikely hitman on holiday. The handful of supporting actors give equally fair performances, with Gloria (Nora Arnezeder) being the residential bartender and Wilsons’ private tour guide of the island. Others include Max (Oscar Coleman), the young influential child whom Wilson takes a fondness for, and Ryan (Adam Nagaitis) the reminder of what outstanding work Wilson has to do in the first place.

Riddled with foreshadowing and symbolism, the movie doesn’t allow the audience time to figure things out for themselves but rather shows them the literal intent of unfolding events. Whether it be the band covering Europe’s hit song The Final Countdown at a communal bar being the reflection of how this would be the final assassination for Wilson, or the imagery of an old, washed-up sea vessel crumbling into the ocean mirroring the washed-up persona of old Wilson himself. The film often felt more like a toured book of planned occurrences than a movie with surprise and allure.

It is hard not to compare one movie to another, and unfortunately for ‘American Star’, I often found myself comparing themes with the cult film ‘In Bruges’. Although not remotely of the same genre, the themes around assassins on their days off and the grand imagery of Europe’s stunning locations, often left me wondering if the film was at all inspired by the other and sadly, it just didn’t compare.

Watched at the right time, in the right setting with the right people, ‘American Star’ could certainly be appreciated by most, however, with audiences watching movies from the comfort of their couches rather than via the big screen experience, the scenes of striking cinematography will be lost on many and the added sluggish pacing will likely kill much attention spans quicker than a hitman on holiday.

American Star is coming to UK Cinemas & Digital Platforms on 23 February 2024.

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Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story is a documentary about famed actor, Robert Englund, best known for his portrayal as the knifed-glove-wearing baddie, Freddy Krueger, in the ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ saga. It looks at Englund’s entire repertoire of movies, TV shows, and early onstage productions throughout his seven decades as a performer on screen and stage, as well as dissecting his acceptance as a genre-defining icon, which potentially cost him his freedom as a diverse character actor going forward.

Unlike some other documentary-style films following the life of an entertainer, Dreams and Nightmares is told primarily first-hand by Robert himself, through memories and tales, and it’s this intimacy and involvement from Englund that garners intrigue and attention throughout its rather lengthy screen time of just over two hours.

Starting when Robert was a young boy launching himself into acting as an unexpected but respected stage performer in the ’60s, we learn how this craft wasn’t always his intended lifelong dream, but rather blossomed from a natural ability to make people laugh. Comedy and comedic timing are something many know Robert for, and it is spoken about frequently by the many guest interviewees.

Movie stars such as co-star Heather Langenkamp (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and Lin Shaye (Insidious) give burning praise for Englund’s craft and capacity to make each and every scene memorable for audiences and comfortable for them as performers. As well as discussing their collective experiences on set, we gain some insightful titbits into the actor’s personality off-screen. These interviews work well by adding glances at the other guests smiling or laughing in agreement with one another, almost as if they were in the room together recalling fond memories.

As well as numerous exclusive video recordings of interviews with Robert and guests, audiences are treated to both animated depictions of the tales being told as well as photos taken of the actor during his time off camera. The former is possibly the most interestingly done, as it strengthens the exploration into one of the actor’s most prolific genres, body horror, by twisting and pulsating images of people’s faces. Often, I found myself feeling uncomfortable due to the unusual movement of the photo’s foreground or focal point (often Robert in some kind of disfigured makeup).

What doesn’t work quite as well as the image manipulation however is the loud soundtrack, which is regularly playing underneath whilst the interviewees are talking. Often used to add suspense or excitement to the dialog, the talking is merely lost underneath the brash music track, which is a shame when every bit of dialogue is as valuable as the next in understanding Robert’s career choices and personality traits.

The biggest takeaway from the documentary is the argument that Robert’s talent as an actor was possibly squandered when he became such a worldwide iconic movie character thus becoming typecast as such. Although Robert and fans acknowledge and appreciate his success it is debated at what cost, a quote from within the documentary perfectly summarises his difficult career following the Elm Street franchise well – ‘Does KISS get sick of playing rock and roll every night? Probably. But that’s what everyone is there to see’.

Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story will be available on Blu-ray and Digital Download from 6 November 2023.

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A title card declares ‘a surprising amount of what follows is true’. I have no reason to doubt there are moments taken from real events, but the script is inconsistent on character and tone and the dialogue doesn’t feel authentic for the most part.

Audrey works in a call centre collecting debt but can’t pay her own bills. Her electric is cut off moments after her boyfriend or lover (he has one brief scene) dumps her, and she’s behind on her rent.

Audrey spends her moments alone watching viral videos of animals being cared for (this is important and repeated frequently) and based on her reaction to these videos, she derives some (her only?) happiness from them.

We’re meant to see Audrey as aimless, detached from her family, unable to hold down a job (she’s fired from the call centre early in the movie). The writer wants us to think of her as prickly (is this where the festival title came from?) and friendless, but she seems open, interested in other human beings and is especially fond of animals. A later revelation about her childhood is designed to inform us about her nature and perhaps her disassociation from her parents, yet it led me to see Audrey as a nurturer first and a person in need of a parental figure second and I don’t think this was intentional.
As the title suggests, Audrey seeks to be adopted after an animal video leads her to the world of adult adoption.

She meets a few prospective adopters, including one who wants to be ‘daddy’ in a less wholesome way. These scenes might have played better if they were funnier, but the movie never commits to any kind of humour.

Audrey eventually meets the kindly Sunny (Emily Kuroda), who is married to the cantankerous Otto (Robert Hunger-Bühler). Sunny and Otto are both widows, remarried to each other. It’s unclear what has drawn the warm Sunny to rude and controlling Otto or why she would invite a potential adoptee to their house without telling him, but the movie quickly lets us know this isn’t important as Sunny is mostly side-lined after her initial scene. The rest of the movie focuses on Audrey and Otto’s burgeoning paternal bond.

From here the movie has scattershot scenes of Audrey visiting Otto’s home and their attempts to build a tree house for his grandchildren. This culminates in an accident that in another movie would be a catalyst for a third act, but instead, director and writer, M. Cahill, takes us nowhere in particular for another 15 minutes. Thankfully the performances keep us invested.

I’m not familiar with Hunger-Bühler. He’s Swiss born and has worked primarily in German cinema. He does good work here, with what he’s given. We can read much from his treatment of his mother (another, mostly background character) and his adult children (Will Rogers plays his son in a few scenes and makes an impression). A section involving a BBQ and undercooked steaks really sells Otto’s irascible and frankly irrational behaviour, but it comes out of nowhere. I find it difficult to accept that a group of adults, including both children who appear indifferent to him, are willing to tolerate his behaviour, at least without some hint of why he acts the way he does. We’re given little insight into his self-regulation (Otto lives by metrics) but his scenes with Malone are mostly believable and I was willing to accept their surrogate daughter/father connection.

Malone (also executive producing), a former child actor best known for playing the younger version of Jodie Foster in the Robert Zemeckis directed Contact (underrated), has successfully transitioned to adult roles, and isn’t stretched by Audrey. But she isn’t coasting either. She’s a strong centre for a meandering movie, despite conflicting information about her character (her boss tells her she’s better not dealing with people, but Audrey is shown to be friendly and kind, she can’t hold down a job but is shown to be capable and motivated). We aren’t given enough information about Audrey to truly accept these inconsistencies.

Often playing an antagonist role in bigger movies (three of the Hunger Games, Antebellum, The Neon Demon), Malone is quieter and less prickly here. There are no big emotional scenes or revelations for her to play with, yet she draws us in with her eyes and performance choices. I bought her loneliness, her need to move on from people and places where she starts to feel uncomfortable. She’s a reason to watch Adopting Audrey.
Perhaps Adopting Audrey’s biggest flaw is that it’s too subtle.

Adopting Audrey will be available on Digital Download from 13 March 2023.

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In this film, one of the first to be shot after the pandemic, there is again a sense of the importance of art in capturing the emotion of a chaotic time. Goldfinch CEO, Kirsty Bell came up with the idea for the film during the first week of lockdown. It was later written by Elizabeth Morris and Dominic Wells, but Bell has kept a close involvement, making her directional debut with the picture, in which she also plays a film director, Naomi, and finds a way of weaving in her original title for the movie, ‘Alone’.

The film starts in March 2020 when, following the announcement of a national UK lockdown, filming is quickly brought to a halt. We watch cast and crew as they wind up the set before heading off in different directions to the places they call home.

Shot in black and white, as if all colour is drained from life, and in a cinema verité style, watching it feels slow and sometimes strained in the early scenes. There is also a sense of indulgence as huge egos clash with uncertainty in their sprawling houses and luxurious surroundings. But stick with it, because as the characters moves further from the film set, the personal focus creates a space to reflect a wider experience.

The story is told in a series of vignettes, following the lives of 12 characters at two-week intervals during the three-month lockdown between March and June, with location shots in London and Marseille. These snap-shots show us joy and beauty as well as fear, heartache and despair, with enough space around the characters for the audience to transpose their own emotions.

These inter-linked narratives are made all the more powerful by the naturalistic performances from a recognisable cast, including Derek Jacobi, Frances Barber, and Sadie Frost. Morgana Robinson is particularly outstanding in portraying the raw grief of an editor who loses her mother to Covid during the cruel isolation rules. And I say this as a warning to people who have lost loved ones at this time, rather than a spoiler.

As the lockdown comes to an end we hear news reports commenting: “Our lives will never be the same”, but outside of the world of the film we are a year on and, although not yet post pandemic, life is opening-up, streets are bustling again and it’s not clear how much has really changed.

The film has been nominated for Best UK Feature at the Raindance Film Festival. It feels like it has certainly captured a moment, but that moment feels too raw and too close to appreciate it now.

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Now it has been revoiced in English, with Mia Ciscon as Conni joined by a largely Irish cast, for UK cinema release.

In this gentle adventure, Conni takes a three-day school trip to an old castle, where she will be staying away from home for the first time. But while the idea of the trip is exciting, Conni is sad at not being able to take her best friend, Mau the cat with her.

It seems that Mau feels the same way at the thought of being parted from her mischievous chum, because no sooner does the bus arrive than Mau finds a way of sneaking on board and joining the fun.

There is confusion and chaos as the pair are reunited. And while Conni is happy to see her cheeky friend, she knows there could be trouble ahead. The castle’s owner, Ms. Weingartner is allergic to cats and forbids all pets on her property. What will happen if she finds Mau? As Conni would say: ‘Oh Shrubbery Plants and Timbuktu!’

Conni and her friends try to hide Mau from Ms. Weingartner and the teachers, but Mau is oblivious to the danger and carries on creating mayhem as usual. Eggs are broken, cakes are eaten, things go bump in the night, and guests’ belongings start to go missing. It’s all too much for Ms. Weingartner who quickly jumps to the conclusion that it is her son’s raccoon Oskar who is to blame and plans to banish him to a petting zoo.

The detective skills of Conni and her friends are needed to save Oskar, keep Mau safe, brave the castle’s ghostly noises, and find the real thief.

The animations look a bit dated, but the story has all the ingredients for a fun-filled adventure where children know more than the adults, are braver, and support each other to save the day.

Conni and the Cat will be in UK cinemas from 20 August 2021.

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After his death on 23 May 2021, the BBC headlined his obituary with ‘privacy campaigner and ex-motorsports boss’. The Guardian was less reserved, calling him the ‘ruthless Formula One supremo’ and the son of the British Union of Fascists’ leader, Sir Oswald Mosley. While, The Sun, whose former sister paper The News of The World Mosely famously sued for breach of privacy, printed what they called, ‘Max Mosley’s dark past of conflict, kinky sex and ‘racist shame’’. But who was the real Max Mosley? Like this documentary says: it’s complicated.

Film producer and director, Michael Shevloff says although Mosley cooperated with the film makers, ‘Mosley: It’s Complicated’ isn’t an authorised documentary. Watching it you might feel otherwise, as it gives the sense of Mosley having his say, to face-off what might be coming that he can’t respond to.

In it he addresses many of the darker issues he has been associated with, while making one last push for greater press regulation. The documentary brings in fellow privacy campaigner, actor Hugh Grant, to further bang this drum. But the crusading feels bitter and dated. Yes, there were many things wrong with press activities, particularly of the Tabloids, before the Leveson inquiry. But neither Mosley nor Grant give any attention to how the media landscape has changed, with the subsequent rise of social media and the smartphone. It feels like a personal vendetta rather than a debate about press freedom; like Mosley’s on a mission to bring the Murdoch empire down, even if it means haunting it out of Fleet Street.

After watching the film, Bernie Ecclestone said: “I am so happy that I never had to sue Max, as he is not the person to take on”. It is clear Mosley had the wit, power, money and the grit to take on any opponent – and he did.

Ecclestone is interviewed in the film, alongside other motorsport figures including, Flavio Briatore, Jean Todt and Gerhard Berger. This is where the documentary is most insightful, particularly for Formula 1 fans.
The film chronicles how together Ecclestone and Mosley turned motor-racing into the most lucrative sport in the world. It covers pivotal moments such as the deaths in racing accidents of Jim Clark, Roger Williamson and Ayrton Senna, as well as the 2005 Indianapolis tyre debacle and the McLaren ‘Spygate’ drama.

While controversy is never far away, Mosley is unanimously praised for his part, as President of the FIA (1993-2009), in overseeing research into car safety. This had far-reaching impacts both on and off the track, with laboratory crash tests feeding into safety improvements for domestic vehicles.

Car safety was clearly more than a part of the job for Mosley – it was a passion. Here we see him, even after leaving the FIA, overseeing the first car safety tests in India, which records the highest number of road deaths in the world. This is the legacy he wants to be remembered for. And while Mosley can’t control that completely, Shevloff’s film puts him back in the driving seat.

Mosley: It’s Complicated will be in UK Cinemas from 9 July and will be on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital Download from 19 July 2021.

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After his 60th birthday, with retirement looming, Doug decides to make his leaving speech one his colleagues will never forget. So, Doug’s transformation begins, from a staid, unassuming accountant to an avant-garde, electro-pop star.

He meets with a couple of music producers to explain his dream. It sounds ridiculous, but they go with it. He takes singing lessons; swaps his suit for a T-shirt and shades; has his ear pierced, and gets a spray tan still wearing his white, baggy Y-fronts. It’s both heart-warming and hilarious. Most of his corporate team of 18 years think so too. Except one, who suggests if Doug is serious about following his dream of being a performer, he needs to go to a school to learn the ropes properly. And that’s what he does – in the Philippines.

Doug worked with experimental artist, John Clayton Doyle, on the music video, which grew into this 95-minute film, which Doyle has directed. The title comes from the first original song Doug wrote and performed for his retirement.

It’s billed as a documentary-narrative hybrid feature, which allows for elements of fictional-style storytelling weaved-in, with some highly stylised, imagined scenes and dream sequences. This works on the level of the film as a piece of experimental art, blurring documentary, music video and concert film; but in doing so it loses some of the emotional impact of a more authentically shot documentary. At times I was left wondering is this real or fantasy? It is a mix of both, but the confusion can lead viewers to lean more to the fantasy side, taking away from the genuine eccentricity and incredulity of what Doug has done.

That said, McCorkle is an engaging protagonist and the film raises some thought-provoking issues in an entertaining way. While Doug is indulging his later-life fantasy of performing stylised shows to stadium crowds, his adventure highlights the stark inequalities between the Global North and South. The drag queens he trains with at night, work in textile sweat shops by day. It is a fleeting scene on screen, but it is one that hits hard.

Doug meets various characters along the way, but it is all working towards the crescendo of a final concert scene, filmed in Mexico City. Before taking to the stage in front of a screaming crowd he says: ‘Age doesn’t have to be the limitation we think it is.’ It’s a joyous call to throw off any labels holding us back and a true example that it’s never too late to follow your dream.

I’m an Electric Lampshade had its UK premiere at Barnes Film Festival on 18 June 2021. It is also being screened at The Romford Film Festival on 24 June and Ignite Film Festival from 29 June – 3 July.

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In David Bickerstaff’s documentary, simply titled Sunflowers, the director takes us on a journey around the world visiting the southern French landscapes that inspired the works during the late 19^th century, and the galleries where they are now displayed in London, Amsterdam, Munich, Philadelphia, and Tokyo.

This is the third film Bickerstaff has made on the artist; his previous two being, Vincent van Gogh: A New Way of Seeing (2015) and Van Gogh & Japan (2019). His knowledge and interest in Van Gogh is apparent, in the depth to which the film goes in uncovering stories of each of the paintings, the level of expert commentary, and the fascinating insight that comes from visual juxtapositions of these different works.

The cinematic journey introduces us to the many works and painters who influenced Van Gogh and those he later influenced. It also looks more widely at how sunflowers have been represented in art, and how Van Gogh came to use this towering flower, which he once said gave him hope for the future, as his motif.

There is a fascinating insight into the artist’s use of and experimentation with colour, encouraging a greater appreciation of creating a monochrome image that on one level can appear so simple. The artist’s techniques are further unveiled by new research at the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam, which used X-ray images and infra-red technology to see reveal the charcoal sketch below the surface of the paint.

In a packed 85 minutes, we come to a better appreciation of both the artist and his work, in an imaginative way which mixes views of art (both at a general gallery viewing distance and up close, where individual brush strokes are visible), with images of nature, expert interviews, dramatic interludes with actor Jamie de Courcey portraying Van Gogh and Jochum Ten Haaf bringing the artist’s thoughts to life by reading from letters, and a soundtrack of original music by Asa Bennett.

In this sense, although the film is based on Van Gogh and the Sunflowers at the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, it is much more than an exhibition on screen. And the subject is covered in such academic depth that it will appeal to those with an interest in art history, as well as those who want to know more about this iconic work.

Sunflowers is released in cinemas across the UK from 8 June 2021, including Curzon, Everyman, Odeon, Picturehouse, Showcase, Vue and independent cinemas. Find your nearest cinema at exhibitiononscreen.com

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Maya (voiced by Coco Jack Gillies) spends her time trying to be helpful and going on adventures with Willi, her B(ee).F.F. However, although Maya’s heart is in the right place, she doesn’t always manage to stay out of trouble.

When Maya nearly destroys the hive after waking early and attempting to be useful on the first day of spring, the Queen Bee decides she has had enough of these mishaps and threatens to split up the two friends.

While out and about the pair can’t help but come to the aid of an ant carrying a golden orb being pursued by a trio of burly beetles. These parkour performing pests, Rumba, Henchie and Boof, provide the mild threat to the heroes as well as a good few chuckles. What follows is a road trip with Maya entrusted to protect the orb and deliver it to prevent an all-out turf war between the ant colony and the beetle brigade.

Their quest also re-unites them with a hapless pair of comedy soldier ants, Arnie and Barnie who join them on their trek and provide some of the laugh out loud moments. Although it wouldn’t be right to class this as a musical, there are some short rock songs to change the tempo. Pretty much every song in the film is performed by the lead beetle, Bumbulus.

This cute and colourful adaptation, in line with Pixar’s A Bugs Life, is a cut above other children’s spin-offs and is enjoyable throughout. The direction by co-writer Noel Cleary (who also voices Henchie) keeps the movie moving at pace and keeping the audience’s attention throughout. This would be a great re-introduction to cinema for all of those children who have only been able to watch films at home for a year. Although predominately aimed at very young children, my 9-year-old thoroughly enjoyed it as we giggled through the movie together.

Maya The Bee 3: The Golden Orb is on general cinema release from 17 May 2021

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Ladd Jr, or Laddie as he’s fondly known in the business, also has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. And once you hear his back catalogue of classic movies it’s clear why. Laddie was the executive who gave the green light for George Lucas to make Star Wars and for Ridley Scott to make Blade Runner. He gave Ron Howard and Ben Affleck their first shots at directing. He enabled Mel Brooks to make Young Frankenstein in black and white, and later supported him on another unconventional project when Brooks wanted to make a comedy without dialogue, Silent Movie.

Looking back, we can think of these as easy decisions to make. Who wouldn’t see the blockbuster potential of Star Wars? Well, at the time when Laddie commissioned Lucas to write the script, quite a lot of people, including the Board of 20th Century Fox, who thought having a big dog driving a spaceship was never going to sell. History tells a different story, but George Lucas and Star Wars weren’t the huge names they are now when Laddie chose to believe in them.

The son of actor, Alan Ladd, Laddie was born into Hollywood glamour. But while he loved the escapism of the movies, he felt the pain of the industry’s inflated egos from an early age, when his father left home and practically erased Laddie from his public life. Perhaps that’s why in his own career, Laddie seemed more interested in the art than the glitz of movie making. From listening to those closest to him he certainly seems kinder, more generous, and artistically adventurous than you might expect.

Most surprising was Laddie’s willingness to catapult careers of women both behind and in-front of the camera, giving breaks to female producers like Jenno Topping and directors including Betty Thomas, and Arlene Sandord. Laddie set a trail for the strong female lead, by suggesting Ripley, the lead character in Alien, originally written for a man, should be cast as woman instead. He later worked again with director, Ridley Scott on the ground-breaking female road movie, Thelma and Louise.

Following her father into film-making, Amanda Ladd-Jones is the youngest of three daughters from Laddie’s first marriage to high-school sweetheart, Patricia Ann. She is the narrator, producer and director of the documentary, creating an intimacy beyond the usual biopic. As viewers we are drawn both by her father’s film legacy and her search to learn more about his life, outside of the family home – to see him not just as ‘Dad’ but as those who’ve worked with him do.

It is a side of him Amanda admits to not appreciating until she joined her dad on the set of Braveheart as an adult in her 20s. Recalling this experience to Mel Gibson, who won an Oscar for the film alongside her dad in 1996, we catch a glimpse of the personal cost of such success when Gibson opens up about the relationship with one of his daughters, aged 12 at the time.

It feels like Amanda Ladd-Jones hasn’t just taken us behind the scenes but has revealed ordinary emotions, aspirations, and personal relationships, of some the biggest names in Hollywood doing what for them is their day-to-day job. And it is this honest humanity, intertwined with 50-years of magic movie moments, that makes the documentary a compelling watch.

Laddie: The Man Behind The Movies is available to rent and buy from 26 April 2021 on Sky Store, iTunes/ Apple, YouTube, Google Play and Rakuten. Run Time: 83 Mins.

Mathew Prichard remembers his Queen of Crime grandma, Agatha Christie

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