All posts by Andrew Mackenzie »
Phantom Love (2007) Movie Review
At its base level, Nina Menkes’ “Phantom Love” draws a line between introspective art and unbearable pretentiousness. Although the rich visuals and beautiful photography may create a vivid cinematic world, there are no real...
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The Toybox (2005) Movie Review
Oh unbounded joy, another low-budget British horror DVD presents itself to me for review. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love watching and reviewing movies, and I am a big advocate of British cinema,...
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This is England (2006) Movie Review
Of the many filmmakers working in Britain today, Shane Meadows can be seen as the only one making films about Britain. With “This Is England”, he transports the viewer into the seedy world of...
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Sunshine (2007) Movie Review
Once, every now and then, a movie comes along with imagery and tone so solid that it makes me say, “Yeah”. I say it with a sort of nonchalant awe and relaxed wonder, not...
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Hot Fuzz (2007) Movie Review
“Hot Fuzz” is the latest offering from the writer/director team of Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, whose last collaboration was 2004′s brilliant zombie-romantic comedy “Shaun of the Dead”. This time the duo turns to...
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The Witches Hammer (2006) Movie Review
“The Witches Hammer” is, in essence, a low-budget British take on the “babe with a blade” vampire movie formula. Over the last few years, the likes of the “Underworld” movies, “Ultraviolet” and “Bloodrayne” have...
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Saw III (2006) Movie Review
When “Saw” came on the scene in 2004, it delivered a much-needed jolt to the limp body of American horror. Working with a relatively small budget, James Wan and Leigh Whannell created a visceral...
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Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006) Movie Review
One would think that “Run Lola Run” director Tom Tykwer would have approached the task of adapting Bernd Eichinger’s novel “Perfume” for screen with a sense of trepidation. Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Tim Burton...
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See No Evil (2006) Movie Review
“See No Evil” is a movie designed essentially to showcase WWE wrestler Kane. Proof of this comes about thirty seconds in, when “produced by WWE films” appears on screen. Oddly enough, “See No Evil”...
Read More »Karla (2006) Movie Review
Many of you will probably know Laura Prepon as “the redhead” from the popular Fox sitcom “That 70s Show”, and after seeing her play girl-next-door Donna Pinciotti for eight years, it’s kind of hard...
Read More »Snakes on a Plane (2006) Movie Review
Believe it or not, the aptly titled “Snakes on a Plane” began life when studio execs tried to come up with the worst movie concept ever: a myriad of venomous and very angry snakes...
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How is Your Fish Today? (2006) Movie Review
“How Is Your Fish Today?” began life as a British-commissioned Chinese documentary about Mohe, a small village in the northernmost part of China , lying on the Russian border. However, when the crew reached...
Read More »BloodRayne (2006) Movie Review
For those of you not already familiar with director Uwe Boll, let me bring you up to date: Boll is a German doctor of literature, who, ever since 2003′s “House of the Dead” has...
Read More »Ultraviolet (2006) Movie Review
In his filmmaking career, director Kurt Wimmer has been pretty unlucky. His films have something to say, but have suffered from bad fortune in the process of conception to realisation. His 2002 sci-fi piece...
Read More »Reeker (2005) Movie Review
It’s safe to assume that almost everyone in the developed world is overly familiar with the slasher movie formula. Normally, a group of promiscuous high school/college students travel into the mountains or countryside for...
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Kidulthood (2006) Movie Review
“Gritty” is a word used far too often to categorise films. It appears that anything vaguely realistic or that plays outside of the regular rom-com or blockbuster format of Hollywood is labelled “gritty”, regardless...
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Skrypt (2004) Movie Review
I can safely say that “Skrypt” is the only Austrian film I’ve ever reviewed, seen or known to have existed. And, from what I can tell, the Austrian film market isn’t exactly booming. However,...
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The Aristocrats (2005) Movie Review
On paper, the concept of “The Aristocrats” sounds terrible: it is, essentially, 90 minutes of comedians being interviewed about a very dirty joke with the titular two-word punch line, “The Aristocrats”, and the role...
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King Kong (2005) Movie Review
I do not envy Peter Jackson. Since 1996, when work began on the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, the man has been consistently taking on some of the most arduous cinematic tasks in history....
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