Liam Trim with the latest edition of ‘Page and Screen’… The idea of character is more complicated than we allow ourselves to realise. Of course put simply they are made up, fictional people in stories. But there are those who wish to challenge such a casual assumption. Some say they are merely bundles of words. […]

David Fincher’s (The Social Network, Zodiac, Fight Club) newly formed production company Panic Pictures has optioned its first property, an adaptation of the macabre crime novel Panic Attack. Jason Starr’s 2009 story is a dark thriller about a New York psychiatrist who shoots and kills a home intruder and then has to face a media […]

Beginners, 2011. Written and Directed by Mike Mills. Starring Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer and Mélanie Laurent. SYNOPSIS: Oliver (Ewan McGregor) is rocked by two announcements from his elderly father Hal (Christopher Plummer): that he has terminal cancer, and that he has a young male lover. I wanted to start by saying that I was actually […]

Cowboys & Aliens, 2011. Directed by Jon Favreau. Starring Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, Paul Dano, Clancy Brown and Keith Carradine. SYNOPSIS: A posse of cowboys attempt to defend Earth from extraterrestrial invaders. Cowboys and Aliens. Now there’s a high concept movie title if I ever heard one. There are cowboys. There […]

Win Win, 2011. Directed by Thomas McCarthy. Starring Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale, Alex Shaffer, Burt Young and Jeffrey Tambor. SYNOPSIS: A struggling lawyer and volunteer wrestling coach Mike Flaherty (Paul Giamatti) decides to ‘innocently’ relocate an elderly client with dementia, Leo Poplar (Burt ‘Paulie’ Young), into a nursing home to receive his guardian […]

Conan the Barbarian, 2011. Directed by Marcus Nispel. Starring Jason Momoa, Stephen Lang, Rachel Nichols, Ron Perlman, Rose McGowan and Bob Sapp. SYNOPSIS: Conan the Cimmerian journeys across the continent of Hyboria on a quest to avenge the murder of his father and slaughter of his village. *** SPOILERS *** I went into Conan with […]

Neds, 2010. Written and Directed by Peter Mullan. Starring Conor McCarron, Peter Mullan, Gary Lewis, Mhairi Anderson, Greg Forrest and Martin Bell. SYNOPSIS: In 1970s Glasgow, a young boy finds his life spiralling out of control when he falls in with the wrong crowd, entering a world of cheap drugs, violence and the camaraderie of […]

Camp Victory, Afghanistan, 2010. Directed by Carol Dysinger. SYNOPSIS: The true story of the American Exit Strategy in Afghanistan, compiled from 300 hours of footage shot over the course of three years. Little-known documentary director Carol Dysinger has achieved an admirable feat with her film Camp Victory, Afghanistan. Not so much the production itself but […]

Lock Up (Spanish: Cruzando el límite), 2010. Directed by Xavi Giménez. Starring Marcel Borràs, Carlos Cuevas, Adolfo Fernández and Cristina Dilla. SYNOPSIS: A troubled teen is admitted to a high-security rehabilitation centre in an attempt to curb his dangerously wayward behaviour. What a week it has been for the common folk of England. A week […]

Captain America: The First Avenger, 2011. Directed by Joe Johnston. Starring Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving, Stanley Tucci, Hayley Atwell, Dominic Cooper, Sebastian Stan and Toby Jones. SYNOPSIS: During World War II, Steve Rogers is turned into the heroic super-soldier Captain America. In a summer schedule which has been jam-packed full of sequels, […]