Film Shapes

Welcome to a new version of Film Shapes. I primarily blog about films I've just seen at the cinema but, what with the closures and lockdowns, I don't know when I'll get to do that next. So, like most of the world, I've decided to do my viewing online. My plan for now is to do a short write-up and record a podcast, WITHOUT SPOILERS, for each film. It may change as we go on but that's the idea for now. Please enjoy. The first film in this 'new' format is Dolemite Is My Name , available on Netflix. This is a film in a film for the most part, based on the 1975 film, Dolemite , brainchild of Rudy Ray Moore. Eddie Murphy plays Moore in this bipoic and he does it with gusto. It reminded me that Murphy was a genuine superstar in the 80s. Not sure if I really appreciated him back then. The film follows Moore in his attempts to strike it big. He's an old style showman, singer, MC, comedian, raconteur, and he thinks he should be a success. Ripping off ...

I have to admit being a little agnostic towards Ben Wheatley's films. Of the ones I've seen, only High-Rise  impressed me. Down Terrace wasn't great, Free Fire was hit and miss and Kill List left me cold (I'm yet to get to Sightseers and A Field in England ). So, would a Luna preview of his new film, Happy New Year, Colin Burstead  pull one back? Indeed. Back of the net! 3-2! He must have a foot like a traction engine! While I wouldn't say this is a thunderbastard, it's a very solid piece of work that lets us (anyone not lower middle class English) into the lives of these people for a day. The set-up is that Colin has organised a party at a stately home for his mum, who has been poorly. Extended family and friends are invited - the complication being brother, David, who has been invited secretly, is a bit of a twat and not roundly popular with anyone, reasons for which are pared backed as the film progresses. The cast is probably the main draw ...

Day off today so what better than a trip to the cinema? Screen 7 of the Luna in Leederville isn't very big but it still smells new and, what with it being a Friday morning session of a Macedonian documentary about beekeepers, you can guess how packed it was. More's the pity for the lack of an audience because this is a fantastic film. Honeyland is all about Hatidze Muratova, a middle-aged Turkish/Macedonian wild beekeeper, living and barely subsisting in a small, near deserted village with her elderly mother in central North Macedonia. The directors, Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov, flag their intentions early by showing Hatidze walking through a vast tract of land, ending up on a cliff's edge. Here she cracks open some of the rock to reveal too many bees for anyone's good. Honestly, if bees aren't your thing (I'm thinking of an old college mate, Fraggle Rock, specifically), steer clear of Honeyland . As you might expect from the title, the little buz...