The End of the Affair (1999)

Based on a Graham Greene novel (that I've not read), Neil Jordan's TEotA is a powerful study of love, albeit one measured by unconventional methods.
Maurice Bendrix (Fiennes) and Sarah Miles (Moore) are the couple having the affair, while Sarah's husband Henry (Rea) worries about her from afar.
Structured as a kind of literary confessional from the obsessed Bendrix, there's more than one truth in play; each one unfolds in a dramatic but organic manner, revealing the motivations and fears of the lovers at key moments. The full story is a lot more interesting than it appears to be at first.

4 fictional values out of 5

Sweeney Todd: The Director's Cut (2006)

With a screenplay by Joshua St Johnston, Dir. David Moore's telling is by far the best filmed Sweeney Todd story that I've personally seen, to date.
Ray Winstone plays the titular barber, resident in a London that's rife with poverty and squalor. A well-liked man, Todd's skills are regarded highly by a regular clientele. When not shaving chins he's a kind of backstreet surgeon saving lives. But when the urge to kill arises it's almost like an affliction taking hold, guiding his steadied, practised hand. By succumbing to it, he can fix the world and ease his philosophically troubled mind, albeit temporarily.
His complicated but sympathetic nature is further explored by his vying for the affections of Mrs Lovett (Essie Davis). Both Winstone and Davis bring something wonderfully rich and compelling to their respective roles.

4 pie fillings out of 5

L.A. Confidential (1997)

Of the film's three leading men, not one of them is someone that I'd be happy to be stuck in a room with: LAPD detective Bud White (Crowe) acts as if he's above the law, allying himself with men who feel that they very much are; Ed Exley (Pearce) is a young cop who's governed by a strict moral code that's as sanctimonious as it is noble; and Jack Vincennes (Spacey) is an ego-driven prick who embodies the L.A. spirit of 'celebrity' status being everything, even though he's the least interesting of the trio.
Set against a backdrop of vice, prostitution and drugs, the film takes a while to hit its stride, but once it does it stays strong to the hard-hitting end. The tightly-woven plot occasionally gets buried under the taut layering, but a fiery clash of personalities keeps the Noir drama thundering along nicely.

3½ press labels out of 5

Romance & Cigarettes (2005)

Written and directed by John Turturro, it's the story of husband and wife Nick and Kitty (James Gandolfini and Susan Sarandon), a couple having what polite society calls 'marital problems', but what makes the film more than the sum of its parts is the wonderfully written characters and dialogue. With just one exception, i.e. an oddly subdued Eddie Izzard, even those with a small amount of screen time (e.g. Steve Buscemi) are decidedly memorable.
It's classed as a musical, but songs are less frequent than the label usually implies. I'd describe it more as a left field comedy drama with moments of song that successfully convey feelings of love in many of its guises.

3½ butts in the snow out of 5

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Texan Joe Buck (Jon Voight) travels to New York to make some easy money as a hustler - a male prostitute with rich old ladies in his sights. Beneath his veneer of cocky confidence is an unsettled soul with an inflated sense of his own abilities. He befriends a sickly con man played by Dustin Hoffman and the two men eke out a living of sorts in a city populated by lonely people.
The two leads each give wonderful performances, making their unrefined characters oddly sympathetic, but it's the manner in which the film is assembled that really impresses. The addition of flashbacks and occasional imagined scenarios worked in tandem, an undercurrent of feeling that showed how emotional wounds aren't tied to one place or time; they travel with us no matter where we go, for as long as we allow them passage.

3½ shoes shined out of 5

Killer's Kiss (1955)

The story in Dir. Stanley Kubrick's second feature, about a boxer (Jamie Smith) and his dancing neighbour (Irene Kane), isn't anything to write home about, so casual viewers may find themselves getting bored before the end. Fans of his more famous later works, however, may find something of interest. While the powerful visuals that he's known for aren't as prominent as one might hope, his love of composition and framing is still very much to the fore.
For me, it wasn't until Paths of Glory (1957) that the stamp of the artist would become so markedly felt, while in Killer's Kiss it feels almost as if he's still searching for the lexicon needed to accelerate himself toward auteur status.

2½ mannequins out of 5

The Street Fighter's Last Revenge (1979)

I didn't enjoy the Mission: Impossible-esque silliness that popped up from time to time, making the Takuma Tsurugi character seem almost like some kind of wannabe super-spy, but when Chiba leads with his deadly fists it makes Tsurugi feels authentic again. Along the way he has run-ins with a martial artist whose skills are greater than the Streetlighter's own, and another whose skills are lesser - both of them cause him problems. In addition, there's some double-crossing, a corrupt politician, and a small item that everyone with something to lose (or gain) is desperate to get their hands on.

3 ace cards out of 5

Sheba, Baby (1975)

Private Detective Sheba Shayne (Pam Grier) answers the call to help out her father, a loan company owner who's getting leaned on by rich heavies who want his honest business permanently closed. Armed with a pistol and a pair of ass-kicking boots Sheba goes in blazing, to do what the police won't.
It's Pam in another tough-talking Blaxploitation flick, doing what she did in most of the others that are named after the title lady. With more outfit changes than necessary, she once again looks the part.
The biggest flaw is the editing, which, if tightened, could've helped patch over the lazy timing and acting, and may even have heightened the weak finale.
My favourite part was perhaps Christopher Joy as Walker, the comedy houndstooth-suited, feather-in-the-hat wearing street hustler.

2½ shotgun redecorations of of 5

Napping Princess: The Story of the Unknown Me (2017)

Sometimes when Kokone sleeps she dreams of a fairy-tale kingdom named Heartland, a place whose relationship with the real world is based on the genre's fanciful rules. When her immediate family is in danger Kokone draws strength from the other realm, but Heartland is under threat, too.
You could accuse Napping Princess of lacking originality, given that is has a Ghibli-esque female protagonist, a story that could've been a younger-audience vehicle for the late Satoshi Kon, a pace that feels almost like Mamoru Hosoda's, and there's some giant creature action that's reminiscent of Hideaki Anno's most famous work, but despite all of that it occupies its own space.
It reveals itself slowly, allowing each of the simple threads time to breathe comfortably. But when it's time to prove it or lose it, it does provide some welcome warm fuzzies, which is something to celebrate.

3 hearts united out of 5

The Crow: Salvation (2000)

The third Crow movie doesn't suck quite as much as its predecessor, but it's still a waste of precious time. The story has twenty-one-year-old antihero Alex (Eric Mabius), who's sent to the electric chair on a trumped-up murder charge, return from the grave to clear his name and find the real killer.
The film-makers had the good sense to abandon the weird piss-smog of City of Angels (1996), but it's still not something I'll want to watch twice.
On a side note, I burned my finger on an oven dish the same day that I watched the movie; my frantic rush toward the cold water tap (aka faucet) was more dramatically satisfying than anything onscreen had been.

1 bird's eye view out of 5