All the President's Men (1976)

A political thriller about the 1972 United States Watergate scandal. It's not something I have any real interest in, but actors Hoffman and Redford are eminently watchable in their portrayal of the two real-life Washington Post reporters who were instrumental in uncovering and publicly exposing the conspiracy, namely Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, respectively.
Dir. Pakula's camera positioning and split focus techniques give the busy office environments a real sense of presence, to such a degree that the meticulously constructed set feels like an actual, functioning office - it wasn't until afterwards that I found out those scenes weren't shot on location.
I don't know how faithful to the truth the events depicted in the story are, but as a film it's a clear-cut success that's worthy of its accolades.

4 pages polished out of 5

A Boy and His Dog (1975)

Blood can sniff out a woman in a crowd. It's perhaps not as amazing as it sounds when you consider that Blood's a dog. But what is amazing is that he's telepathic and can communicate with Vic, a human. Their relationship is mutually beneficial, but they're also genuine friends; everyone needs a friend in a post World War IV landscape (it's 2024).
I loved the set-up and the well-defined qualities of the protagonists, even to the point that I forgot it was Don Johnson that I was watching, but the film undergoes a significant change in style after the halfway mark and—even though it's an interesting change in itself—for some reason my connection to the characters fell away, leaving me weary of the whole affair, wanting it to go back to how it was. Perhaps on a different day I'd have felt differently. Nevertheless, I'd still recommend it to fans of low budget post-apoc fiction.

3 wasteland rovers out of 5

Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)

Ray Bradbury is a fine author; his words own the page but they rarely translate well to the screen. (Book Review.)
I first saw SWTWC when I was ten. It made me fear Carnivals and spiders. Looking at it today, it hasn't aged well, although it's still an enjoyable film with an obvious message for young and old. Plus, the diabolic Mr. Dark is forever burned into my memory.
For fans of the author, kids who like to be scared and nostalgic old farts. I am now, or have been, all of those.

3 autumnal nightmares out of 5