Drama > L Drama > N > Nichols, Mike

Advantages: Intellectual, Compelling
Disadvantages: Hardly cheery

It was early 2005 and I was bored so decided to go to the cinema and had no idea what to watch. 'Closer' was a film that I did not feel entirely enthused about going to see but I was sure that the star power would see me through it. The film is essentially a tale of four people intertwined by their own confusion as to who it is that they love or lust after. Dan (Jude Law) is a smart journalist (well, obituary writer) who is in a relationship with ...
...desire for enigmatic photographer Anna (Julia Roberts). Anna is torn between aforementioned Dan and the very much rough and ready doctor Larry (Clive Owen). The pitch sounds cheesy and terrible. Sounds like a typical 'we've got no clue what we are filing but lets stick a load of HUGE stars in it and we've got a guaranteed box office hit' and this is how I feared it would turn out. What seems to keep interweaving the characters and their own respective ... Read review

Advantages: strong actors
Disadvantages: bleak, depressing and meandering storyline

I didn't see Closer at the cinema, but being quite a big fan of both Julia Roberts and Jude Law I was quite keen to get it and watch it on DVD. Having done so, I have to say that it seemed quite a strange film and not overly enjoyable although it does have it's fascinating moments. There are only four characters in the film which in itself seems quite a strange thing. There is no supporting cast of interesting characters to bring lighter moments ...
...Although I watched it on DVD there are not really any additional features to speak of - just the usual screen selections and choice of languages. If I haven't put you off entirely, youmight be interested to know that Closer is currently selling on mazon for only £4.98. ... Read review

Advantages: great dramatic movie with so much realism.
Disadvantages: none at all

Director: John Singleton Producer: Steven Nicolaides Writer: John Singleton Stars: Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding jr, Morris Chestnut, Laurence Fishburne, Nia Long and Angela Basset Released in the summer of 1991 this brilliant hour and forty minute movie takes a look into the lives of the gangs who struggle to survive in the ghettos of South central Los Angeles… **BRIEF PLOT** When a bright student, Tré Styles, (played by Desi Arnez Hines), moves ...
...until he is reunited with his old friends, Ricky Baker, (played by Donovan McCrary), who is a up and coming American football player, and Darin "doughboy" Baker, (played by Baha Jackson), who is spends his time selling cocaine in the ghettos… Years later, and set in 1991, Darin, (now played by Ice Cube) spends most of his time hanging out in the "hood" after being released from prison with no real hope for the future… Ricky, (now played by Morris ... Read review

Advantages: Enthralling story telling, mixing a very serious story with charming humour
Disadvantages: The movie has dated rather a lot

...some really old fashioned qualities, Don't Talk To Stranger's is actually a far superior offering than the movie it accompanied. The movie offers a very serious message, padded out with a lot of quirky 60's British humour; Jean's younger sister Ann for example is carrying out a single handed campaign against hunting, citing her father as one of the very people she protests against "Mummy do you know how many innocent defensive foxes are slaughtered ...
...over 20 years ago. Don't Talk To Strange Men is a marvellously well crafted piece of low budget film-making directed by Pat Jackson who later went on to make The Prisoner and Enid Blyton's Famous Five TV serial. Despite the dated aspects of the movie, I feel this is an amazingly pertinent story because the link initially is created by a wrong number, and now 46 years on there are more telephone numbers than ever before, and more young people owning ... Read review

Advantages: Wonderfully real and well written
Disadvantages: None

Believe the hype. This is possibly one of the best TV programs ever made. On the face of it The Wire will come across as a Hill Street Blues or St Elsewhere type of well written and realistic piece of programming, but it seems to take that trend one step further which I didn't believe could be possible. Before I wax lyrically about this first series I have to warn you that The Wire isn't for easy watching. It makes 24 seem like watching an episode ...
...but a programme like The Wire shows up other TV shows for being the pure entertainment that they are. The Wire truly makes you think and as I said it doesn't make for easy viewing. Some friends of mine enjoy spending an entire weekend watching 24 in real time (i.e. a whole series in one sitting), but it's difficult to do that with The Wire as you want to sit and contemplate what you are watching. The main theme of the first series is drugs. But ... Read review