Footy’s over for 2025. The Saints appear to have found a war chest. I don’t know how they’ve done it but I’m prepared to look the other way and I’ve upgraded my 2026 membership to a reserved seat, such is the level of delusional optimism infiltrating my being.
Not a great start to movie season in my humble opinion however things will improve I’m sure. Checking out the Springsteen biopic and Begonia next week. Hope these reviews help
One Battle After Another
Director Paul Thomas Anderson has a history of making grand films that can sometimes teeter on overblown and self-absorbed. I enjoyed Boogie Nights back in 1997, Magnolia in 1999 and even Punch Drunk Love in 2002.
Then suddenly he decided on an epic in 2007’s There Will Be Blood. It was long and drawn out but earned Daniel Day Lewis another Oscar. The last film I saw of his was Day Lewis’s final performance, 2017’s Phantom Thread, again nice to look at but so boring I remember being told off for snoring in the cinema.
Anderson unfortunately has applied this overt and unnecessary arthouse mentality to his latest film, One Battle After Another. Set in what can only be described as a post-Trump timeline, it’s a story of an ex-revolutionary (Leonardo DiCaprio) who spends most of his time stoned then suddenly needs to get off his backside and rescue his daughter from the evil nemesis Colonel Lockjaw (Sean Penn).
Really that’s about it! Three hours I’ll never get back. The characters are almost cartoon-like so it was difficult to take seriously and left me confused as to what the purpose was. I wonder as to who was giving Anderson feedback at the initial rushes when the result is so evidently over the top, pointless and pretentious. 5/10 and 3/10 if not for Sean Penn’s effort.
A House of Dynamite
A ballistic missile is heading towards Chicago. The US military and government have twenty minutes to act whilst not knowing which communist country has fired it.
Oscar winning director of The Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow, has utilised the narrative coming from three different perspectives, all sharing the same timeline.
There is the US missile launch base managed by a bunch of young soldiers, a deep bunker in the White House containing a communications stronghold and the President (Idris Elba).
What I liked most about this thriller was the authenticity of the sets. You certainly feel like your in the confines of the White House and Bigelow’s direction absolutely builds the tension.
Disappointingly, what could have been an excellent film is let down by some cliché, schmaltzy scenes that didn’t cut it given the gravity of the situation.
The confusion that such a nightmare could deliver is highlighted well and it is interesting to see how a President would respond. I think Bigelow’s intention here is to suggest just how dangerous this scenario would be in Trump’s hands. 6.5/10
