LITTLE AMÉLIE (or The Character of Rain)

 

Courtesy of Vue Lumiere

Animation outside of the major studios has been evolving. While we’ve all been slowly getting fed up with the sequels (except for Zootropolis 2) and uninventive stories being churned out, animated films have been making a huge impact. The likes of K-Pop Demon Hunters dominated last year, Flow making a historical win at the Oscars and one for the adults, stop motion animation film, Memoir of a Snail leaving an impression on audiences, animated films are evolving, or at least more are being seen by wider audiences. It's exciting to see the weird and unusual animated films alongside the more emotional and grounded stories being honoured at award ceremonies. Little Amelie or The Character of Rain is a shining beacon of hope that progress is being made.

Based on the memoir by Amélie Nothomb, the film follows Amelie, the youngest of three, born into a Belgium family living in Japan. We witness Amelie from birth, as she learns her place in the world and discovers the wonders of the world and her close bond with the family’s housekeeper Nishio-san.

Full review over at Filmhounds.

Birth

Courtesy of the Criterion Collection

 

Jonathan Glazer has carved out a niche in the film world, directed four features (so far) but each so very different as the last. Story, genre, cast and setting may divide Glazer’s filmography but the atmospheric, cold, stylised and quietly unhinged tone in each film is undoubtedly Glazer’s signature. Released in 2004, Birth, screened in competition at Venice and garnered attention, even earning Nicole Kidman award nominations. However, the film wasn’t received with open arms from the critics, citing the film suffered from a disorganised plot and rather uncomfortable scenes. With the film’s Criterion Collection release, we are offered another opportunity to re-watch this strange and melancholic psychological drama about grief and obsession.

Ten years after the death of her husband Sean, Anna accepts a proposal from her new boyfriend, Joseph. One day a 10 year old boy visit’s Anna’s family’s apartment claiming to be her deceased husband Sean and urges her not to marry Joseph. As Sean persists he is telling the truth, everyone doubts the boy’s claim, except for Anna who starts to hold out hope that maybe he really is Sean reincarnated.

Full review over at Filmhounds.

The Housemaid

Courtesy of Lionsgate

 

Whether you love it or hate, The Housemaid is a strange beast. Directed by comedy aficionado Paul Feig and starring ‘of the previous moment’ Sydney Sweeney, in what we’ve been told is an erotic psychological thriller seems like a very odd mix. From the very off kilter tone, the very basic fronting performances, not to mention the irritating voiceovers, The Housemaid feels immediately familiar especially as the tension builds to the twist we expected all along with an underwhelming climax.

Freshly paroled Millie managed to secure a job as housemaid in the up-scale home of Nina Winchester, her husband and daughter on Long Island. Almost immediately, Nina’s erratic and antagonistic behaviour makes Millie feel uneasy. On contract, Nina’s husband Andrew is patient, calm and welcoming. But desperate to keep her job, Millie puts up with Nina. Over time Millie discovers secrets the family are trying to keep hidden until it's too late for her to escape.

This film came across throughout the marketing campaign as a slice of escapism but in fact its a straightforward low-key thriller trying to be an erotic one. The very few moments where the film tries to justify this label are anything but. There is an art to creating an erotic thriller and we haven’t seen a decent one in quite some time. But concentrating on everything else in this film, there is a pattern. The angry, rude, slightly psychotic wife of a wealthy nice guy takes on a seemingly innocent blonde to work for her. Oh I wonder what the twist will be, as there is always a twist. Set up from the start as we see Millie sleeping in her car, going to parole meeting, we know what her crime was before she even says it. The nice husband who everyone loves, we have to wait quite some time for the shoe to drop on this trope. And finally the mysterious groundkeeper handy man who, oh wait, never mind, he barely speaks and is barely on screen. So in actual fact, the biggest twist is, why did Enzo even get a character poster to himself? 

 There is some entertainment to be had, Amanda Seyfried as unhinged Nina is quite fun to watch. But the voiceovers from both Millie and Nina were really not needed. Adaptations do sometimes suffer this, just to get through inner thoughts and backstories, but there are ways to get away from this.

We have Booktok to thank for the hype around the book. Mediocre books being made into anything between complete trash and predictable (not because of adaptation) stories meant to shock and please. There are no doubt great stories out there and probably more of the same to come. The Housemaid is here to entertain, and there is a very good chance that it won’t. Going into this film expecting something new and exciting, you will definitely feel short changed. But if you’re expecting schlock you can half pay attention to, then this is one for the collection.

Agatha Christie's Seven Dials

 

Courtesy of Netflix

With each Agatha Christie adaptation that is released, any fan of the author may hold their breath in anticipation or for what changes will be made. With the recent adaptations, stories that have not been given proper attention, such as Ordeal by Innocence (that was plagued with re-shoots due to an actor being ‘cancelled’), Murder Is Easy, Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? and Towards Zero, these all followed a 3 episode pattern, that is arguable too long for the novel adaptations, especially with some being changed from the source. These were also previously adapted to include Miss Marple in the ITV series, and although she’s a fantastic character, doesn’t appear in the original books, so it was great to see these novels adapted, shall we say, correctly? But The Seven Dials Mystery, having been adapted into a TV movie back in the 80s, had yet to make its more recent significant debut, making its appearance on Netflix most intriguing. Though the book did not receive high praise, this adaptation does make rather large changes, including the end and possible extension into further possible stories. We are introduced to Bundle, or Lady Eileen Brent, who discovers the close family friend Gerry Wade, murdered in his bed after a party at her family’s home. This leads her to follow a trail as to how this happened and why, getting tangled up with her friends in the Foreign Office, as well as Superintendent Battle (who appears in other Christie novels) who starts to investigate the case as further bodies show up.

The Seven Dials, unlike the more recent Christie adaptations, is indeed a murder mystery but one that is more focused on espionage. There are several characters from the government involved and hints to the coming world war two despite everyone still healing from world war one. Murder mystery is the genre but this could very well fall into the ‘spy’ genre as well.

Having read the original book, it's very clear as to why changes were made. Though this story could have been far more effective with just two episodes, a delicious cliff-hanger in between. Though the initial story is intriguing but frustratingly paced, Bundle, played by Mia McKenna-Bruce is delightful, she is perfectly cast, balancing being the pseudo-detective as well as still grieving for her close friend and lost romance. Bundle skates through dangers and equally challenging social obligations with charm and courage, stealing the show entirely. Battle, played with a little less gusto than you’d hope for by Martin Freeman, is meant to be her official counterpart but doesn’t even appear until episode 2, which was slightly disappointing. Most of the excitement (and murders) happen before he even really gets involved. The two leads have an awkward start but soon fall into a rhythm you’d expect from a Christie unlikely duo, with mutual respect to follow.

However, the story doesn’t quite know what it really wants to be and doesn’t quite pull itself off as a blend of genres. The spy elements provide intrigue but then we are pulled into a stereotypical whodunnit setting that feels jarring. Bundle’s own investigation seems to lead somewhere, only for the story to throw in red herrings precisely where you really don’t want them. This all being said, it's the over dramatic climax that was the most disappointing. With three long episodes to go through, you would hope the build up would not be so predictable.

The ultimate end to the story at least provided some hope we’d see Bundle and Battle again, maybe solving another case, who knows, but the characters being the highlight, maybe a juicier story next time too!

Digital Can't Kill The Video Star

 

Wrote a piece about the importance of physical media and how, no matter how many times we're all told that 'no one buys DVDs anymore' this statement just isn't true.

Full piece is over at Late Nite Picture Show.

100 Nights of Hero

 

Courtesy of Vue Lumiere

As the closing night of the BFI London Film Festival 2025, 100 Nights of Hero was always going to have a spotlight on it. But in truth this whimsical (on the surface) fantasy romance may be slightly too odd at first for an audience. At a glance it seems like another version of the famed Middle Eastern folktale, A Thousand And One Nights, from which it takes its inspiration, but digging deeper this is about the power a story can hold as well as a love story buried just below the surface. 

In a world not too similar to our own, a young woman, Cherry is left alone by her neglectful husband Jerome. He secretly makes a deal with a friend, Manfred, to test Cherry’s fidelity. If Manfred successfully seduces his wife, he gets the house and if he loses, Cherry will be executed, which seems win-win for Jerome. But Cherry’s fiercely loyal maid Hero has also been left to watch over Cherry. To distract Manfred from his plan, Hero tells a story each night, but how long can she keep him at bay?

Full review over at Filmhounds.