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chic07
Reviews
Night Music (2010)
Excellent film!
This a wonderfully imaginative animation, full of beautiful touches such as the great visual jokes which are worthy of Wallace & Gromit. The narration by writer/director Paul Jacques (who sounds here rather like Tom Waits) adds to the macabre feeling of the film. And the music (by Christopher Knowles) suits it perfectly. The story unfolds at just the right pace and ends with a splendid twist. Dr Bird, the evil genius at the centre of this dark tale, is a great creation and I would like to know more about his history and those of the other characters. I can't believe that this is the first film that Jacques has made. And I can't wait to see the next one!
Vision Shorts (2010)
Interesting storyline
This a well-made documentary that has a very uplifting message – anyone can make a film if they are only given the chance! It illustrates the work of the Film School in a Box film-making courses run by The Independent Film Trust for disadvantaged people who would not ordinarily get this chance. One of these was the Vision Shorts project run in collaboration with the Raindance film organisation and with Portugal Prints, part of the mental-health charity Westminster Mind, for people recovering from mental health problems. The programme contains two films from this course – Life on the Line and Night Music – made by two of the participants. It is hard to believe that neither of these people had ever made a film before.
Sezon tumanov (2009)
Very interesting!
This is a very interesting film about the choices that one can find oneself having to make, often unexpectedly, at key points in life. And about how these choices may be the rights one or wrong ones for many different reasons. It kept me thinking for a long time afterwards. The mixed cast – half British, half Russian – works well and there are some very nicely-judged performances. I particularly liked Ifan Huw Dafydd as Gregory. There is one scene where he seems to convey everything he is feeling simply by opening his eyes. The Leicestershire landscape and Moscow at night both look wonderful thanks to the cinematography by Dmitry Ermakov.