danlloydE Reviews

Days of Hope (1975– )

Incisive political drama- UK 1918-26 A must see film

[10/10 · 22 December 2011]

This is a brilliant and moving Film Verite that shows the complicated lives of a single family directly after the first world war Loach comments on the chaos, stitch-up, and buried hopes of a world full of hope for a better world after the war to end all wars. The acting is first-class and this film deserves to be seen by everyone. Unfortunately, the BBC were told not to show the film again in the UK, though it was sold abroad to many countries, Rumour has it that the originals were actually destroyed at the behest of the British government. In 1975 we named our lefty football team after it,which played in Bristol on Sundays till 2005. It would be fantastic if someone could admit to having a copy of the film. There are so many who would like to see and appreciate it again.

Dandelion Dead (1994)

The Englishness of the production needs to be recognised

[9/10 · 18 January 2009]

I notice that the two comments with an American address have found difficulty appreciating the "Englishness" of the portrayals and general directorial approach. One complains of the missed opportunity to delve into the psychological thriller possibilities of the plot. Surely the point is that it is not meant to be a thriller at all and that this is all the better for it. As for Sarah Miles' acting, few play neurotic and repressed better than her. This is mainly why the death so strongly elicits sympathy in the watcher however morally unacceptable. I felt the production was perfectly pitched, the acting uniformly on target and Michael Kitchen, outstanding, doing what he does best, stiff upper lip, repressed emotion, English social manners etc.

This Filthy Earth (2001)

a visual feast of uncompromising energy and honesty

[9/10 · 2 May 2004]

This is a difficult film because it challenges our expectations about the whole point of seeing a film. This is an artistic experience which requires people to engage both their emotions and their brains. It inevitably produces a reaction, normally one of physical revulsion, but combined with a strong sense of pity for the endurance required to live the sort of life lived by the characters in the film. After a while the assault on the eyes,the use of vivid colours and images to portray a sort of ugliness, becomes watchable. Surely the story of the women and children, the portrayal of racism and the uncompromising nature of a rural culture of poverty is a challenge to our modern sensibilities. Surely it poses all sorts of questions when we contrast this with our sanitised, fetishistic relationship with designer capitalism in our everyday lives. This film is hard work and you need to be in the right frame of mind before settling down to watch. This is not quick-fix entertainment, but it is a special experience and therefore to be recommended. Several people I know preferred it on second watching.

The King of Comedy (1982)

A brilliant satire on America

[10/10 · 24 April 2004]

Your comments that this film misfires are astonishing. This is a vicious satire on the American dream. Scorsese uses the medium of excruciating farce to drag from us a mixture of deep embarrassment and disgust at the world in which Rupert Pupkin sees his life opportunities. The fact that he succeeeds is the deeply depressing point of the film, and by extension the depressing thing about the American capitalistic enterprise. De Niro captures the pathetic and absurd nature of one mans dream so perfectly. What a performance. It has a similar effect to watching the equally brilliant Ricky Gervais as David Brent in "The Office" Like touching an open sore, your reaction is to turn away, shut your eyes and splutter disgust. This is what makes great satire. It reaches the emotional and political parts others cannot reach.