As the first film was such a zeitgeist juggernaut, this sequel would never have that impact, but it is impressive and powerful at times.
Danny Boyle expertly moves the characters forward, interweaves clips from the first movie and also adds glimpses of childhood memory. Beautifully shot throughout. An excellent soundtrack (surprise surprise) with a lovely short sequence where one character nostalgically leafs through old vinyl. Delighted that one of the more downtrodden characters gets time in the sun. Whole cast on top form as well.
This film has bite if you are of similar age to the main characters, where middle age triggers looking back at relationships made and lost and choices taken etc. It’s funny, poignant and disturbing in paces. Not as impressive as Trainspotting but still recommended.
My favourite latterday Scorsese: a modern morality tale, supremely well-written and acted, with great performances by DiCaprio and (especially) Jonah Hill.
An absolutely gorgeous Blu-ray transfer of the greatest movie ever made in these islands. Daring, inventive, beautiful, this dazzling and witty picture is now nearly 73 years old. But it never dates or ages, it just gets better and better. I must have seen it 30 times and I never get bored of it.
It is is perfect in every way: Emeric Pressberger’s sublime script; top notch naturalistic performances from David Niven, Roger Livesey, Kim Hunter, Raymond Massey, Kathleen Byron, Marius Goring and Abraham Sofaer; Jack Cardiff’s jaw-dropping cinematography, moving effortless between pearlescent black and white and ravishing Technicolor; Allan Gray’s memorable score; Alfred Junge’s stunning design; superb SFX that still stand up today; and Michael Powell’s direction, which contains all his trademarks (a sense of place, a dreamlike quality, a uniquely English vision, technical brilliance coupled with an effortless ability to work at and beyond the limits of his imagination and understanding of both the grammar and poetic possibilities of cinema). He is a cinematic god, a true poet, up there with Dreyer, Renoir, Ozu, Welles, Murnau, Paradjanov and Mamoulian.
On Netflix, another modern day morality tale, the story of a spiv (now in prison for fraud) and various associates trying to organise a “luxury” festival. Trouble was, the man with the scam, one Billy McFarland, was not only a liar, he was way, way out of his depth, as this documentary reveals. He and his chums (including rapper Ja Rule) spent millions of dollars on securing the services of "social media influencers’ (models and various vacuous celebs), on glossy advertising and promises the couldn’t fulfil. In the process they forgot to tie down any bands or to lay on proper facilities. They didn’t even secure a location until the last minute!
Compelling viewing, particularly if you’re partial to a bit of schadenfreude.
Having given in and started watching the box-set again, I’m now accelerating my way through it (well ahead of Sky’s re-run) - I’m now some way in to season 2 and, if anything, it’s getting better and better as the threads of some storylines are playing out, new ones are being added (vis.his kids) and the issues are piling up for Tony. Yes, it’s violent in parts (rated 18) but it doesn’t dwell on such aspects - it’s just an awful means to an end in most cases. It’s captivating watching.
