June Reviews

After a quiet couple of months, I caught up a bit more managing to fit in 22 films in June. Helped by the influx of movies seen at the Edinburgh International Film Festival (which won't be detailed in this review, but will have their own reviews as I see them – links below).

Edge of Tomorrow
Bad Neighbours
A Million Ways to Die in the West
Fruitvale Station
Belle
22 Jump Street
How to Train Your Dragon 2 3D
X-Men: Days of Future Past 3D
The Art of the Steal
Oculus
Chef
Cold in July

A couple of trips over to Edinburgh for the International Film Festival took up a couple of weekends and I managed to fit in a few films. Click on the links below for reviews for each film or for the round up at the end.

Greyhawk
The Skeleton Twins
Palo Alto
The Green Inferno
We Gotta Get Out Of This Place
Snowpiercer
The House of Magic 3D
A Dangerous Game
Joe
Miss Zombie
EIFF Digest

Once Upon A Dream

My second Top Pick is probably the most personal for me. I started watching this when I was very young, thanks to my mum. While she worked from home, and with a video recorder that would automatically stop and rewind a video when it reached the end, I would sit and watch this one over and over and over again. As with many of the films I watched when I was young, it was Disney.

This was Disney’s last film to use hand-inked cels for its animation process and was inspired by medieval art, stylised to match the period that the film was set. It was also the last adaptation of a fairytale for many years within the Disney roster. And although there are many more amazing Disney movies out, of which many people believe are superior to this one, through rose-tinted glasses perhaps I will always believe this one to be the best.

EIFF: Joe

Sat 28 June

This is one I have been looking forward to as well. After a spate of less than great movies, Nicolas Cage steps into his grizzly, aging boots and stamps all over your face with awesomeness. Apart from a few moments, Cage is on top form, supported by the equally able newbie Tye Sheridan (both pictured below). You may even recall I mentioned Sheridan before as one to watch out for.

#483664067 / gettyimages.com

Back water convict Joe is just trying to get by and trying to put his rough past behind him. Unfortunately trouble has a way of finding him anyway and anger management is not his strong suit. When youngster, Gary, turns up looking for some work, Joe is eager to help. However family troubles follow the boy and Joe can’t help but get mixed up in them, leading to some truly tense confrontations.