By Jack Shanley
Outrageous, fascinating, dazzling and wild are just a few words to describe Damien Chazelle’s new film ‘Babylon’. The big extravaganza follows the rise and fall ofmultiple characters in the early days of Hollywood. I managed to catch a late screening on the night of its release and had mixed emotions at first. For the most part I was in awe but had a slight feeling of disappointment. A messy, chaotic blast from start to finish, it has everything from romance to comedy to even a dark horror sequence. ‘Babylon’ takes you on a journey, a cinematic experience that pays quite a wild tribute to the Hollywood Golden Age and the birth of the ‘talkie’. I felt it lacked direction, though. At times it just felt like a bunch of scenes thrown together, some necessary and others unnecessary. The scale is enormous, reflected in the size of the cast, thousands of extras and more than 100 speaking parts. The three-hour epic boasts an impressive cast and a wonderful soundtrack by Justin Hurwitz, not to mention the amazing costume design taking us rightback to the glamour of the late 1920s. But over everything I liked and disliked about ‘Babylon’, there was something at the forefront of the material, a deep passion for cinema which rises above all the criticism. Chazelle brings us into his heart and leaves everything on the screen. His passion, not only for the craft of moviemaking but cinema in general, carries a breath of fresh air into the cinema, shining a light on the impact of movies on his life. As soon as the lights go down and the opening shot fills our screens, we are bewildered as to what’s about to occur, perhaps a wild journey through cinema. Who knows? It’s that unknowing that creates a story slowly unfolding into joy as our eyes are transfixed for such a magnificent ending. I really enjoyed ‘Babylon’, would recommend people go see it, and give it a score of FOUR stars. You can watch ‘Babylon’ at your local cinema today. Director: Damien Chazelle – Rating: R – Genre: Drama/Comedy– Run Time: 3h 9m – Language: English, Spanish. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.

By Jack Shanley

‘8½’ is a strange title but one appropriate for the 1963 classic. Approaching its 60th anniversary, we look back as fondly as ever at the Federico Fellini masterpiece. Gaining its title simply from the number of films in which the Italian maestro had made to date, it really is a must-watch movie. It follows a troubled Italian filmmaker, Guido (Marcello Mastroianni), who struggles with the creative stasis of his next project. Overwhelmed by his struggles, he retreats into a world of fantasy, both past and present, resulting in his next project being very autobiographical. This bonafide classic is a study of male fantasy and fear of the creative mind. Throughout, we are constantly struck with wonderful dream-like imagery from Guido’s mind overlooking the past and present, most of which involves his association with women, the impact of women on his life and his true feelings for them. We also study the true horror of one suddenly losing their creativity for their craft. Fellini at his very best tended to bond a balance between fantasy and reality and never has it been more evident than in ‘8½’. The film is a messy ball of confusion as our hero (Guido), a self-regarding man, finds himself lost and utterly empty as the film itself. Midway though, a friend of Guido turns to him, speaking the true essence of the film when saying: ‘I’ve figured out what your story is about. It’s a man’s inner confusion.’ This speaks volumes not just for ‘8½’ but for the majority of Fellini’s filmography, films like ‘La Dolce Vita’, ‘La Strada’ and ‘Nights of Cabiria’ which all fall into the themes of fantasy, dreams and desire. ‘8½’, still regarded as one of the finest films ever made, is on many lists and polls as one of the greatest and most influential films of all time. It is truly an astonishing, masterful and electrifying spectacle of optimism as we step into the dreams and world of Fellini. As the material is still so fresh, it’s only right to give it a score of FIVE stars. •You can watch ‘8½’ on Prime Video or buy it on Blu-Ray for €21.37 on Amazon. Director: Federico Fellini – Rating:15 – Genre: Fantasy/Drama – Run Time: 2h 18m – Language: Italian English. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.

By Jack Shanley

Seventy years on and ‘Roman Holiday’ is still inspiring rom-coms of the 21st century.
It’s a fun, heart-warming and deep film with quite a basic story, starring Gregory Peck as the cool masculine news reporter and the wonderfully elegant Audrey Hepburn as Princess Ann. Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, touring Europe, Princess Ann (Hepburn) decides to take off for the night while in Rome. When a sedative she took earlier from her doctor finally kicks in, she falls asleep on a park bench and is later found by an American news reporter, Joe Bradley (Peck), who takes her back to his apartment for safety. At work next morning, Joe discovers Ann’s real identity and bets his editor that he can get an exclusive interview but romance quickly gets in the way. ‘Roman Holiday’, made in 1953, is the reason we love cinema. It’s a film that ages like fine wine and is still as entertaining as ever. Great American screenwriter Dalton Trumbo urges us to commit to life’s simple pleasures - money and status alone cannot create meaning and happiness. The classic steals our hearts, from the amazing scenes in which we see Ann get her haircut, to the iconic Vespa bike scene and on to the thrilling barge fight scene. We are ever poised for the next scene to capture our hearts once again, and with the ending being so beautiful, it will make your heart peel like an orange. The amazingly graceful Hepburn lights up our screen for the first time, her beauty, elegance and sense of fashion, making her an instant icon and one of Hollywood’s brightest stars. She didn’t just win our hearts in the end but also the Academy Award for Best Actress. This is a magical film the likes of which I don’t think we’ll ever see again and is still so fresh after all these years. I can’t help but give it FIVE stars. You can watch ‘Roman Holiday’ on Sky Cinema or buy it on DVD for €9.99 at Tower Records. Director: William Wyler – Rating: PG – Genre: Romance/Comedy – Run Time: 1h 58m – Language: English/Italian. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.

By Jack Shanley

With Christmas just around the corner, I thought it would only be right to review ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’.Thirty years since its original release, it hasn’t aged, only grown better in time. This beautifully crafted heart-warming adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel is an amazing film which offers so much, from the wacky screwball comedy of the Muppets to the seriousness of Michael Caine as Scrooge. In my opinion this is the best adapation out there, for its fun wacky comedy aspect, seriousness and its lack of shyness for the true horror and essence the story holds. As dark as the material can be, we still must go to those dark places for the ending to be as joyous. Dark in periods, especially with the three ghosts, makes it far more memorable and interesting than any of the ghosts from other Christmas Carol movies. The film focuses on not just Scrooge’s life but his whole perspective of life too. We see examples of this in the introduction. We don’t see Scrooge’s face, only low shots emphasising his monstrous visage, and tilted shots to show his twisted view of the world. Something this movie does that I really appreciate is it really hits the serious tone hard during the third ghost. They remove the comic relief that’s kept our spirits up this whole time and force us to witness the horror that awaits Scrooge in the future thus making the ending strong, joyful and that bit more special. Apart from being vastly entertaining, the acting is also superb. Caine’s fantastic performance - changing from a menacing man to a warm, charming man who’s joy is so infectious - arguably carries the film. The songs throughout are fantastic quality too as they’re fun, catchy and will leave you humming the tunes for quite a while. I’d highly recommend watching ‘The Muppets Christmas Carol’ this Christmas with the spirit of the season shining through in every frame. For that I can’t help but give it FIVE stars. You can watch ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’ on Disney Plus or go see it at the Lighthouse Cinema on December 19th. Director: Jim Henson – Rating: PG – Genre: Family/Fantasy – Run Time: 1h 25m – Language: English. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.

By Jack Shanley

Forty years ago, Ridley Scott released one of the most captivating Sci-fi films of all time. As it approaches its 40th anniversary, I just had to give ‘Blade Runner’ another rewatch and it never fails to amaze me.It’s an extraordinary film, both beautifully crafted and visually stunning. From the amazing Score by the late genius Vangelis to the phenomenal detail in every shot, it truly is a jaw-dropping cinematic experience. Although it’s a futuristic Sci-fi film from the ‘80s, it still very much clings to the classic film noir style of the ‘40s and ‘50s. Detective Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) is a masculine yet vulnerable character, a character we’ve seen multiple times throughout the ‘40s and ‘50s. ‘Blade Runner’ is influenced enormously by the film noir style and, of course, other movies such as ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’, ‘Star Wars’ and probably its biggest influence, Fritz Lang’s 1927 futuristic classic ‘Metropolis’.There is still a freshness and distinctiveness in the material no matter how many times you watch it. One of the greatest elements is the spectacular visuals that suck you in, and as a viewer you can’t help but get lost in it.From the opening aerial shot of the beautiful mesmerising dream-like city, Scott has our attention, and we want to dive in there and then and explore every inch of this amazing city.

However, what’s rather interesting is we never really get the chance to, for up high it looks astonishing but down low it looks like an overpopulated, run down, damp claustrophobic city. Although ‘Blade Runner’ looks amazing, it also sounds amazing. Due to the spectacular visuals you can turn down the sound and still enjoy every second.The film also delves deep into the study of the human condition and essentially questions how we live life. It truly is a science fiction masterpiece and for that I give it a score of FIVE stars.You can watch ‘Blade Runner’ on Amazon Prime or pick up the final cut version for €9.99 in Tower Records. Director: Ridley Scott – Rating: 15 – Genre: Sci-fi/Action – Run Time: 1h 57m – Language: English. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.

By Jack Shanley

With Jordan Peele’s third film hitting cinemas worldwide in early August, I felt it would be a good opportunity to write about this much-anticipated movie. Overall, I was quite disappointed in all honesty. I felt it took an eternity to really kick in and flow luxuriously to its end. It just felt like a film with no soul, one that is so dependent on its ending that that’s all there really is to it. There was nothing more in the material to get lost in, nothing a second watch could do for me. What Peele has in ‘NOPE’ is a situation and not particularly a story. It’s a situation that never develops and just stays where it starts with louder and grander versions of the same scene continually playing for the two hours’ duration. I also didn’t care for the characters. They were so far wrong that it bored me and punctured any excitement I had for the film. There was nothing really that I, as a viewer, could relate to or identify with. There was no connection to these people on screen. I felt the villain, being a huge UFO, to be so far from scary in any way, to the point of me almost forgetting it was a horror film. It took until the scene midway through, of a violent chimpanzee on a killing spree on the set of a sitcom, for me to remember the genre. That scene was the closest I felt to being uncomfortable for the entire two hours.Jordan Peele is a talented writer/director who certainly knows what he’s doing, and as a huge horror fan I remain ever poised for the next subconscious nightmare he deems fit to make flesh. But every so often an obviously talented person makes a bad movie, and that’s what we have in ‘NOPE’. The talent is there but the movie is dead on the screen. I’ll give ‘NOPE’ a score of three stars. • You can watch ‘NOPE’ at your local cinema today: Director – Jordon Peele - Rating: 16 - Genre: Horror/Sci-fi - Run Time: 2h15m Language: English. For more film content please follow @movies4fanatics on Instagram.