Pina
Bored of the dance.
From the opening scenes of Pina I knew I was in trouble. I love dance on film but the work of the renowned choreographer Pina Bausch (who died just before production began)…
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A life in
the pictures.
Films that stay with you.
Writing that looks a little closer.
Explore the collected reviews of Linda O’Brien.
397 REVIEWS · ONE CRITIC’S PERSPECTIVE
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Low tide.
Remember when Johnny Depp was good? When every performance he did wasn’t a tiresome Stars in their Eyes tribute? Notwithstanding The Tourist (which is perhaps best forgotten) Depp’s recent work has seen…
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Please Give
Sweet charity.
Wealthy people in film aren’t particularly sympathetic. Maybe the cinema brings out the Trotskyite in me but when it comes to upper-middle class crisis I find it extremely hard to be sympathetic.…
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Plot For Peace
Our man in Africa.
Taking a glimpse behind the curtain of international diplomacy is a fascinating yet distinctly worrying experience. Plot for Peace, directed by Carlos Agulló and Mandy Jacobson, draws the veil on one particular…
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Point Blank
Pressure point.
I frequently wonder how I’d get on if I was flung into various movie situations, from zombie apocalypse to hostage situation. Given the fact that I have the upper body strength of…
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Point Break
Pointless.
Historically, the only sports I've been interested in are ones that can be played while simultaneously working my way through a pint – darts, snooker, a particularly unco-ordinated round of table tennis…
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Pompeii
Lava-tory.
I’ve been imagining a conversation between Pompeii star Kit Harrington and his agent. “Kit, baby! A script just landed on my desk that has your name all over it! You already know…
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Predators
Welcome to the jungle.
Predators arrives with a whole heap of baggage and a considerable amount of expectation weighing on its shoulders. Since its release in 1987, John McTiernan’s Predator has achieved cult status thanks to…
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Priest
Disorganised religion.
Haters of angsty teen vampires rejoice! Priest is here to redress the balance with its slavering, feral beasts who exist only to tear humans to shreds and excrete unspeakable substances. Not for…
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Project X
Project Zzzzzzzz.
Everything about Project X is hateful. Its premise is tired. Its “heroes” are some of the most obnoxious, witless boors ever committed to celluloid. It has no plot, no artistry, no laughs…
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Promised Land
Frack attack.
In this new film from Gus Van Sant, the promised land of the title is a rural farming community called McKinley. It is a town where verdant countryside and beautiful old wooden…
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Rango
Cold blooded.
Judging by the evidence of Rango, the new animated feature from Gore Verbinski, there’s nothing the family film audience love more than a little bit of Hunter S. Thompson. They also can’t…
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Rapt
A captivating thriller.
There is a rather unpleasant scene early in Lucas Belvaux’s Rapt in which the kidnapped industrialist Stanislas Graff parts company with his middle finger. Thankfully, this little moment of gore is not…
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RED 2
Scarlet for yeh!
Bruce Willis seems like a bit of a nightmare really. His awkward interview with radio DJ Jamie Edwards during the publicity junket for Red 2 is a lesson in how not to…
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Red Dog
An animal cracker.
There’s a lot of good work coming out of Australia at the moment but to put it mildly, none of it has been particularly cheery. Animal Kingdom, contrary to its name, wasn’t…
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Red Riding Hood
A grim fairy tale.
After being unceremoniously dropped from the Twilight series just one film in, you would have thought that director Catherine Hardwicke would want to distance herself from the whole area of werewolves. What…
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Red Tails
A turbulent flight.
While doing publicity for Red Tails, producer George Lucas spoke passionately about the long gestation of the production and the difficulty he had in selling the idea to a major studio. Speaking…
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Resident Evil: Afterlife
Game on.
Whether or not you are going to enjoy Resident Evil: Afterlife will probably be decided in the first five minutes on the arrival of Shawn Roberts as the evil Wesker. Roberts gives…
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