Chirpy_Chaffinch

A group of prisoners of war escape from a Russian Gulag during the second world war and trek thousands of miles through hostile terrain into freedom. Sounds like a great movie, and it is.

At first the viewer is introduced to the characters inside the prison. The harsh and brutal reality is well portrayed. The actual escape is not shown and they don't seem to be followed. Which seems strange.

The trek through the snow, the mountains and then the deserts is very captivating and dramatic as some of the escapees die. I am not sure where this has been filmed, but I don't think it has been filmed in the real locations. Some visual effects are poorly made (sometimes you can see that they are sitting in a studio, and not in the mountains). This takes away a little of the feeling that the viewer is involved.

Also, some of the actors are not Russian but speak with a Russian accent which at times is appalling. I acknowledge that having some stars in the movie is quite appealing but the accents are dodgy.

All in all, this is a great movie that fits in very well with Peter Weirs previous work.

A happily married couple is followed over the changing seasons. The portray is that of harmony, love and togetherness. This is as perfect as it gets. Then we get introduced to their friends who are frequently invited for dinner and drinks. They all have something in common : Broken marriages, alcoholism and self denial. The contrast couldn't be more surreal. Especially Mary, who is longing for love and friendship. Her emotional hurt is tangible.

This movie is not about the couple or anything else, it is about Mary and her shambolic life, the pain that she derives from loneliness and her utter failure to get her life back together. Brilliantly and stunningly directed by Leigh, this is a masterpiece of portraying a character that will be, strikingly and tragically, all too familiar with most of us.

Shaun and Daz have been friends since School. Now, in their adulthood, Daz is terminally ill and wheelchair bound. Shaun himself is unemployed and full of frustration and anger about his life. The movie works very well with the flashbacks to their youth when they were tearing around the local neighbourhood and, sometimes, getting into trouble. Shaun develops huge problems by not being able to cope with Dyslexia and the viewer sees his life falling apart. There is also a strong sense that society (and the authorities) are letting Shaun down. This social drama has many facets but it mainly draws on the perceptions that are out there about Dyslexia and its associated problems. The performances, both by Carlyle and Evets are outstanding, the photography sublime and the screenplay is as real as it gets. Highly underrated in my humble opinion.