Brigsby Bear (2017) - DVD Review

Review:

*Originally written January 15th, 2019*

It's such a shame that Brigsby Bear wasn't more popular than it was, an extremely sweet, funny and original comedy-drama looking at the power film and creativity has over us. It's a small indie-gem that so very little people have heard of. I was lucky enough to see it in cinemas a couple of years ago, but its release was extremely limited. 

I remember going into this having no idea what to expect. All I knew about it was the positive buzz coming out of its festival screenings and a couple of people comparing it to Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Which I also loved). Plus Mark Hamill was in it and it involved a kidnapping plot. 

It's perhaps a farcical take on a subject matter that might have needed a bit more drama behind it, but it doesn't mean Brigsby Bear lacked in genuine moments of drama and maturity. The film follows James (Kyle Mooney) a man in his late 20s who spent his entire life unknowingly in captivity with only the show "Brigsby Bear" and the studies forced on him by his kidnappers (Who he believes are his parents). 

Brigsby is James' only thing close to resembling a hobby, it's all he's had as an escape his entire life. The problem is it's a made up show made entirely for him and once he's rescued, he has to adjust to the real world while all he knows is Brigsby, so with the help of his new friends and family, he sets out to finish Brigsby Bear in the form of his own homemade movie.

James is a little hard to get behind at first, he does get a little frustrating with his constant obsession with Brigsby, but it pays off in the end as his homemade movie gets going, leading to some wonderful scenes of them attempting to make their own film with next to no experience or knowledge how.

Brigsby Bear itself is a wonderfully creative invention, a no-budget homage to tacky kids and sci-fi shows of the '70s. Thinking back, this really tapped into nostalgia in a way that works, which is rampant in cinema at the moment. But the difference here is showing the importance of how nostalgia and love for art is a great escape from reality and you should be proud of what you made as long as you put heart and commitment into it. It's oddly like the same year's "The Disaster Artist" in reflection. 

I really have a soft-spot about films involving film-making and this was no different. It hits some familiar beats I've seen before in films like this, but it works all the same. Even the surprisingly emotional ending goes exactly where you'd expect, but after the journey we've spent with these characters, it still hits a satisfying spot and makes you wanna make your own film.


Brigsby Bear really is an underappreciated gem that I highly recommend seeking out. It's sweet, funny and only 90 minutes. I'm really interested to see what Dave McCary does next, because if its half as genuine as this, then I'm sold. Oh, and once again, no Blu-ray release in the UK? What in the fuck. No 4K release is understandable, but not even a Blu-ray release in these times is simply pathetic and unacceptable. 

8/10 Dans

Brigsby Bear is out now on DVD in the UK
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The Florida Project (2017) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written October 24th, 2017*

"Reality"

I keep saying 2017 might be the strongest year of cinema I've ever lived in. I was born in 1996, so make of that what you will. Films like this are what make me love film. This is pure cinema. The Florida Project is something so special that has come out of nowhere for me. I got to see it at Odeon's monthly or so "Unseen" even where they give you a preview of a film coming out without telling you what it is. I had no clue about this film. I'd heard some festival buzz and that Willem Dafoe was in it, but that's it. I haven't even seen the director's previous film 'Tangerine', but I need to now.

I was floored by this. A dark, sweet and sad film about a group of different people living in a motel on the outskirts of Disneyland Florida. It's like a peek into what they don't want you see around a place that is meant to be magical and child friendly. It all feels so real. Nothing about this felt Hollywood or fake. This could have been a documentary for all I know if it weren't for Willem Dafoe and another actor I recognised (I'm talking about Caleb Jones and his vitamin C deficiency). 

Not that Willem Dafoe wasn't fantastic in this, but he is outshined by non-actors, which is a compliment. Every performance is insanely good. Even the goods, who feel like real kids. Not the usual Richard Curtis bullshit where kids talk like adults and understand things they wouldn't in real life. They're incoherent, confused and easily pleased, but know when something is wrong, making for some of the most heartbreaking moments I've seen in cinema this year.

For a first time actress, Bria Vinaite was a goddamn revelation as Halley, the mother of Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), a woman who goes to desperate attempts to provide for her daughter and keep her living in the motel for the Summer. It's a performance of incredible complexion for a first time actress, there is so much depth to her character and performance, I couldn't believe this is the first time she's been on a screen. I can't wait to see her career progression after this.

In many ways this reminded me last years American Honey (Which is also excellent and worth checking out). This is a film I imagine mainstream audiences shrugging off as "Boring" or "Nothing happens", which is fair enough. There's not so much plot, it's more about just watching these people live, living and breathing their world and watching their struggles. Which for me, was so compelling and beautiful.

Speaking of beautiful, this is a gorgeous film. I cannot express how much I loved the colour scheme of the faux brightly coloured motel as the backdrop to so much poverty and desperation. Alexis Zabe did an incredible job with the cinematography, there were so many beautiful images that it was impossible to take in on a first watch. That firework scene? I need more of that in my life.

The only big question mark I had about The Florida Project was the ending. Which is up to interpretation for sure, but sadly I was with a jerk-off audience that laughed out loud and verbally shouted "Was that it" when it ended. For me, the ending was beautiful, a piece of a escapism fantasy that could have only been in the mind of a child who was facing the hardest moment of her life. I'd say the change of cinematic technique was a bit jarring and off, but on reflection, the way the scene was presented, so different from the rest of the film, it had to be fantasy. Everything leading up to it though was some of the most brutal and hard hitting things I've seen.


I loved The Florida Project. It's not a film that will show wide, but if you can seek it out and you're open to indie and art-house films, then this will be an endlessly rewarding experience that's equal parts sweet and endearing as it was heartbreaking. Pure cinema. Give me more Sean Baker.

10/10 Dans

The Florida Project opens November 10th in UK cinemas
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The Girl with All the Gifts (2016) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written July 28th, 2017*

"The Last of Us"

The zombie genre has been one running on fatigue for quite a while now (Mostly thanks to the success of the insanely overrated The Walking Dead), but The Girl with All the Gifts is some fresh life into a genre in desperate needs of freshness. Tonally they could not be more far apart, but I'd go as far as saying Gifts is the best zombie film since Shaun of the Dead.

Despite being based on a book written long before it, there are many clear similarities between Gifts and The Last of Us. It really helps that Gifts retains a small budget, so it doesn't fall into the recent zombie pitfalls of being a mindless action film (World War Z for example). It's a film that focuses on character first, with zombie violence and action second.

It's not an action heavy film, but there are some disturbing scenes of brutality and morality choices. The idea of making the zombie children still children, but will become vicious and animalistic is an interesting take on things. The first act sees the zombie children being put in some sort of prison/school as they're experimented on in order to find a cure before things go to shit and the characters are forced on a road trip.

I loved the different stages of infection you see from the adult zombies. This virus takes the form of a fungal infection, again, like The Last of Us. I know people are divided on running zombies, so if that offends you for whatever stupid reason, you might not like this. The idea of the fungal infection makes way for a really dark and almost fairy tale like ending.

Visually, the film is gorgeous. England is an fuck ugly place, so it was funny to see that it looks so much nicer when nature takes over and wild lands have spread into the murky grey streets of the city. It also amuses me to see places I see every day like 'M & S' become abandoned and desolate. There's also a shot towards the end involving fire that is BEAUTIFUL, I won't say any more than that. 

The score wonderfully complements the bleak and apocalyptic tone. I can't even describe the score because it's unlike anything I've ever heard, but Cristobal Tapia de Veer (Who also composed the score for the insanely underrated and sadly cancelled Channel 4 show 'Utopia') did a great job here, making for some unforgettable and unique music.

I don't feel like I've mentioned any of the performances, but everyone is great. They're not quite on the level of Joel and Ellie from The Last of Us, but damn, Gemma Arteton, Paddy Considine, Glenn Close and newcomer Sennia Nanua all do a wonderful job at bringing life to characters we care about by the end.


It's quite upsetting to me that a film like this went so under the radar despite its positive reviews, but original films like this need to be supported. The Girl with All the Gifts is a smarter, smaller and more focused zombie film and one of the most underappreciated films of 2016. See it.

10/10 Dans 

The Girl with All the Gifts is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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Paterson (2016) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written May 1st, 2017*

I am shook. What a beautiful, beautiful film. This is hard one to recommend to most as I imagine a lot of people would say "Nothing happens", which is right, but this isn't a film about plot or story, it's about one man's struggle of what he really wants to do.

Adam Driver delivers what is probably the best performance of his career, it's so understated, yet powerful. Paterson is a character could just watch for hours, going through his day to day life, listening to different people during his daily journeys as a bus driver at work and his daily visit to the bar at night.

This is such a hard film to talk about, it's simplicity generates so much complexity. It's a look at every day life, it's something we can all relate to. Following around a guy who has a mundane job, but has a hobby as a genuinely good poet and whether he should persue that or not. Like most people, I imagine you have a hobby outside your usual job that you would love to do for a living, but can't. It's drenched in that reality of sadness that you probably can't and ever will do what you love for a living.

Adam Driver as poet and bus driver, Paterson

I loved there was no moments of forced drama or any real conflict at the centre of the film. There is one moment of danger that is quickly resolved and turned out to not be dangerous at all, but for the most part, you're just following the ins and outs of Paterson's life in a week, and it is so strangely engaging and wonderful.

My favourite moments are when he bumps into other poets, including a little girl and she reads him a poem while she is waiting for her mother. Little moments like this that sound boring on paper are bought to life with the incredible and engrossing writing that just took me along for the whole ride.

I wish I had something smarter or more insightful to say about Paterson, but for now I'm having a hard time gathering my thought. I will say Paterson is a masterpiece, although it won't be for everyone. I can't believe the lack of awards recognition this got, especially for Adam Driver, which is a damn shame.

10/10 Dans

Paterson is out now on Blu-ray and DVD now in the UK
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