The Woman In The Window (2020)

The plot of A J Finn's book was tailored for fans of the classic film thrillers of the 30s and 40s and 50s — essentially a string of all the especially twisty-turny bits of Hitchcock's The Lady Vamishes and Rear Window mixed with the memorable moments of other noir thrillers like Witness To Murder — but what the book lacks and what this adaptation dutifully lacks is any masterful thriller storytelling: there is no clever pacing or building of suspense or deft shifts in tone, just a relentless, frenetically paced string of twists and, like the book, the movie is filled not with characters but mere shapes who all speak with A J Finn's voice and dart around with the same urgency and at the same speed, driving the story to its end before you've even started to distinguish between these blobs.

★★☆☆☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEWS

Criminal Law (1988)

A defence lawyer (Gary Oldman), the impressive sort who places a glass before a jury and says the decision they have to make is "as clear as water", starts muddying things when he turns against a client he has just got off a murder charge, suddenly believing him to be a crazed killer that needs taking down from within their lawyer-client relationship, and how could he not come to this conclusion given the client (Kevin Bacon) is doing crazy eyes so hard he is cross-eyed (see poster) and has a perfectly plain-to-see serial killer's relationship with his mother, all crude, eyeroll-inducing plot details out of all balance with the movie's attempts at loftiness as the lawyer engages in heady Socratic dialogue about justice with an annoying law muse and at the same time engages in fiery revenge talk with an unlikely love interest.

★☆☆☆☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEWS

Darkest Hour (2017)

The first days of Winston Churchill's Prime Ministership are brought to the big screen in such a grand and rousing way that history teachers around the world must be starting to feel redundant, or just relieved that that  bit of the curriculum is covered for evermore.

★★★★☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEWS

JFK (1991)

As New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison, Kevin Costner is required to deliver only short and grammatically simple lines and he delivers them all the same wooden way with upward inflection as though everything is a question, but his woodenness suits the machine-gunned details of the JFK investigation, presented here in the first of Oliver Stone's three President movies (so far), this one an epic three-and-a-half hour conspiracy theory, some of the details of which you have the advantage over Jim Garrison of being able to shoot out of the water with a quick Wiki search on your phone while you are watching.

★★★☆☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEWS

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)

Francis Ford Coppola's ludicrous, outrageous Dracula story is buoyed by Gary Oldman's gleefully grotesque portrayal of the 400 year old count who floats around with a disembodied shadow and an ability to transform into green mist or a writhing mass of rats, and the movie's Giallo horror stylings help present a world so reminiscent of the book that this really does feel like it is Bram Stoker's Dracula and not just another camp monster cliche.

★★★★☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEWS

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

No Batman movie has ever taken itself quite so seriously as this third episode of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, a long and deadly earnest superhero opera that grows increasingly loud and monotonous as it goes on and on with a booming soundtrack that for almost three hours sounds like it is heralding the rise of the valkyries - your patience will be tested and you'll want to give it all away when suddenly towards the end a final act revitalises things.

★★★★☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEW

Air Force One (1997)

Jack Ryan eventually became President in Tom Clancy's series of books, and Harrison Ford who played Jack Ryan in two movies went on to become President in this popcorn action adventure - but why not as Jack Ryan is something to ponder as you otherwise mindlessly watch terrorists hijack Air Force One only to have their diabolical plans undone by the most winning, wholesome, fist-fighting, plane-flying, terrorist-trouncing do-gooder US President since, well, Jack Ryan.

★★★☆☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEW

The Professional (Leon) (1994)

The 12-year-old orphan girl of a family shot to pieces by bad cops seeks refuge with a man from a neighbouring apartment, a hitman who makes the questionable decision of teaching her his trade, in this engaging action thriller that is part American (NY setting, Portman in her Hollywood debut, Oldman, English language), part French (Jean Reno, traditional French accordian music, Luc Besson French cool).

★★★★☆

CINECAL: ONE SENTENCE REVIEW