Vincent Wants to Sea (2011) review from GFF 2012

Here's my short review for Vincent Wants to Sea, which I wrote for STV's Entertainment website after seeing it on the last day of the Glasgow Film Festival 2012:

http://entertainment.stv.tv/film/299184-vincent-wants-to-sea-provides-some-guilty-laughs-at-glasgow-film-festival/

I didn't really think much of it.  I felt as though they were exploiting characters who had mental health problems for the sake of comedy alone, whilst trying to hide behind a pretense of emotional sensitivity.  I get the whole "oh, it's fine, people with behavioural, social and mental disorders are entitled to be funny protagonists in films too, don't be so politically correct, that's worse than not representing them at all!" argument, but this was an almost slapstick comedy that set out to make people laugh, not a poignant social drama that set out to break down prejudice and change people's attitudes.

Glasgow Film Festival reviews

Glasgow Film Festival 2012 finishes up tomorrow night.  I'll be going to see a few films throughout the course of the day and writing up more reviews for STV.  It's been a busy week for me with work and various other commitments, so I haven't really had time to post the reviews I wrote last week until now.  So, without further ado, here they are:

In Darkness justifies its Oscar nomination at Glasgow Film Festival
Poland's revered filmmaker Agnieszka Holland's Academy Award nominated holocaust film In Darkness is a harrowing look at the blood-stained past with a hidden message of hope.

Sleepless Night does exactly what it says on the tin
Glasgow Film Festival's European Cinema collection is given a raw edge with low-budget action thriller Sleepless Night.

The Kid With a Bike: a poignant tale from simple storytelling masters the Dardennes
The Kid With a Bike offers Glasgow Film Festival a touching drama about the folly of youth and the challenges of fostering.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel wins over the crowd at Glasgow Film Festival 
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a feel-good British comedy that offers plenty to entertain both the golden oldies and younger film fans.

Time to Spare at Glasgow Film Festival
Glasgow Film Festival balances out its more challenging films with Time to Spare, a sickly-sweet populist comedy.

Black Gold is a rich-looking poor film
Glasgow Film Festival’s Arabian epic Black Gold is visually rich but pretty poor otherwise.

Your Sister's Sister (2011): UK premiere at GFF 2012

Glagow Film Festival 2012 opens tonight.   I got to do a review of Your Sister's Sister ahead of it's big UK premiere tonight.  Here's what I wrote:

Your Sister's Sister STV review


Really enjoyable little indie and some great improvisational performances from the cast - hard to believe it was shot in 12 days.