Reviews by Toby White

Friday is a feelgood summer classic that's endlessly
watchable. Chris Tucker is hilarious and there are so many funny characters in this film. I first saw this nearly 10 years ago and it stills holds up really well in my opinion.

It has an excellent soundtrack - some killer Curtis Mayfield tracks.

Apart from its comedic brilliance, the film is also impressive visually and aurally. The use of colour is perfect. It uses strong primary colours to convey the heat of a summer afternoon. It harkens back to Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing. Much in the way that Lee's film moves towards an explosive encounter, hinted at by the expressionistic colour palette, Friday gravitates towards a confrontation with the neighbourhood bully. A clear difference between the two is that Friday is a far more light-hearted affair.

It remains one of my favourite comedies.

From the very beginning, Ghost in the Shell promises to be something very special. The beautiful opening music sets the tone, emanating the futuristic, mystical quality that pervades the film. And for the next 85 mins it will put a spell over you and catapult you into its brilliantly realised vision.

The visuals are spectacular! Truly mesmerising. It's difficult not to be completely taken in by the sheer intensity of the images.

Because the viewer is forced straight into the depths of the film's story-world without much explanatory dialogue, the first viewing can be a little bit overwhelming. Just taking in the amazing visuals, hypnotic music and vivid atmosphere is a delight in itself without even considering the narrative. As a result, Ghost in the Shell will hold up well on repeated viewings. I think it should be watched multiple times to apprreciate it fully.

Nothing short of amazing!!

Terrible, terrible stuff! Lacks a real horror element. There's nothing scary about this Leighton Meester girl. She's far too pretty to be a psychotic protagonist.

I gave this 2 stars for Minka Kelly. She is gorgeous!!

There are good films and there are bad films, and there are even good bad films, like Killer Klowns From Outer Space, but this is an awful bad film.

Predictable, cliched and trite. Full of stylistic incongruities. This film tries to hide behind its shallow visual style. Pulling focus in a slightly interesting way or putting on some colour gels in the hope of changing the film's look and feel can't disguise a complete lack of atmosphere.

House at the End of the Street is an extremely mediocre horror. And one that really speaks volumes about the declining genre in recent years. One thing a horror movie needs is a strong atmosphere to accompany its visual style.

Although it tries to borrow elements from Pyscho, Wes Craven's Last House on the Left and Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, it fails to deliver. It brings nothing new to the genre.

I miss good horror films!

Snowpiercer is a truly unique experience. Its amazing visuals and great concept make it one of the most memorable films of recent years for me.

If the Weinstein company succeed in getting their wish of cutting this film by 20 mins for the North American release, the vision of Joon-ho Bong will be tarnished. The pace of the film in its original form works extremely well, particularly in terms of the impact it generates by juxtaposing explosive action sequences with scenes that are focused on story detail. It's structure is most effective as it stands and it will suffer if the aforementioned get their disreputable fingers on it.

Ordet is absolutely amazing. The combination of sublime camera work and exceptional performances give it a real intensity. Whilst being very restrained in all aspects of its narrative, characterisation, visual compositions and structure, it attains an incredibly hypnotic and haunting style. Its images convey so much emotion in the characters by allowing their expressions to work in tandem with masterful framework, composition and lighting. A truly memorable work that will continue to resonate long after its seen.

McCabe & Mrs.Miller is an unforgettable masterpiece. It is beautifully photographed by Vilmos Zsigmond. The graininess of the images effectively transport the viewer to this particular period in American history. The story is told with such subtlety and at the same time it conveys so much depth beneath the surface. Hilarious at times and also melancholic. Great lead performances from Warren Beatty and Julie Christie. A poetic Western and love-story and a landmark of American cinema.

I have little positive to say about this film and to be honest I would rather refrain from writing anything lengthy to express how weak it is. The lead characters are far too uninteresting to care about, and their performances lack quality. The cliched, cheesy one-liners are so cringe-worthy that I was close to switching it off: "I have orgasms, he has wargasms!". The dialogue is poorly written at times and the plot is dull. Apart from Blake Lively looking very pretty, this film offers very little else. Surprising, coming from Oliver Stone.

An exceptional film from William Friedkin, utterly gripping from the opening scene right until the end. Spectacular visuals and another memorable score from Tangerine Dream.

I'm a huge fan of Abel Ferrara's work, but Cat Chaser is an absolutely terrible film. It doesn't really display any of the traits that make Ferrara's films so unique. It's plot is trite and predictable, the performances are flat and unconvincing. I find it very difficult to understand how he made the transition from this film to King of New York and Bad Lieutenant, two exceptionally made, provocative films. In short, Cat Chaser resembles nothing more than an indistinguishable TV movie, which for me is by far Ferrara's worst effort.