Bee Season (2005)
CRUMBLIES… Old Jack is in a grump. I know you lot tolerate a general air of grumpiness – this is me doing funnies – but I’m actually annoyed. Linguistic Lynn, … Continue Reading Bee Season (2005)
No Good for Anything / The Man Who Never Made Good (1908)
CRUMBLIES… A brief one this: eight and a bit minutes of pre-war comedy from a world twisting itself out of shape through treaties, empires and dreadful ambitions. Yet, back on … Continue Reading No Good for Anything / The Man Who Never Made Good (1908)
The 39 Steps (1935)
CRUMBLIES… … Ooooohhhhh – perfect! Do you need more of a review than that? This – second only to Goodbye, Mr Chips (1939) – is Robert Donat’s best film. And it’s … Continue Reading The 39 Steps (1935)
Captain Boycott (1947)
CRUMBLIES… Old Jack has a weakness for those British movies of the the mid twentieth Century. Still in black and white, telling stories with warm caricature and earnestness, and before … Continue Reading Captain Boycott (1947)
Jawaani Jaaneman (2020)
CRUMBLIES… Well, this is lovely! And in a shiny upshot of Lockdown, really really new. A film released back in January has hit Amazon Prime with solid subtitles and delicious … Continue Reading Jawaani Jaaneman (2020)
The Professor and the Madman (2019)
CRUMBLIES… Oh, this was so promising. The story of two men in their middle years in the time of mighty beards and human branding. One, an American ex soldier with … Continue Reading The Professor and the Madman (2019)
Aadai (2019)
CRUMBLIES… So, here’s the pitch: beautiful woman wakes up in abandoned office and finds she is naked. And has to piece together her memories of the night before, indeed life … Continue Reading Aadai (2019)
Cats (2019)
CRUMBLIES… Ok. Sod the lot of you. Old Jack knows what you’re thinking: not in a million years will you ever sit through this renowned disaster of a movie. Well, … Continue Reading Cats (2019)
St. Vincent (2014)
CRUMBLIES… Some films have all the right ingredients: an angry old bugger, a new neighbour with instant tension, a kid who needs the grumpy support of the old bugger and … Continue Reading St. Vincent (2014)
Scottish Mussel (2015)
Ok. Look. There are some things an old old man like Jack here shouldn’t see. They disrupt the blood pressure by coming at you with challengingly feel-good stories, properly weird … Continue Reading Scottish Mussel (2015)
I, Tonya (2017)
CRUMBLIES… I guess we’re supposed to pre-judge this one. A story – winningly and nearly true-ishly told – about an American Ice Skater, Tonya Harding, who lived a difficult life … Continue Reading I, Tonya (2017)
Broken Blossoms (1919)
CRUMBLIES… Silent Steve expired. Sorry. There was a lull in a storm. We’d given up on noisy films and slapped on another horrifying D.W. Griffith classic. Steve mimed through the … Continue Reading Broken Blossoms (1919)
The Aeronauts (2019)
CRUMBLIES… Here’s one for the grandkids. We had another outing led by the much appreciated new Nurse Sssssashay. A modern woman, she’ll look you full in the face and challenge … Continue Reading The Aeronauts (2019)
Knives Out (2019)
CRUMBLIES… Oh, wow. This is brilliant. I know having half your insides cut out and changing your physique from slouching oldster to gutted-fish will test your intellect and view of … Continue Reading Knives Out (2019)
Charlie’s Angels (2019)
CRUMBLIES… You know, there’s not a lot left of Old Jack. I’ve spent much of the last year being fingered by professionals, getting passed from probe to probe, excision to … Continue Reading Charlie’s Angels (2019)
The Unchanging Sea (1910)
CRUMBLIES… Okay, back to early-ish cinema and D.W. Griffiths in year three of his career; and at film number 131, or thereabouts. He knew how to work hard before he … Continue Reading The Unchanging Sea (1910)
