Monster: It was okay. I was familiar with the backstory so it held no surprises. The thing that stopped me really getting into it was the forced downturn of the mouth in Theron’s character. It seemed false throughout. Watch again? No.

blow. I liked Depp in this one (though he was superb as Willy Wonka) and the overall film was good. Similar to Scarface in some ways. What really annoyed me was the last few minutes. We get an imagined meeting with his daughter, we get a line about the fact that he (George Jung) will not be up for release before 2015 and then we get the heart-tugging line that his daughter has never visited him. Who the hell cares? The man was a drug dealer on an epic scale, he ruined countless lives, his actions will have killed many and yet the film-maker wants us to feel sorry for him. It could be taken as just a fact and the daughter’s stance on the actions of her father but in that case it could have been written differently. As it stands it was a film about a really nasty guy and there is selfish sorrow at the end. Who.the.hell.gives.a.damn. Watch again? Possible – I was working at the time.

A Scanner Darkly. Loved it. The film technique was superb, really liked that presentation and the way the film used it. Plot was good and still has me thinking about it and the subplot remains as relevant now as when written. First film I’ve seen with Keanu when I did not think of Bill & Ted. The Downey Jr. character reminded me of Ben Elton many times. Very good film and one to watch – and absorb – again.

And I just today bought “It’s all gone Pete Tong“. I have the right box, the DVD has the right information on but the wrong film has been pressed – I have “Down to the Bone” which might be good – and the lead actress looks attractive and reminds me of someone I would love to see again but probably never will – but it was not the film I wanted. So that goes back tomorrow. In the meantime and because I have work I want to get through, Independence Day is the viewing pleasure. Great film.

Apt Pupil. I have no idea when I bought this and I have memories of trying to watch it previously. This film is terrible. It is terrible on every single level. There is not a single redeeming feature. Stephen King can write some excellent stories and this one is prior to Misery (where I felt he started to lose his own plot) and few films have done his work justice (Carrie, Shawshank) and others have bombed (Cujo being the star turn there) but Apt Pupil is just plain crap.

The Wind That Shakes The Barley. Bought solely on the strength of the blurb and the Palme D’Or award. Really enjoyed it. I got the plot, the politics. Read the main description of the film (from the Cork newspaper at imdb) and ignore the stupidity contained within. Whoever wrote that used the film to peddle their own nationalistic views and the film doesn’t need that crap attaching to it.

Days of Glory. Again bought because of the whole stack of glowing reviews and stars decorating the front. It was only when it started I realised it was in french with english subtitles. I’ll have missed some speech/text but it was minimal. Excellent film. It just would not have worked in english or dubbed. French film for a french (algerian) market – nothing wrong with that. Film was compelling, no ‘filler’, great to look at. Like The Wind above it too had a political agenda but in this case I actually cared about the characters. Whereas The Wind appeared superficial at times, this did not. It looked dirty, bloody and hard. And as much as I’d like an excuse to really have a pop at the French Govt, what they are doing to the Algerians is no worse that what the UK Govt is doing to the Ghurkas. Days of Glory – excellent.

Films watched again because they are superb: The Departed, Lord of War, Natural Born Killers, True Romance

In the queue: A Scanner Darkly, Babel, Serenity, Killing Zoe