HiFi’s Film Reviews

353 Films have been rated or reviewed by HiFi.

Blood Simple (1984): Possibly the best modern noir. Carter Burwell brilliantly incorporates environmental sounds into the score. If the characters would only stop and discuss things all the unpleasantness could be avoided. But they don\'t...
Shadow of a Doubt (1943): Be careful what you wish for...wonderfully macabre with a host of great performances, beautiful cinematography and Uncle Charlie\'s memorably creepy speech about \"Horrible, faded, fat, greedy women\". One of Hitchcock\'s best.
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985): Fantastic, hilarious, anarchic. This and \'Beetlejuice\' are Burton\'s best, IMHO.
Juno (2007): Made me grind my teeth.
Bourne Identity, The (2002): Slightly ludicrous premise (Swiss bank account? Multiple passports? Gun? What could I possibly be?) but cranks along splendidly, with the wonderfully real Potente supplying a much–needed human dimension.
Pan's Labyrinth (El Laberinto del fauno) (2006): Stunning, heart–wrenching feat of cinema. What I took to be one of the underlying ideas – that the imagination is at best a temporary refuge from evil – is nicely astringent.
Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex (Everything you always wanted to know about sex* *But were afraid to ask) (1972): Some sketches are better than others, but the best are brilliant – Gene Wilder and the sheep, the Antonioni parody (which has to be seen to be believed). Rib–tickling, generous.
Bananas (1971): A scattershot string of gags with another great Hamlisch score. Not as good as \'Take the Money\' but still pretty hilarious. There\'s something endearingly unselfish about these earlier films. A tonic.
Metropolitan (1989): Great gabfest – like a David Mamet or Hal Hartley film in that the artificiality and unnatural rhythm propel you to something satisfying on a deeper level. Brilliantly done by a cast of unknowns, especially the charming Farina.
American Psycho (2000): Seems to be saying that Bateman\'s tragedy is that his transgressions (his only hope of self–definition) count for nothing in the heartless world he inhabits. Excellent, disturbing. \"Now try getting a &#$%! table at Dorsia!\".

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HiFi’s Film Reviews