Nov 28th
Return of the Seven*
aka: Return of the Magnificent SevenUS/Spain 1966. United Artists/Mirisch/CB. 95m. Panavision

Gunfighters return to the village they saved when its men are abducted by bandits.
Run-of-the-mill sequel to The Magnificent Seven with only one of the original stars plus the evocative theme music. Shot in Spain instead of Mexico and looking it, with more talk than action, both of which struggle to sustain a story that could run one third its length.

Written by: Larry Cohen.
Producer: Ted Richmond.
Director: Burt Kennedy.
Starring: Yul Brynner, Robert Fuller, Warren Oates, Claude Akins, Julian Mateos, Virgilio Texeira, Emilio Fernandez, Fernando Rey, Elisa Montes, Jordan Christopher.
Photography: Paul Vogel.
Music: Elmer Bernstein.
Art Direction: Jose Alguero.

Nov 17th
Shoot 'Em Up* (18)
Electric Palace, Harwich

US 2007. New Line. 86m.

A man rescues a pregnant woman from hitmen, who go on a shooting spree against him.
Sublimely silly but undeniably entertaining comedy actioner, with only momentary pauses for pathos in between the violent highlights, done in a heady mixture of Tarantino and Tom & Jerry.
Written and Directed by: Michael Davis.
Producers: Susan Mountford, Don Murphy, Rick Benattar.
Starring: Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, Monica Bellucci, Stephen McHattie, Greg Bryk, Daniel Pilon, Ramona Pringle.
Photography: Peter Pau.
Music: Paul Haslinger.

Nov 16th
The Lord of the Rings*
US 1978. United Artists/Fantasy. 132m.
The safety of Middle Earth is threatened by a powerful ring which a young hobbit is entrusted to destroy.
Creditable attempt through serious animation to adapt a then "unfilmable" fantasy epic, slightly folksy in parts and constrained by a budget which stopped the story short at the end of Book 2 (The Two Towers), but with some unsettling moments including live action photographic effects for some of the book's darker scenes.

Written by: Chris Conkling, Peter S. Beagle, from the novel by J.R.R.Tolkien.
Producer: Saul Zaentz.
Director: Ralph Bakshi.
Voices of: William Squire (Gandalf), John Hurt (Aragorn), Christopher Guard (Frodo Baggins), Michael Scholes (Sam Gamgee), Norman Bird (Bilbo Baggins), Anthony Daniels (Legolas), Peter Woodthorpe (Gollum), Fraser Kerr (as "Arruman"), John Westbrook, Philip Stone, Andre Morell, Annette Crosbie, Alan Tilvern, Felix Silla.
Photography: Timothy Galfer.
Music: Leonard Rosenman.

Nov 3rd
The Invasion* (15)
Vue West End, Leicester Square



US 2007. Warner Bros/Village Roadshow. 99m.

Fragments from the Space Shuttle which disintegrated in the Earth's atmosphere also contain alien spores that infect and take over the bodies of human beings.
Another modernised remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (see Sept 5th), continuing on the slightly flawed theme of telling a suspenseful small-scale story in a big scale setting (parts of America and even the rest of the world this time), and with some slightly aggressive aliens, for creatures that are supposed to be "emotionless". Not without its unsettling and interesting moments however, but a certain amount of post-production tampering is evident. Perhaps the aliens got into the bodies of the studio heads.

Written by: Dave Kajgunich (and Larry Wachowski, Andy Wachowski), based on the novel by Jack Finney.
Producer: Joel Silver.
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel (and James McTeigue).
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Jackson Bond, Jeffrey Wright, Veronica Cartwright, Josef Sommer, Celia Weston, Roger Rees.
Photography: Rainer Klausmann, Michael Barrett.
Music: John Ottman.
Editing: Hans Funck, Joel Negron.

Nov 3rd
Dracula*** (12A) (!)
National Film Theatre

GB 1958. Universal International/Hammer. 82m.

A sinister vampire count from Transylvania is eventually hunted down by his nemesis Dr. Van Helsing.
One of the most successful Hammer horrors and also the one that set in motion a whole score of Draculas to follow, this effectively made potboiler, whilst far from being the definitive version of the novel, is nonetheless one of the closest in terms of mood and atmosphere, containing scenes which fitted in well with Hammer's style and also Bram Stoker's , and Christopher Lee is both startling and seductive in the title role.

Written by: Jimmy Sangster, from the novel by Bram Stoker.
Producer: Anthony Hinds.
Director: Terence Fisher.
Starring: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Michael Gough, Melissa Stribling, Carol Marsh, John Van Eyssen, Valerie Gaunt, Charles Lloyd Pack, Miles Malleson, Janina Faye.
Photography: Jack Asher.
Music: James Bernard.
Production Design: Bernard Robinson.

Nov 1st
Stardust* (PG)
Hollywood Film Theatre, Ipswich

In a mythical land hidden somewhere in England, a village boy and several others seek out a shooting star which has turned into human form.
Tongue-in-cheek all-star fantasy, a cinematic pantomime less self-reverential than The Lord of the Rings (Ian McKellen narrates), with some nice cameos and elaborate CGI effects, to compensate for the rather thin story.

d: Matthew Vaughn
s: Charlie Cox, Clare Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sienna Miller, Mark Strong, Jason Flemyng, Robert De Niro, Ricky Gervais, Peter O'Toole, Rupert Everett, Nathaniel Parker, Kate Magowan, Ian McKellen (voice only)

Oct 31st
Alone It Stands**
GB TVM 2007. Headgate Theatre.

I saw the DVD at home the other night of Tony Billings' meticulous filming of the first non-professional production of John Breen's play, about a famous rugby union match on 31st October 1978 between Munster and New Zealand, filmed over a number of separate performances.
Whilst many of the aspects of the production are inevitably more theatrical than cinematic, there are still plenty of lively and amusing moments which come through strongly on screen, and it certainly showcases an impressive display of energetic and versatile acting.