I made the mistake of watching Rust and Bone after watching Skyfall. This was my mistake. Because after a heart racing, superficial action movie, my brain just refused to engage any sort of multi layered movie. Yet Rust and Bone needs time and patience to appreciate its magnificent. Snubbed so foolishly at the Oscars (it did win the P'alme D'or) and quite overshadowed by Amour, French-Belgian film Rust and Bone (Des Rouille et D’Os,) is a striking and beautiful film that is extremely...

  When it comes to Tartan Asia Extreme cinema, there is one master how wields the bloody sword greater than most and that is Takashi Miike. Famed for causing sick and twisted masterpieces, he is the Japanese answer to Tarantino. And with most things Japanese, Miikes films are adrenaline filled gore feasts. Despite directing and producing over seventy films, Miikes most famous works over the pond are creepy disjointed Audition, crazy and insane musical Happiness of the Katakuris and this,...

“To all actresses who have played actresses. To all women who act. To men who ct and become women. To all the people who want to be mothers. To my mother.” This is Pedro Almodovars dedication at the beginning of All About My Mother or Todo Sobre Mi Madre. And that sets the precedent for the glorious movie that is about women and for women. All About My Mother tells the story of Manuela; a nurse who oversees organ donations. When her aspiring writer son Esteban is run over and killed whilst...

  "Seeing is not believing, it's the other way round. Believe and you will see." The Orphanage (El Orfanato in Spanish) is a supernatural thriller movie. I’m sure I heard a lot of you sigh. After all there is a check list for supernatural horror/thriller movies and on the surface; The Orphanage seems to tick them all. Dilapidated old building? Check. A vast old history? Check. Invisible “friends?” Check. Possible children ghosts? Check. Vengeful mothers? Check. Every worn out cliché?...

  There is something special about the Tartan Asia Extreme films and whether it is from the brilliant Battle Royale to the weird and wonderful Itchi the Killer, they have always set the bar in horror cinema. However, for me, there is one film that stands out above the rest; A Tale Of Two Sisters.     This 2003 South Korean based on Korean Folklore follows Su-mi and Su-yeon, sisters who come back home after a spell in a mental institute following the death of their mother....