It was fifty years ago today… On Sunday 8th July, cinemas up and down the land screened the Beatles animated musical fantasy Yellow Submarine to mark the 50th anniversary of its release in July, 1968. Remastered and restored for the celebration (for the first time since the thirtieth anniversary in 1998) […]
Mark Cunliffe
Senior Contributor
Mark's first cinematic experience was watching the Cannon and Ball vehicle, The Boys in Blue. He hasn't looked back since. Hailing from Lancashire, he is an occasional contributor to Arrow DVD, writing booklet inlay essays on a variety of titles, including Children of Men and The Day of the Jackal. He has also written a chapter for Ste Brotherstone and Dave Lawrence's book, Scarred For Life Vol II. He is often found on Letterboxd, has appeared on the Talking Pictures podcast and also writes for We Are Cult, Horrified and America's left-leaning news outlet ZNetwork. He is also a regular contributor to the Geek Show's podcasts, including Pop Screen and the Uncut series.
The Loneliness of a Long Distance Runner (1962) one of the greatest endings to a film ever (Review)
Based on Alan Sillitoe’s 1959 first-person short story of the same name, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner was an obvious choice for Woodfall Films following the success they had had with a previous adaptation of a Sillitoe novel; Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. It tells the story of […]
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) Just as relevant 60 years later (Review)
There comes a point in the life of a teenager when you have to leave the books of your childhood behind and venture into the great unknown of adult literature. It’s a big move, as the books and authors you find there could not only become lifelong companions, but they […]
Girl With Green Eyes (1964) One for fans of the pleasingly old-fashioned Brooklyn (Review)
When we think of Woodfall films we invariably think of the drama genre, unique to the British film industry, known as ‘kitchen sink’. After all, it was a genre they had certainly made their name off the back of, with an impressive track record straight from the traps; Look Back […]
Look Back in Anger (1959) the film that helped establish British kitchen-sink realism (Review)
When I was a kid, the Liverpudlian comedian Mick Miller used to tell a joke I still regard fondly to this day. He’d stand on stage before the microphone and say “And now, name that film”. He’d then turn his back to the audience and, looking over his shoulder at […]
The Mercy (2017) James Marsh delivers arguably his finest fictional narrative cinematic feature yet (Review)
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race; the first single-handed, round the world (with no stops) yacht race. The race remains deeply controversial as only one yachtsman managed to finish and another, the failing businessman and amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst, encountered so many difficulties […]
Breakheart Pass (1975) The Bronson Western that ran alongside New Hollywood (Review)
A train is bound for Fort Humboldt, a snowcapped US Army frontier outpost where an outbreak of fatal diphtheria has decimated the regiment leaving the fort vulnerable and open to attack. Onboard the train is a detachment of soldiers set to relieve the sick and deceased, a doctor, a preacher, […]
The Old Dark House (1932) proof that James Whale was a master of intelligent, witty thrills and chills (Review)
During a particularly treacherous thunderstorm in rural Wales, a series of travellers are forced to seek refuge in an eerie and isolated house. Their hosts are an elderly eccentric pair of siblings and their mute brute of a butler. As the night unfolds, the stranded party realise that the house […]
Brakes (2016) An interesting debut with an interesting spin on the Rom-Com (Review)
London based actress Mercedes Grower makes her screenwriting and directorial debut with Brakes, a film that couldn’t be any more lo-fi if it tried. Episodic and improvisational in feel, Brakes is a multi-stranded ensemble piece that explores what it is to fall in and out of love in contemporary London. […]
Bad Day For The Cut (2017) Coen-like thriller tropes, sturdy social realism, and unique Irish flavour (Review)
When the mother he both lived with and doted on is violently bludgeoned to death in an apparent home invasion, middle-aged and seemingly mild-mannered farmer Donal (Nigel O’Neill) takes his shotgun and newly restored campervan and sets out from their remote farmstead looking for answers and revenge. What he comes […]