Movie reviews of Garry Arnot

More of a big screen art-installation than a movie, Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Memoria is a challenging, bamboozling experience but when immersed in its oddities, it can also be thought-provoking and bizarrely rewarding. Review

A sweet and sweaty tribute to aimless adolescence, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza serves up a satisfying slice of 70s nostalgia and introduces two future stars of cinema to our screens. Review

Affectionately crafted and beautifully portrayed by its formidable cast, Belfast brilliantly illustrates the closeness of community, then proceeds to show how quickly it can be ravaged by terrible conflict. However, by telling the troublesome tale through the bright eyes of an imaginative child, it’s a poignant, comical reflection of Branagh’s boyhood. Review

C’mon C’mon marks another kind-hearted hit from Mike Mills, his affectionate writing and direction providing a platform that showcases the acting talents of Phoenix and Norman. This effort has a little less to say for itself than his previous films, but it’s a pleasant experience to eavesdrop on its conversations. Review

King Richard is a bloated spectacle of self-righteousness made tolerable only by a handful of well measured performances. Review

Paul Schrader doubles down on his career-defining themes of moral responsibility with The Card Counter, dealing us an intense and absorbing exploration of fear and self-loathing through the lens of a brilliant, no-limits gambling film. Review

A cinematic spectacle of grandiose sound and scale, director Denis Villeneuve delivers a thought-provoking, immersive experience that slowly but assertively sets the scene for the next chapter of the adventure. Review

As films set on muddy country retreats go, Pablo Larraín’s Spencer has more in common with The Shining than The Princess Bride and it’s all the better for it. Suspenseful, experimental, and a hell of a lot funnier than you might expect, it’s a nightmarish vision of a fairytale gone horribly awry. Review

A viscerally intense vision of frenetic anxiety with a top-of-his-game Stephen Graham at the forefront of the turmoil, Philip Barantini’s Boiling Point is a compelling one-shot wonder. Review

Bold and unapologetic in its ridiculousness, Cop Secret is an entertaining sign of what might be still to come from first-timer Hannes Þór Halldórsson. As a goalkeeper, he made headlines by saving a penalty from Lionel Messi at the World Cup in 2018 and with a flair for capturing action, he’s proving to be a safe pair of hands as a film director too. Review

Fukunaga’s No Time to Die brings Daniel Craig’s mixed bag of an era to a close in disappointingly lacklustre fashion, buckling under the weight of its own anticipation. We’ve been expecting you Mr Bond, but we expected a lot better than this. Review

The Green Knight marks another outlandish outing for the David Lowery, who continues to flex the muscles of his artistic mind in the most creative and thought-provoking ways. This foray into folklore won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it’s encouraging to see another ambitious piece from one of most fascinating filmmakers around. Review

Screenwriter David Chase proves to be a master string-puller on the big screen as well as the small, and with an epic new vision stylishly brought to fruition by director Alan Taylor, The Many Saints of Newark serves as a hugely satisfying side dish to the veritable feast that is The Sopranos. Review

Yngvild Sve Flikke’s Ninjababy is an inventive and entertaining indie gem packed with humour and pathos, heightened by Thorp’s refreshingly candid portrayal of a young woman who simply doesn’t want to be a mother. Review

Clashing with the cutthroat nature of the power-hungry Rory O’Hara, this sublime picture proves that patience is a virtue as Sean Durkin’s work is well worth the wait. A thrillingly dramatic depiction of 80s entrepreneurialism with two of the best performances you’ll see all year, The Nest is the real deal. Review

Annette feels like a feature-length SNL skit where only the performers themselves are in on the joke. It’s an abysmally boring, ridiculous, slog of a film and if Leos Carax’s work is indeed the marmite of cinema, I really wish I hadn’t opened the jar. Review

Furthering Bruckner’s reputation as one of the best contemporary horror directors in the business, The Night House is a stylish and suspenseful piece, elevated by Rebecca Hall’s excellent performance. Review

Bailey-Bond’s Censor is a technically accomplished homage to home-video horror with an intriguing performance at its dark heart, but it falls victim to ponderous pacing and a poor execution of plot. Review

A groundbreaking piece of indie cinema from Janicza Bravo that could potentially be a sign of things to come in the connection between social media and film, Zola is a darkly funny, playfully constructed picture. Review

An old-fashioned western but set on an evolving Mars, Settlers makes great use of its sci-fi elements to tell what, in its essence, is a very human tale of endurance through grit and determination. As thought-provoking as it is visually striking, this marks an impressive directorial debut from Wyatt Rockefeller. Review

The Birthday Cake brings nothing new to the table but serves as a sweet homage to the gangster film genre with its generous helpings of cameo performances. Review

Cheap but not so cheerful, Giddy Stratospheres is a plucky vanity project from Laura Jean Marsh that is full of DIY punk spirit, succeeding in entertaining when leaning into its fantastic indie soundtrack. Review

Tapping into universal vulnerability by way of an entertaining tale of friendship and foolishness, Thomas Vinterberg serves up a Danish delight in generous double measures. Review

Disturbing, fearless, and with just the right amount of weird, In the Earth is a slaughter to the senses and one of Ben Wheatley’s very best. Review