Student Section
Film Reviews:
Written by George Bolt. In this edition, George has chosen to write five film reviews, including Call Me By Your Name, Moonlight, AfterSun, 12 Angry Men and Airplane!
As winter slowly departs and we approach the summertime, it's time we start thinking about those evenings when we're too tired to get outside and just want to climb in bed and chuck on a good enticing film. However, sometimes a boring, unfunny and stale film can ruin your stress-free night, so I'm here to help. I've put together a short list of five great movies for summer only!
Call Me By Your Name
Film rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My first pick is Call Me By Your Name by Luca Guadanigo. CMBYN is an Italy-based romance/drama featuring Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer playing Elio and Oliver. The film is about the romantic relationship between Elio and Oliver over the course of Oliver's stay in Italy to work with Elios father. The film's biggest attraction is the beautiful scenery and filming, set in the heart of Italy. We see beautiful Roman architecture and vast Italian Landscapes perfectly captured by Luca Guadanigos lens. As the film is set in the summer of 1983 this is definitely a top 5 summer film.
AGE RATING - 15
Released: 27, October 2017
Director: Luca Guadanigo
Features: Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer
Moonlight
Film rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My second pick, Moonlight, follows a young child through his course of a tough life where he grows up in the poor and rough areas of Miami. The film was iconic for the African American community as it poured light onto the tough upbringing lots of African Americans have to go through in these rough and neglected parts of America. The Movie won an Academy Award for Best Picture in 2017. Its amazing colour scheming and filming truly captivate the beauty of the struggle of life and truly make it a perfect summer film.
AGE RATING - 15
Released: 17, February, 2017
Director: Barry Jenkins
Features: Mahershala Ali
12 Angry Men
Film rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
12 Angry Men, my third pick, follows the story of a jury placed with the seemingly simple job of convicting a teenage boy for the murder of his abusive father. However, as the film progresses, this seemingly easy job becomes more complicated as finding the final decision between the 10 men becomes almost impossible. The incredible scripting and impressive acting from the 12 make this film an enticing experience
AGE RATING - U
Released: 18, April, 1957
Director: Sidney Lurnet
Features: Henry Fonda, Lee. J. Cobb, Joseph Sweeney
Airplane!
Film rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My 4th pick is a little different to the first 3, Airplane!, a comedy film released in 1980 follows a war veteran struggling with PTSD and an extreme fear of flights. After retiring from the military Leslie Nielsen's character ‘Ted’ becomes an alcoholic and struggles to hold a responsible job. Hence, his wartime girlfriend leaves him and jumps on a flight away. In pure desperation, Ted faces his fear of flights and buys the same ticket. Unfortunately for him, the flight would come with some complications… Airplane is a great summer with an outstanding plot followed by some pick-name actors.
AGE RATING - 12A
Released: 29, August 1980
Director: David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, Jerry Zucker
Features: Leslie Nielson, Jonathan Banks
AfterSun
Film rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Aftersun, my final pick, is a beautiful but tough watch. In the film, we follow a divorced father who takes his daughter abroad to Turkey. Paul Mescal's character suffers from serious mental health issues unknown to his daughter and we see multiple references to these issues however they are not directly addressed. This makes the film almost uncomfortable at times as we feel the tension between the character and his struggle. The film is beautifully shot and uses an outstanding soundtrack to replace the use of dialogue to explain the feelings of the characters.
AGE RATING - R
Released: 21, October, 2022
Director: Charlotte Wells
Features: Paul Mescal
Why The 1975 hits the right note for all
By Francesca Coleman
I feel like we can all agree that music is the one thing in the world that everyone at least likes. We all have a genre or certain artist that is our holy grail. For me, that band is The 1975. Consisting of four members, the notorious frontman and rhythm guitarist Matty Healy, lead guitarist Adam Hann, bassist Ross MacDonald, and drummer/producer George Daniel, The 1975 is my favourite band in the world. From what people see online of Matty Healy on the bands most recent tour ‘The 1975: Still, At their very best’, many think he’s an absolute idiot and maybe even a bit problematic. This makes the band seem slightly questionable however, I believe they are musical genius and once the lyrics are heard it can be seen they are not as bad as people think.
A song for everyone
Over the years the band has produced five wonderful albums, their debut, self-titled album, ‘The 1975’, their second, ‘I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it’, third, ‘A brief inquiry into online relationships’, fourth, ‘Notes on a conditional form’ and their most recent, released in October of 2022, ‘Being funny in a foreign language’. Throughout these albums, The 1975 has changed their sound numerous times, though they are mostly known for their signature genre, Pop-rock. Due to this constant switch in style I believe that they have a song for everyone. Specifically on their fourth studio album, ‘Notes on a conditional form’. From the first song being a speech from icon and activist Greta Thunberg and the last being a love song about the friendship throughout the band, this album truly has everything. It has ‘People’, a screamy song about the state of our society, multiple dance-pop songs and even a country song ‘Roadkill’. As you can see, something for everyone.
Excavating emotions
Something I love about The 1975 is their ability to make their listeners feel. From happy and excited to downright sobbing, they have made me feel it all. Matty Healy’s writing and the band's musical talent come together to make one symphonic extravaganza after another. Their recent single ‘Happiness’ off their Latest album is as it seems. It creates happiness. From the lyrics to the instruments it does as it says. Then, there are also songs like ‘Always wanna die (sometimes)’ and ‘Be my mistake’ that are so extremely sad, the emotion travels from the music into your heart.
Sadly, following the end of their tour, the band are going on a hiatus. However, at a recent show Matty Healy announced that the four are working on new material already, even playing a snippet of a demo. In conclusion, if you want music that brings you genuine emotion, happy or sad, that sounds exquisite, get your headphones out and listen to The 1975.
-The Archer Eye-
Est. 2022