Cold Storage (2026)

Director Jonny Campbell has done a lot of great TV work throughout his career. He doesn't have as much success when it comes to feature films though, with his only previous theatrical release being the strangely mishandled Alien Autopsy, a film that tried (and failed) to capitalise on the popularity of the two leads. Cold Storage has more than just one or two gimmicks to help it along, and it's helped by a screenplay from David Koepp. It still manages to show that Campbell may be best suited to TV work though.

Joe Keery and Georgina Campbell play Teacake and Naomi, two employees looking after a self-storage facility. They don't know that the building also houses a secret lab area. Nor do they know that there's a dangerous and infectious fungus stored there. It's parasitic, it's very quick at spreading itself around, and it's just broken out of the sealed containers that held it for decades. Teacake and Naomi will face threats from a number of visitors, but if they can hold on long enough then they might get some major help from a grizzled miltary veteran (Liam Neeson) who has seen how dangerous the fungus can be first-hand.

This might be a fungus, it might try to keep a lighter tone throughout, and there are one or two quirks added to the lead characters, but it's otherwise business as usual. It's a zombie film, and it's not an especially good zombie film. It's certainly not terrible, thanks to some diverting sequences and a few good special effects scattered throughout, but it's not very good. Maybe I'm projecting, but Koepp's screenplay feels as if he thinks he's too good for a sub-genre that he can't quite get a handle on.

Keery and Campbell ARE good, and they deserve a better film that would make better use of their talent. Both are appealing leads on their own, but it's a big boost for the film that they have great chemistry together when sharing the screen. Neeson coasts along in his role, but it's nice to see him in something that isn't beating the dead horse that is his Taken persona (even if he retains a better skillset than most of us), and it's good to have a couple of fun supporting roles for Lesley Manville and Vanessa Redgrave. Ellora Torchia works well as someone who provides remote support for Neeson's character, Aaron Heffernan is a problematic ex, and there's even more varied characters in the shape of Gavin Spokes (a bad boss), Richard Brake (a bad military type), and a few random critters that help to spread the fungus.

All this needed was a bit of tightening up (the runtime may only be 99 minutes, but even that feels just a bit too long), a bit more creativity in the set-pieces, and some more characters to help boost any potential bodycount. That would have been enough to make this an easy one to recommend. As it stands, it's fine. Those after something easy to watch, and something that plays within the horror genre without being too intense or scary for adult viewers, should enjoy themselves. It's the cinematic equivalent of a fast food meal. But those wanting a tasty steak dinner should look elsewhere. 

6/10

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Netflix And Chill: Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris (2022)

You can spend all the time you like working through lists of the greatest movies ever made. You can, and should, check out the worthwhile filmographies of people like Akira Kurosawa, Alfred Hitchcock, Danny Boyle, Lynne Ramsay, and many others. You can even spend as much of your free time as possible exploring your favourite genres and sub-genres, whether they are rom-coms, serial killer movies, or low-budget zombie flicks. It's also important to make time for films like Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris though, another film based on the novel by Paul Gallico. This won't necessarily be named as anyone's favourite film from the year it was released, and it didn't seem to gain any momentum throughout the awards season, but it is a genuine delight from start to finish. I was grinning a LOT, there were times when I laughed aloud, and some moments had me turning my face away slightly so that my partner didn't see the tears creeping out of the corners of my eyes. There are many films vying for your time, and many that will have made a bigger impact on the cinematic landscape, but I doubt there are too many from the recent release schedule that will warm your cockles like this one.

Lesley Manville plays Ada Harris, a cleaning lady in the 1950s who eventually finds out that her husband has been officially declared to have been killed during his military service. Having fallen in love with a Christian Dior dress that she sees in the home of one of her regular clients, Mrs. Harris becomes determined to head over to Paris and treat herself to one. She needs £500. Yes, that should do it. As the title suggests, Mrs. Harris makes her trip, but not without a few setbacks on the way, but she then has to figure out how to deal with the snobbery of those who believe a Dior dress should remain exclusive to the rich (although, as the film notes on a number of occasions, the rich often appear rich while deciding on what bills they can keep defering until a later date). Claudine Colbert (Isabelle Huppert) is one person working at Dior who believes in that principle of exclusivity, but Mrs. Harris finds herself some useful allies in the shame of the Marquid de Chassange (Lambert Wilson), an accountant named André Fauvel (Lucas Bravo), and a lovely model named Natasha (Alba Baptista). And there's also her own forceful and winning personality to help her achieve her goal, which becomes something that a lot of people around her end up rooting for.

With four people working to adapt this from page to screen, including director Anthony Fabian, this could have easily ended up as either a bit of a mess or something a bit too episodic and disjointed to be truly effective. Although I am not familiar with anything else from Fabian, I would say that I've had mixed reactions to other films featuring writing from Carroll Cartwright, Keith Thompson, or Olivia Hetreed. Thankfully, everyone seems to be pulling in the right direction here, almost as if the onscreen struggle to push Mrs. Harris to victory was replicated by those behind the camera (and I mean that compliment for everyone, but must also mention the wonderful, and arguably more vital than ever, costume design by Jenny Beavan).

While Fabian and co. do great work, the cast really do everything they can to put the icing on the cake. Those already mentioned are varying degrees of wonderful, whether being cast as a temporary villain (Huppert) or a welcome helping hand (Bravo), or even someone who seems very pleasant and well-meaning, but ends up causing a great deal of hurt with one ill-considered "compliment" (Wilson). There are also great turns from the cast members who stay in old Blighty while Mrs. Harris flies over to France. Ellen Thomas plays a very good friend, Jason Isaacs is a twinkle-eyed rogue who might be missing a beautiful chance at happiness right under his nose, and both Anna Chancellor and Rose Williams are clients who are both quite horrifying and selfish in different ways. And as for Manville, I truly believe that this is the kind of performance that should have been showered with all kinds of praise and accolades. Equally believable while making herself small or allowing herself to blossom into a new full bloom, her acting here is a masterclass in how you deliver an unforgettable movie character without relying on a bag-full of tricks and quirks. Manville carries herself throughout every scene with a likeability and an honesty, seemingly playing a character that she cares for as much as she wants us to.

Although I was a bit wary as soon as the film started, I soon warmed to it, and I started to fall in love with it very quickly, mainly thanks to Manville's performance. I think it only has one main flaw, and that is the predictability. Even the seemingly unpredictable moments eventually wind around and head back to intersect where you think things were heading, but that just adds to the warmth and comfort of the whole thing.

Everyone should watch this, especially while the world around us feels so stressful and dangerous, to put it mildly. This is a real balm for your soul, it's a cinematic delight, and it should be available to everyone on prescription. If you have any sense of decency and fairness, if you have ever worked hard for something that others have had gifted to them, and if you believe in good things happening to good people, there's a little bit of Mrs. Harris in you already. That's a good thing, and it also means that you should reward yourself with a viewing of this film.

10/10

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Phantom Thread (2017)

There are times when I remember that I have yet to see a couple of movies from Paul Thomas Anderson and then kick myself for my oversight. Mainly because I OWN The Master, I just haven't given myself the time to watch it yet. Seeing Phantom Thread was certainly a reminder that I love his work, because this is another almost perfect movie.

At the centre of it all is a flawless performance (his last?) from Daniel Day-Lewis, playing Reynolds Woodcock. Woodcock is a celebrated designer of dresses, the name everyone wants to be wearing on their biggest days. He is also, in his own words, a confirmed bachelor. He finds himself interested in women, but only in the ways they inspire him to create more dresses. Or so it seems. The one constant woman in his life is his sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), but things get shaken up a bit when he finds a more fiery muse than usual in the shape of Alma (Vicky Krieps).

I'm going to try to restrain myself until I revisit this film for another couple of viewings, which I will, but my first thought as the credits rolled was that I had just watched ANOTHER masterpiece from Anderson. And, considering I had initially been reluctant to give this one my time (mistakenly assuming the film would just be a rather sedate look at the life of a dressmaker), that came as a bit of a surprise.

Everything works, with the exception of a few of the scripted lines of dialogue that feel a little bit forced. Anderson is as assured as ever in his roles behind the camera (he both wrote and directed this), the quality of the design and detailing shines through in every scene, the score by Jonny Greenwood works wonderfully with the visuals, and the tone is allowed to be quite serious while also allowing for small moments of comedy, sometimes very dark comedy.

That's all well and good, and would be enough to make this a pleasure to watch, but the trio of lead performances takes it all to another level. Day-Lewis clearly assumed that this role would allow him to end his acting career with another Oscar, and I hope there's a chance it may (time will tell). Awards or not, his turn here is up with his very best, and that's saying something. I wasn't familiar at all with Krieps, who deserves almost an equal amount of praise for holding her own alongside Day-Lewis in a way that seems effortless. And Manville makes the most of her key scenes, allowed to ebb and flow as the script requires.

What plays out as a film looking at the drive and focus of an artist also says a hell of a lot more. Phantom Thread is about creating, it's about finding inspiration, and yet it's also about finding yourself matched with someone you only realise you need when you see aspects of yourself buried within them. The old saying tells us that opposites attract. Phantom Thread shows that it can just as often be the similarities that create a stronger bond for some people.

I want to try and say more about the film, but I can't. Even the title is incorporated in the narrative as a telling character moment, something with more than one meaning that becomes obvious once it has been discussed. Yeah, I am pretty sure I will be upping my rating to a 10 further down the line. Not yet though, not quite yet.

9/10.

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Bonus Review: Maleficent (2014)

Maleficent, for those who may have forgotten, is the main villain in Disney's Sleeping Beauty, a film that remains an undeniable high point amongst so many animated classics from the House Of Mouse. This film is all about her, and allows people to see a different side to the famous baddie. Apparently, the story that we all thought we knew didn't play out quite as we were told. Maleficent changes that, giving viewers the other side of events. It is to Sleeping Beauty as Wicked is to The Wizard Of Oz, to make the obvious analogy.

I don't want to give too much away, as there are a number of pleasant surprises here in the way that the plot unfolds, so all I will say in my summation of the storyline is that Maleficent is introduced as a happy, winged fairy (played by Isobelle Molloy) and then experiences something that turns her into the scary adult that cursed a princess named Aurora. The scary adult version of Maleficent is played by Angelina Jolie, and the Aurora who is due to suffer on her sixteenth birthday is played by Elle Fanning.

Let me start with the positives here, because I liked a lot of aspects of Maleficent. The first, and main, ace up its sleeve is Angelina Jolie in the lead role. There may be scenes in which her cheekbones are far too distracting (no, really, I'm serious, I thought they were going to rip through her skin at some points), but her performance is almost perfect throughout. She puts on a decent British accent, looks superb in the costume and make-up, and manages to move from scary to funny to sad as the scenes demand. I know, I know, that's a basic requirement for many actors, although you wouldn't always know it, but she really dances through all of the mood changes with ease. The rest of the cast also do good work, although Sharlto Copley is left to go overboard as the distraught king/father who becomes obsessed with destroying Maleficent before any harm comes to his daughter. Fanning is very likable, and Sam Riley is an absolute standout as Diaval, a crow transformed into a man. Lesley Manville, Imelda Staunton, and Juno Temple are fine as fairies (although they are given far too many comedy moments that aren't really all that funny), and Brenton Thwaites is perfectly acceptable as the bland Prince Charming type, Prince Phillip, to be exact.

The production values, and the design of the world shown onscreen, are also excellent. There are often an over-abundance of FX shots in each sequence, but they're pretty gorgeous. This is eye candy, and it's eye candy that many will find most satisfying when things move from the sweetness and light of the opening scenes to the darker visual style of the next hour.

Unfortunately, that's about all I have in the way of compliments.

Director Robert Stromberg, enjoying his first time in the big chair, fumbles things from the very beginning. I have little doubt that many decisions were dictated to him, and I should have expected a final product like this from Disney (damn my eyes for letting the trailer deceive me), but the bright, colourful moments don't feel as if they belong in this movie. When things darken, however, they don't go dark enough. This isn't a twist on familiar material. This is an entire rewrite to make everything sweeter, which makes the movie lazy and clumsy when it should have been interesting and much more impressive.

Thankfully for Stromberg, he can quickly point a finger at screenwriter Linda Woolverton, because this is one stinker of a script. Oh, there are some great lines here and there, mostly made great thanks to the delivery by Jolie, but it's 95% awful, made worse by the fact that it's clearly meant to be clever and fun throughout. The voiceover narration, by Janet McTeer, is especially bad, often relating information that could have been shown onscreen. In fact, it's occasionally describing exactly what IS being shown onscreen. At the start of the movie I thought it was irritating, but acceptable, as a shorthand way to throw viewers into the world. But I soon wanted McTeer to just shut up, which she doesn't (okay, she does, but the narration keeps cropping up at various points throughout the movie).

This is a film made enjoyable by the sheer force of Jolie's adopted personality in the main role, and even she can't always do enough to improve the lines that she's given. That would take real magic, and there's none of that here.

5/10

Enjoy Maleficent's original appearance when this is released in the UK in a few days - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sleeping-Beauty-Blu-ray-Ken-Anderson/dp/B00JGTSWBK/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1401307120&sr=1-2&keywords=sleeping+beauty

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