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Simon Rose

The Business of Film: IF, The Strangers – Chapter One & Unfrosted

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: IF, The Strangers – Chapter One & Unfrosted
James Cameron-Wilson recommends IF, the new #1 in a UK box office +16% on the previous week. Starring Ryan Reynolds, this family film is sentimental but smart, is beautifully executed by some famous names behind the camera and is both touching and funny. James found the first part of a trilogy prequel, The Strangers: Part One, to be clichéd and far-fetched beyond belief and yet the camerawork of director Renny Harlin made him want to know what happens next. But he found Unfrosted on Netflix to be almost as awful as Garfield 2. A supposedly true story about Kellogg's invention of the pop tart, directed by Jerry Seinfeld, it has a witless script and is only minusculely redeemed by a lot of famous cameos.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, In the Land of Saints & Sinners, Prom Dates

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, In the Land of Saints & Sinners, Prom Dates
James Cameron-Wilson laments the UK box office, down 32% because of the sunny weather. It meant Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes only took £3.8m. Despite his loneliness in the cinema, James found it a miraculous piece of cinematic magic; clever, multi-layered, exciting and often funny, with amazing production design. On Netflix, he was disappointed by In the Land of Saints & Sinners, a plodding thriller with Liam Neeson. And he found Disney Plus's Prom Dates to have a few amusing bits but to be far too crude and predictable.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: The Fall Guy, Tarot & The Idea of You

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: The Fall Guy, Tarot & The Idea of You
James Cameron-Wilson takes Simon Rose through the UK box office chart, up 27% on the week. New #1 is The Fall Guy about a stunt man. But James found Ryan Gosling smug and obtruse and Emily Blunt irritating in a noisy & cheesy film that, while possessing some impressive action scenes, makes little sense. At #6 is boring low-budget horror Tarot, which is one star all the way. James, however, did enjoy Amazon Prime's The Idea of You with Anne Hathaway romancing a much younger pop star. Often delightful and touching – in a rom com sort of way – James felt it was like a music version of Notting Hill.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Challengers, There's Still Tomorrow & 1927's The Cat And The Canary

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Challengers, There's Still Tomorrow & 1927's The Cat And The Canary
James Cameron-Wilson reports on a becalmed box office. New #1 is the tennis drama Challengers with Zendaya. Although a tennis fan, James became irritated by the cinematic pyrotechnics which got in the way of the drama. He was amazed to see the period-set black and white Italian drama There's Still Tomorrow – Italy's top film last year – released in 142 cinemas. An homage to neo-realist post-war Italian cinema about the role of women in a patriarchical society, he considers it a modern masterpiece, hard-hitting but still with heart, humour and warmth. He also loves the beautifully restored home release of 1927's silent film The Cat And The Canary, the hugely-influential precursor of all dark house comedy thrillers, which is also packed with glorious extras.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Abigail, Sometimes I Think About Dying & The Lavender Hill Mob

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Abigail, Sometimes I Think About Dying & The Lavender Hill Mob
With no big new releases, James Cameron-Wilson explains that the UK box office is down 36%, with Back to Black still #1. At #5 is horror film Abigail about a kidnapped ballerina. Extremely gory, it is also increasingly clichéd. James was impressed by Sometimes I Think About Dying at #19, a minimalist drama in which Daisy Ridley is a shy loner. Nuanced, it makes the audience work but is moving and sticks in the memory. Out for home viewing is 1951's A Lavender Hill Mob, with Alec Guinness a meek bank clerk with nefarious ambitions. The beautifully-restored disc is packed with fascinating extras. It is a must, says James.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Back to Black, Civil War & Scoop

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Back to Black, Civil War & Scoop
James Cameron-Wilson welcomes a 7% kick in the box office. #1 is Sam Taylor-Johnson's Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black with Marisa Abela giving a stunning performance, celebrating her talent while not shying from depicting the reality of addiction. Although James rarely cries in movies, he was exceptionally moved by the film and loved it. He was also impressed by #2 Civil War, a dystopian USA-set thriller that is realistic and timely. An amazing and riveting film which is a great piece of cinema, he feels writer/director Alex Garland is one of our greatest filmmakers. On Netflix, he found Scoop, about Prince Andrew's ill-fated TV interview, to be a cross between The Crown and Spitting Image. He thought it engrossing but had trouble suspending disbelief.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Monkey Man, The First Omen & Road House

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Monkey Man, The First Omen & Road House
James Cameron-Wilson reports on a box office down 36%, with blockbusters maintaining the four top spots. Dev Patel's directorial debut Monkey Man comes in at #5, a violent film about a hustler with a score to settle. Although it has kinetic energy, it lacks humanity and is derivative and wearisome. Worse is The First Omen at #6. Incredibly similar to the plot of Immaculate, it's a horror film with no sense of credibility. James much preferred the Amazon Prime superior remake of Road House with Jake Gyllenhaal as a charming bouncer. Directed by Doug Liman, it's more complex and interesting than the original and, while violent, it also has a great deal of humour.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Kung Fu Panda 4, Godzilla x Kong – The New Empire, Mothers' Instinct & Shirley

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Kung Fu Panda 4, Godzilla x Kong – The New Empire, Mothers' Instinct & Shirley
James Cameron-Wilson reports box office up another 65% with Kung Fu Panda 4 #1 with over £5m. The animation is superb and the jokes were just good enough to keep James awake. #2 is Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire with £4.1m has amazing CGI and decent human performances from the likes of Rebecca Hall but James wasn't overimpressed with this, the 38th Godzilla film. He found #6 Mothers' Instinct with Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway to be a stylish 1960s thriller in the Patricia Highsmith mould, enjoying it so much he didn't want it to end. On Netflix, he found Shirley, with Regina King as Shirley Chisholm, fighting to become the first black woman in the US Congress a noble and nuanced history lesson, if not entirely compelling as a film.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Ghostbusters Frozen Empire, Immaculate, The Lavender Hill Mob & One Life

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Ghostbusters Frozen Empire, Immaculate, The Lavender Hill Mob & One Life
James Cameron-Wilson says that #1 Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is the sort of film that makes him sorry he became a film critic, being rushed, full of bloated CGI and an utter waste of time. He found horror film Immaculate at #3, set in an Italian convent, nasty and utterly formulaic. He and Simon celebrate the cinema re-release of Ealing comedy The Lavender Hill Mob while James urges everybody to see Anthony Hopkins in the amazing true-life tale of Nicholas Winton and the Kindertransport, One Life, now out for home viewing.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published:
Simon Rose

The Business of Film: Anatomy of a Fall, Damsel & Ricky Stanicky

Simon Rose
Original Broadcast:

The Business Of Film

The Business of Film: Anatomy of a Fall, Damsel & Ricky Stanicky
James Cameron-Wilson analyses the latest box office chart, -28%, still dominated by Dune 2. With no new films to see, James turns to the home video release of the French drama Anatomy of a Fall. nominated for 5 Oscars and winning for its screenplay. It was more rewarding on a second viewing, being multi-layered, perceptive and peopled with three-dimensional characters. He feels that what he thought was a good film could be a great one. He was impressed, as before, by the 20-year-old Millie Bobby Brown who is the heroine of Netflix's dark fantasy Damsel, which he found intense and violent. He found Peter Farrelly's gross-out Amazon Prime comedy Ricky Stanicky, with Zac Efron, highly offensive and unfunny.
Guest:

James Cameron-Wilson


Published: