Iconic cinematic scene-setters that aren’t Trainspotting (in response to fighting talk from Reuben Salsa). — A while ago, in this article on least favourite songs by bands he loves, Reuben Salsa declared the first scene of Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting (1996) to be the greatest film opening of all time. Not his favourite. The greatest. He threw down the gauntlet to yours truly with these words. …

A solid, compelling account of the New York Times journalists who brought down Harvey Weinstein. — Why hasn’t She Said done better at the box office? It’s got good reviews, plenty of Oscar buzz, and features strong performances from its leads. It’s a solid piece belonging to the All the President’s Men filmmaking tradition; a subgenre that’s had something of a recent resurgence, in films such…

My recommendations for excellent fiction reading on Medium. — Following the recent mothballing of my monthly Dillon Picks, in which I highlighted favourite articles by other authors on Medium, I have replaced this with two new series. Firstly, with a monthly author spotlight in a new regular column Dillon Recommends (check out my first highlighted writer, Knight of the…

Rian Johnson’s Knives Out sequel equals its predecessor, with Daniel Craig on top form. — Because I have a soul, I’ve developed a particular loathing for meaningless entrepreneurial corporate spouting about “disruption”. Billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton) is full of such blithering nonsense, as he and his self-proclaimed group of narcissist “disrupters” gather at his Greek private island during Covid lockdown circa 2020, to play…

An amiable caper, with Jon Hamm taking over from Chevy Chase as the eponymous investigative reporter. — Confess, Fletch is based on the novels by Gregory McDonald, which I confess I’ve not read. The original Fletch adaptation in 1985 resulted in a modestly entertaining comedy thriller, and featured Chevy Chase as the eponymous investigative reporter. Fletch’s many disguises became a bigger focus, perhaps to capitalise on Chase’s…

Ralph Fiennes’s haute cuisine chef goes over the edge in Mark Mylod’s uneven but amusing satirical horror. — Part silly send-up, part gaudy gastronomical grisliness, Mark Mylod’s horror comedy The Menu may be slightly forced, but it is nonetheless a flavoursome dish. Sautéed with succulent performances, it stimulates the cinematic tastebuds throughout, even if the targets are a tad obvious. Rich people are horrible? Who’d have thought it.

The opening scene alone proves the 1996 Doctor Who TV movie is as bad as everyone remembers. — A new documentary entitled Doctor Who Am I follows Matthew Jacobs, writer of the notoriously derided 1996 Doctor Who one-off TV movie, as he travels to conventions meeting fans that he expects will hate him. I have yet to see this documentary (it’s currently in UK cinemas), but I understand…

James Gray’s self-biographical coming-of-age drama underwhelms, despite the presence of Anthony Hopkins and Anne Hathaway. — Set in Queens, circa 1980, Armageddon Time is so titled because Ronald Reagan, prior to election, referred to that generation potentially seeing a moral Armageddon. But given how often the song Armagideon Time is heard in the film (both the Willie Williams version and the cover by The Clash), I…

These controversial films may have divided fans, but the music is as great as ever. — Warning: Contains spoilers for the Star Wars sequel trilogy: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker. I’ve written about John Williams’s standout work on the other Star Wars trilogies elsewhere, covering the original film here, The Empire Strikes Back here, Return of the Jedi here, and…